B Beyond and its sister publication The Tastemaker joined forces to introduce a Chinese couple to the delights of Spanish cuisine.
We took them to Iberica, on the corner of Great Portland and Devonshire Street W1.
We were greeted by a beaming Spanish lady whose wide smile set the tone of the evening. She made a few recommendations and left us alone. We followed her suggestions and ordered a fairly comprehensive list of tapas, chicken with saffron rice as a main course, a bottle of rose Rioja which, once consumed, was followed by a carafe of Sangria.
The Chinese appreciated the anchovy stuffed green olives and w
anted to know what kind of fish the anchovy was.
Our selection of tapas included:
Fried squid, patatas bravas, asparagus on toast, fried chorizo, cod, black ink rice with squid and, of course, Spanish omelette.
Few surprises there, but the fried chorizo which was covered with light batter and presented on sticks. The Chinese liked that and loved the black ink rice. We had to explain that the black colour was most definitely NOT ARTFICIAL. My personal favourite were the cod, delicately flavoured and sophisticated, and the black ink rice with squid. So good was the latter, in fact, that we didn’t miss having the paella which required an advance order.
Another advance order worth considering is the suckling pig. Although we didn’t have it, an order sailed passed us and our Chinese friends were compelled to take a picture – it looked that crisp and succulent.
Our main course was almost superfluous. We had drank our Rioja by then and were quite replete but the nicely cooked chicken legs with saffron rice were tempting enough to make us give in to our natural gourmandise.
The remains were thoughtfully packed by the staff and offered to our Chinese friends.
Chinese diners always leave space for pudding and so, we ordered different ones:
Rice pudding in the Catalan style
Chocolate mousse
Strawberry and Yougurt Soup
We had already started on the Sangria by the time the puddings arrived. Properly prepared with lots of fruit floating in it, it tempted even our token nondrinker, Ella, who joined in with gusto. I do believe she walked out of Iberica slightly inebriated but a convert.
Conclusion: If you are after tomato sauce drenched, generic tapas, Iberica would be too sophisticated for you. None of the dished we ordered had a hint of that and didn’t need it.
If you like a restaurant with a bit of atmosphere, as well as good food, you’ll enjoy it tremendously. You would enjoy a selection of jabugo hams, being carved in front of you.
Service is very, very friendly and strikes exactly the right note. Nothing is generic, cheesy or contrived as is so often the case with ethnic establishments playing on stereotypes.
A thoroughly enjoyable evening and great food.
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