Spanish Restaurants in Buckhurst Hill
1. Salt Yard
Spanish restaurant in Fitzrovia
54 Goodge St - W1
“Despite now being part of a rolled-out chain, they have managed to maintain good quality” at these tapas-haunts, whose original branch off Goodge Street was an early pioneer of the capital’s trend to small plates. A minor gripe is of “packed” seating, but most feedback focuses on their “delicious food and well-thought-out wine list”.
2. Ember Yard
Spanish restaurant in Soho
60 Berwick Street - W1
2021 Review: Up-and-down reports on this “lovely” Soho haunt, specialising in wood-fired, Mediterranean, grilled dishes – part of Salt Yard Group (all of which was absorbed into the Urban Pubs portfolio in November 2018). Fans applaud the “delicious tapas from this ever-reliable family” but quite a few reports express disappointment: “maybe there’s a sense it isn’t quite what it was”.
3. Salt Yard Borough
Spanish restaurant in Southwark
New Hibernia House, Winchester Walk - SE1
“Despite now being part of a rolled-out chain, they have managed to maintain good quality” at these tapas-haunts, whose original branch off Goodge Street was an early pioneer of the capital’s trend to small plates. A minor gripe is of “packed” seating, but most feedback focuses on their “delicious food and well-thought-out wine list”.
4. Dehesa
Italian restaurant in Soho
25 Ganton Street - W1
“Still a really good location and format” – this Soho ‘tapas haven’ is increasingly forgotten about nowadays, but can still merit a visit. Its Italian/Spanish dishes “aren’t as good as they used to be” but are “solid, and better than many offerings in the area”; and there’s an interesting selection of drinks. Also, “it has a really relaxed style, but with all the vibe of neighbouring Carnaby Street”.
5. Opera Tavern
Spanish restaurant in Covent Garden
23 Catherine Street - WC2
“Keeping up its standards” – this “sweet” and stylish converted pub near the Royal Opera House operates over two floors. It’s part of the Salt Yard chain, and serves the Spanish and Italian tapas for which the group is known: “good food”, but some feel it’s “expensive” for what it is.
6. Darkhorse
British, Modern restaurant in Stratford
16-19 Victory Parade, East Village - E20
“Love this restaurant which we’ve been going to regularly since it opened!” – this large, modern brasserie has established itself over eight years as one of the best bets for a meal in Stratford’s East Village, thanks to its “friendly service” and a selection of dishes majoring in steaks and roasts from the charcoal oven. “First time and the hard surfaces made the restaurant very noisy, but the food is very tasty!”
7. Escocesa
Spanish restaurant in Stoke Newington
67 Stoke Newington Church Street - N16
“Just wonderful” Stoke Newington tapas bar “very popular locally” for its “great sharing plates” and “wide range of Spanish wines, many by the glass”. Scottish seafood is the prime focus for dishes that put a Hispanic twist on Caledonian produce, all courtesy its Glasgow-born founder, ex-music producer Stephen Lironi. Top Tip – “we always eat early to take advantage of the half-price oysters before 7pm”.
8. Bar Esteban
Spanish restaurant in Crouch End
29 Park Rd - N8
This “enjoyable tapas” bar in Crouch End (sibling to Stokie’s Escocesa, see also) is suitably “cramped and authentic”, and for a dozen years has been “a handy spot to have on the doorstep, with a very good Spanish wine list, mostly available by the glass”. ‘Esteban’ was founded by Stephen Lironi, a Glasgow-born music producer, backed here by Spanish duo chef Pablo Rodriguez and manager Naroa Ortega. No complaints about the quality, although “the menu rarely changes”.
9. Laxeiro
Spanish restaurant in
95 Columbia Road - E2
Well predating the gentrification of Columbia Road, this “small, local Spanish restaurant” (est 1982) is worth remembering when browsing for blooms and designer flower pots. It probably won’t re-frame your understanding of Hispanic cuisine, but “prices are reasonable” and the “team are friendly and fun” (albeit sometimes under pressure at busy times).
10. Morito
Spanish restaurant in Hackney
195 Hackney Road - E2
This “buzzy and enjoyable location” for “very well-executed Mediterranean small dishes” is the more casual offspring of Sam & Sam Clark’s Moro next door in Exmouth Market – and now has its own spin-off in Hackney Road. The original Spanish/Moorish fusion has taken on additional influences from further afield, including Crete and the Middle East. Top Menu Tip – “good cheese fritters with Cretan honey and Cretan sausage and yoghurt with first rate flatbread”.
11. Brat
British, Modern restaurant in Shoreditch
First Floor, 4 Redchurch Street - E1
Tomos Parry’s phenomenally successful haunt occupies the first floor of a converted Shoreditch pub (over the Smoking Goat, see also), but with its own separate entrance. Somehow, he brilliantly captured the zeitgeist with his Basque-influenced cooking over fire, producing food that’s as “simple” as it is “outstanding”. “Ingredients are carefully sourced, prepared with care and the flavours really come through”. Many reports recommend you “order the turbot!” (‘Brat’ meaning Turbot in Parry’s native Welsh), but it’s a rather large dish if you are just a couple and the rest of the menu is just as worthy of exploration. “The room is casual and buzzy” and tightly packed, but “despite the cosy tables it still feels like you have your own space”. Top Menu Tip – “Basque cheesecake is a highlight: great flavour and so light”.
