Pretty lights.
Originally uploaded by Manne.
Booked a random comedy night at Soho Theatre to see Simon Munnery, who turned out to be incredibly random... A good craic indeed. Bit of a fresh breeze to get to hear someone rip Dawkins to shreds for a change.
Before the show we needed sustenance though, and decided on Tierra Brindisa since we have been meaning to go to the sister venue Tapas Brindisa at Borough Market for ages but never seem to get round to it (and when we happen to walk past on a Saturday while visiting the market it is is just always so rammed...). Turned out to be a really good choice. Great food, beautiful place, nice and informative staff and not overly crowded.
The website: www.tierrabrindisa.com
Menu information, photo gallery, reviews, online booking (although not through Livebookings, I am sad to say)... All the basics are there. Simple and clean layout which is easy to navigate, and a clever domain structure tying their three venues together online.
Nice feature: what's on in the area. Good thinking, connecting the restaurant to the lively area of Soho (provided they keep it up to date which they seem to do). Add a few social gadgets in, and it would be really interesting!
The location:
Soho, 46 Broadwick Street (map)
The staff:
I love it when the staff has answers to all my inane questions. They were nice too!
The place:
Light, airy, with a mix of small and larger tables, good for a group of friends. Possibility to eat at the bar, which just feels so much more tapas.
In the inner room, where the bar is, the back wall opens up to the kitchen so you can see how your food is prepared. And hear the banter. Nice.
The crowd:
There weren't that many people in the restaurant when we arrived so difficult to make any stereotypical generalizations. I can imagine there is a lot of media related business lunches and after work snacks being done here.
The food:
The menu on the web site is a lot longer than the menu I remember from the restaurant, but the selection we were presented with was very mouthwatering indeed. After mucho deliberating we settled on beetroot with blue cheese and walnuts, Iberico ham croquettes and goat's cheese with orange flower honey. All very tasty. The best dish we had was the seabass with black pudding and an orange sauce that I have completely forgotten what it was called. It was divine though.
For dessert we had turron mousse, an almond based nougat like pudding, served in a jar with a mint leaf on top. Nice arrangement and sooooo tasty.
Tierra Brindisa turron mousse
Originally uploaded by Manne.
The powder room:
They have an XLerator! Any men's room with an XLerator or better yet, a Dyson blade, gets my vote any day!
The coffee:
Didn't have any, decided to do that at the theatre who stopped serving coffee right before we arrived... Not serving coffee in the evening? What's that about?
The bill:
Tierra Brindisa isn't cheap. You don't go here to eat a big tapas meal and come out full. For an after work snack or a weekend afternoon sit down and a catch up with a few friends though, awesome. We eneded up paying about 19 pounds per head including some sherry and two bottles of beer. Fair.
The verdict:
Love it. Will go here again before a show, if I am not too hungry. Must really make sure to try out Tapas Brindisa as well. And Casa Brindisa, Londonist approves.
