Food & Lycra Chows Down: Tapas Revolution
It feels like a hot minute since we have spoken about food but trust us we still chow down, check out our Instagrams in the links above and you will see all the evidence! Last week we chowed down at Tapas Revolution in Westfield White City shopping centre, right outside the Nike store. We had the pleasure of being entertained by chef Omar Allibhoy who gave us a lovely introduction to Tapas. Every year this guy runs a 5km race around hyde park finished by a race to the top of Hilton Park Lane hotel via 475 stair steps to the top- we're already a fan!
Now this wasn't a fancy Tapas remix that you see everywhere these days. This was Spanish through and through with no strings attached, which is exactly what we like. Home food, the original spice, mama's kitchen kinda food with small tweaks to give it a touch of "Tapas Revolution".
We start with drinks and straight away we ask for Horchata. If you haven't tried horchata you need to try it! It's a sweet milky Mexican drink made out of rice milk and cinnamon- so BOOM. Asking for that, of course, was a school girl error! How can you go to a Spanish restaurant asking for a Mexican drink, D'OH! Luckily Omar was understanding and suggested something very similar. Here my friends we have an exclusive drink called CHUFI, made from Tiger Nuts! It has the same consistency as Horchata but with a nuttier taste- Yum! Imported all the way from Spain.
Of course we ordered Sangria too, which was very good! Order one sangria and you get a whole clay jug of the stuff filled with obligatory fruits- niceness!
Jamon Iberico de bellota de Guijuelo (Acorn fed Iberian ham) We couldn't get enough of this, the meat wasn't too chewy and had the perfect amount of saltyness. Slyly wanted to ask for more.
Pan Con Tomate (Toasted bread, garlic, tomato and olive oil) I've never been a big fan of this because I'm very much a "if I can make it at home why am I ordering it at a restaurant" kind of person. So I was surprised when I tasted this and realised that I haven't actually ever made this at home and it was worth it!
Hold tight Laura's food critic face up there!
Boquerones (Anchovies marinated in olive oil, garlic and parsley) I never did like anchovies and I still don't, I can't get with Homer Simpson on this one. I did have two but no more than that. They were salty and not really up my street. Rachel and Laura on the other hand loved them and were happy to finish the can off!
The girls getting a little schooling from Chef Omar ;).
New to the menu: Croquetas de gambas, vieira y tinta de calamar (Deep fried croquettes stuffed with prawns, scallops and squid ink) SO GOOD! I loved this, everything about it was on point. The crispiness of the fried breadcrumbs were perfect without being too greasy. The insides were perfectly cooked and the texture was amazing. The squid ink topped it off. What a combo!
Calamares Fritos (Fried Calamari) and Pulpo a la Gallega (Octopus and potato with paprika) I'm quite fussy with my calamari and this one doesn't quite make my top 5. I'm a fan of deep fried calamari covered in bread crumbs which this wasn't. However we were happy to finish this off therefore it is still good in our books.
Rachel went crazy for the Octopus and Potato with paprika (she's a huge potato fan).
Croquetas de Jamon (Deep fried Iberico Ham Croquetas) YUM! These were near enough level with the squid ink ones but not quite as good. If you order this and the squid ink croquettes make sure you try this one before the squid ink croquettes to avoid disappointment... sigh. As usual we still waxed them off!
Fideua (Paella made with pasta) I wasn't a big fan of this. It lacked the solidness of a traditional paella made with rice and for me the pasta didn't quite work. The prawns were too big for the dish. I like the prawns in a paella to be covered in rice which the pasta wasn't quite doing here. Rachel took to this better than I did, however unlike me she doesn't like Paella.
Espárragos con romesco (Grilled asparagus with a roasted nut and red pepper dip) Omar gets his sauces really right and this is an example of it. A lot of effort goes into the preparation of his dips and sauces which are all made fresh. The roasted nut and red pepper dip complimented the asparagus really well, the touch of sea salt perfected it!
Pinchos Muronos con mojo picon (Marinated beef skewers with a spicy dipping sauce)
MEAT! YUM! SAUCE- FUCKING GOOD! nom nom nom nom
Churros con chocolate WOAH WOAH WOAHHHH it's that time! It's time for DEH-SURT! These churros are fucking good! Often they're either too dry, too greasy, not enough chocolate, not sweet enough etc. But these babies were none of the above, they make it in my top 3 churro experiences (1 being churros in Mexico covered in condensed milk geeez). That says a lot!
Crema Catalana (Traditional Spanish dessert made with vanilla pods, cinnamon and lemon) Well FMSW after a bite of this I had to put the spoon down and hold my left hand back from slamming the table in public! GRRR EMOTIONAL! I'm a custard fan, and this is custard porn and it's not even custard... I'm not going to continue with this as I'll take it too far but you get the picture.
Queso Manchego y Membrillo (ewe's milk cheese with quince jelly) The last dessert cannot be topped and it's a shame because this is good!
Check out the menu to Tapas Revolution here. There's a Westfield White City London branch as well as one in Bluewater. Definitely worth visiting!