12. Bibo by Dani García
Spanish restaurant in Shoreditch
Mondrian Hotel, 45 Curtain Road - EC2
Star chef Dani Garcia opened his first UK venture in Shoreditch’s Mondrian Hotel a couple of years ago, to mixed reviews. This up-and-down sentiment continues in feedback to date – some reporters think the Spanish cuisine – paellas, roast and grilled fish and meat, tapas – is “very good” (but encountered “an empty room on a Sunday lunch”); other well-travelled types thought it “underwhelming compared to the wonders of his native Andalusian restaurants”.
13. Ibérica
Spanish restaurant in Canary Wharf
12 Cabot Sq - E14
“Decent tapas for the price” – with “all the usual suspects (patatas bravas, padron peppers, tortilla, croquettas)” – win praise for this Hispanic quartet, now well into their second decade. These days the cooking is reckoned “competent”, if “not up to the earlier standards” – perhaps a reflection of improved competition. Top Menu Tip – “it’s worth checking out the vegetable dishes” (“with some left-field options for the adventurous; the beetroot with coffee was great!”)
14. Camino Shoreditch
Spanish restaurant in Shoreditch
2 Curtain Road - EC2A
“Reliable tapas in handy locations” is the USP of this 16-year-old trio with a flagship near King’s Cross station (by far the best known) and offshoots in Shoreditch and Monument. But while they’re “decent enough”, they offer “standard fayre” – it’s “nothing exceptional”.
15. José Pizarro
Spanish restaurant in City
Broadgate Circle - EC2
If you’ve seen José P on telly and want to try one of his restaurants, maybe head south to Bermondsey rather than opt for this more anonymous unit in the City’s Broadgate Circle. By the standards of the Square Mile though, its mix of tapas, sherries and Spanish vino is fab and “always popular”. Top Tip – all day on Mon & Sat, choose three tapas for £20 per person.
16. Morito
Spanish restaurant in Clerkenwell
32 Exmouth Mkt - EC1
This “buzzy and enjoyable location” for “very well-executed Mediterranean small dishes” is the more casual offspring of Sam & Sam Clark’s Moro next door in Exmouth Market – and now has its own spin-off in Hackney Road. The original Spanish/Moorish fusion has taken on additional influences from further afield, including Crete and the Middle East. Top Menu Tip – “good cheese fritters with Cretan honey and Cretan sausage and yoghurt with first rate flatbread”.
17. Moro
Spanish restaurant in Clerkenwell
34-36 Exmouth Mkt - EC1
“Still great even after all these years” and “still an absolute favourite” – Sam & Sam Clark’s inspired stalwart helped put Exmouth Market on London’s foodie map when it opened in 1997, with its “super-flavoursome” Spanish/North African food from an “ever-changing menu”, all “washed down with wonderful wines” (predominantly Spanish, and also from Portugal and Lebanon) and fine selection of sherries. Fans say there’s “a lovely buzz” too, but the room can be horribly “noisy”… “is it getting worse?”
18. Parrillan
Spanish restaurant in Camden
Coal Drops Yard - N1C
“A fun way to share and eat for a small group” – you BBQ your own meal at your table at the Hart Bros’ duo of Hispanic haunts in Borough Yards and Coal Drops Yard, which take their inspiration from the Spanish ‘parrilla’ or grill. You can also eat more conventionally in SE1, allowing the chefs to do the work for you, and since it opened in 2022 this has become the more highly rated branch. In N1, there’s the benefit of a large outside terrace “set under cover outside, but with overhead heaters and heated cushions so you don’t feel cold”. You might feel the chill when the bill arrives though, especially at the N1 original (“the menu looked good and the food was fine, but all I could think of was how expensive it was. £8.40 for two mini croquettes just overshadowed how tasty they were”).
19. Camino Monument
Spanish restaurant in City
15 Mincing Lane - EC3
“Reliable tapas in handy locations” is the USP of this 16-year-old trio with a flagship near King’s Cross station (by far the best known) and offshoots in Shoreditch and Monument. But while they’re “decent enough”, they offer “standard fayre” – it’s “nothing exceptional”.
20. Barrafina
Spanish restaurant in King’s Cross
Coal Drops Yard - N1C
“Counter seats are the best” at the Hart Bros’ “magical slice of Spain” – a “joyful” and thriving homage to Barcelona’s famous Cal Pep, which since its 2007 launch has steadily appeared near the top of our annual diners’ poll as one of London’s most popular restaurant groups. Its branches have multiplied, but – to a miraculous extent – the formula has stayed the same. “At the bar, it’s fun to watch the talented staff who were clearly enjoying their jobs, meticulously preparing the outstanding dishes”: “brilliant small plates, with plenty of choice” and “packed with authentic flavours” (“particularly strong on fish and seafood”); plus “an excellent range of sherries” and wines. But, while it’s maintained “impressive consistency over many years”, it can feel “like a bar experience at restaurant prices” nowadays, and its ratings drifted south of their usual peaks this year. There’s also the odd tale of caution in reports: “I’ve been almost every year since it opened. It’s still great fun and pretty good, but the last three visits have fallen below the super-high quality of the past”. Top Menu Tips – “love the Croquetes; the Cos salad with anchovy and crispy pancetta; and perfectly unctuous Tortilla”.
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