After my trip to Spain, I’ve wondered where I could get close to the same tapas experience here in LA. It’s seemed rather chic the past few years to open up a tapas style restaurant. Sure, Cobra’s & Matadors is sufficient, so is Tosca or Tinto, but they seemed to be lacking that authentic feel I had in Spain. A few months ago, I heard that Bar Pintxo opened in Santa Monica. I don’t make it over to the West side of town very often, but I had a hankering for some traditional Spanish tapas. Especially after my stop in Barcelona at the similar named Pinoxto Bar in the famous La Boqaria. What makes Joe Miller (of Joe’s in Venice) the tapas expert I have no idea, but he’s done something right here at his packed Santa Monica restaurant.
8pm on a Thursday night and the place is hopping. As you enter there is a counter top with stools overlooking the action in the small kitchen and tapas are displayed beneath a glass case. To the right is a wall of Spanish food products. Further into the restaurant, the very small dining room is lined with Spanish wines up to the ceiling.
There is a short wait, in the meantime we are offered a glass of wine. The hostess suggests a glass of the Rioja special of the night, a 2002 Concordia Signa for $10. (If you can find it, should cost about 20 US dollars per bottle retail) The wine had a concentrated bouquet of ripe berry fruit and cedar notes, showing some extensive barrel aging. They have quite an extensive selection of Spanish wine, and we tried a couple of other glasses of reds, but came back to this one.
The menu here is large, something lacking at other tapas restaurants around town. On the left side, your traditional tapas like fresh tomatoes, Serrano ham on grilled bread (two for $4), or chorizo on a slice of French bread topped with a fried quail egg (two for $5), or Dungeness crab (mixed with mayo) wrapped with smoke salmon and topped with a salmon eggs on a slice of bread (one for $7).
Other favorites from the platos side of the menu. The Patatas Bravas ($5) were flavorful crispy potatoes tossed in a tomato based salsa and drizzled with a roasted garlic aioli. The croquetas ($6) were crispy on the outside and filled with a creamy mixture of chicken and ham on the inside. The Costillas de Cordero ($12) a single lamb chop with a chorizo crust, was salty and small-ish, but had great rustic game flavor.
The joint was loud and packed with people getting together after work for wine and small bites. They don’t take reservations, so be prepared to wait. They have a lunchtime 3 course, Prix Fixe ($15) menu that changes daily and also offer Happy Hour Specials (Mon-Fri 4-7pm) of 6 tapas for $6, $3 sangria and $1.50 Stella.
Since I made it all the way over to the west side we finished the night at the wonderful Bar Chloe for some great artisan cocktails. A delicious Grape Collins ($12) made with VeeV Acai Spirit, muddled red grapes, fresh lemon, and soda water for her and a Sidecar ($14) made with Hennessey, Cointreau, and fresh lemon with a sugar rim for me. And of course a trip to Chloe without a champagne cocktail isn’t complete, so I also delighted in a Citrus Blush ($12) made with champagne, rum, grapefruit juice, lime juice, and sugar.
Wed, Nov 19, 2008
Food, West Side