Barrica was never on my eat-list. The original intention was suppose to be an impromptu power lunch at oversubscribed Lantana to give the now legendary steak sandwiches a try. The steak sandwiches remain folklore for now. Unable to squeeze into Lantana, we stood at the front door of Viet baguette (next door down), contemplating… but eventually, we decided to haul our longing and sorry fat asses out from Charlotte’s place and onto Goodge street in search of something affordable, something to share and something delicious.
It was a double date but not like what you think. I was to meet my bromantic brother from the hood – Mark; while Supercharz was to lunch with her mushy girlie mate (also) from the hood – Shalinee. We decided to meet up at the height of lunch at 1pm and were braced for a busy service at Lantana. As we emerged with long faces, we went to plan B – Guy’s recommendation of a newish tapas bar which had the toes to dance with some of Goodge street’s finest Spanish pretenders. Personally, I was rather glad that we were going to a place which had not received immense internet coverage yet, it was Friday afterall, and we were all braindead. Barrica is owned by Tim Luther formerly of Albion wine shippers and whom has brought his wine know-how to the Barrica wine list (which we denied ourselves the pleasures of trying out on this visit). In the kitchen, ex-Moro man James Knight is responsible for crafting the Barcelona inspired menu. It’s a good bedtime story thus far, but the proof is in the cazuela.
Our meal started with a selection of the cheaper bite-sized dishes including ham & cheese croquetas (4 pieces for £4) ; Sobrasada cos Tostada (£2) ; Tortillas de Patata (£3) and Padron peppers (£4.50)
The first impressions were good. The omellette (tortilla) was cut into bite-size rhombuses, and they were mushy potato rich and well seasoned, appetitising. We noted the paltry croquetas portions, but were roundly impressed (well I was anyway) with the warmth of the creamy centre. Mark best described the peppers as bitter ladyfingers, and I was glad that I wasn’t the one in ten to experience a superhot pepper. Phew. Out of this selection, I liked the sobrasado the most. Described as a sort of rillette but made with iberico ham, it was a vibrant orange paste, and served on top of toasted bread. Both citrusy and peppery and definitely something which I could snack on forever.
The menu features a number of interesting ingredients including skate cheeks and bone marrow, which made ordering a lot more exciting, than the usual tapas joint. Here we tried the breaded pig’s trotters (£5)
Served with a kind of tomato based paste (I think, but I guess you can correct me) and then garnished with whole nuts. I thought the paste was so-so, it was no better than M&S red pesto, and as for the breaded pork; It had far too many boney bits in it, and I ended up spitting more than I swallowed.
We tried a couple of dishes on the specials board too, including crabs on toast (£6) and veal cheeks cooked with spinach (£6).
The crabs on toast were pretty good and a little different from the British recipes which I am used to. The citrus zing was clearly missing, and in it’s place a subdued fishiness lingered on my buds. I know this sounds strange, but the crab paste had reminded me of california roll, but with butter spread all over it. It was still recognisable for what it was, but I’ve had better crabs on toast in London, especially the full bodied chunky ones (with roe) at Great Queen Street.
On the otherhand, the veal cheeks with spinach was one of the best things I had eaten all week. Regretfully, I hadn’t managed to snap a photo of what the dish looked like (which wasn’t much to be honest), so you’ll have to take my word for it. It was served with a thick & darkly coloured gravy (which I assume is a kind of red wine sauce). The veal cheeks were so supremely tender than it was verging on being slimy. The flavours instantly grabbed our attention, a concentrated pan-fried smokiness deeply infused within the meat and an intense beefiness that sizzled on my palate. Oh heaven.
The other heavenly soft and silky meat dish were the chargrilled mutton (£7).
Initially we thought these were the veal cheeks, what with its tenderness. We were quite surprised at how mellow the flavours were, being that the characteristic lambiness was mostly subdued. It was beautifully pink and smoky and then garnished with a sort of green pesto like paste; This was something I could eat again and again. So simple yet so good.
Of course, no tapas meal would be complete without squid (£6)
Grilled to impart a tinge of bitterness, the texture was smooth and drizzled for a wet finish. Gently seasoned and with garlic chips for garnish, the squid tasted agreeable.
Next up were the clams, and what I thought was an instant classic. Served with a brothy sauce; the clams were hearty and heady.
I’m running out of adjectives now, so I’ll just talk about one last dish: bone marrow on toast.
Reminiscent of a sweet onion tart, the bone marrow were presented ‘bone free’ and cut into little circular shaped which looked alot like whole scallops. When the marrow cubes disintegrated in my mouth, it let out a wave of mature fatty-marbling flavours which balanced well against the sweet(ish) flavours. Really nice.
Our bill came to £63, just under £16 each. Overall, I liked this place more than I thought I was going to, my gripe with it were the relatively small portions. Cutting up some of the dishes (the crabs on toast especially) called for basic training in clinical surgery. Food was mostly good with some dishes being more inventive than the average London tapas bar (whatever that may be). Food also felt rustic and everything was well cooked. I’m surprised there’s no hype around this place (no twitter presence perhaps) and bearing in mind of similar tapas bar in the locale (Salt Yard and Barrafina included), I think Barrica stacks up against the competition rather well. Oh one more thing, the space is a beautifully presented rectangular space – you can’t beat yellow walls, surely. Understated stuff and I think it offers slick cooking which should eventually attract a loyal crowd, which right now includes me. As a lover of most things Spanish, I’m happy to have stumbled across Barrica, it’s a gem in the smoke.
More photographs on my flickr account here.
The Gist of It
Barrica official site £25pp
62 Goodge Street W1T 4NE
Tel : 020 7436 944
Tube : Goodge Street
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Tags: barrica, Goodge Street, Spanish
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Euwan and I ended up here for an impromptu post cocktail bite on Friday night – I loved it. Our food was more basic than I’ve had at Salt Yard, but really enjoyable, and think the atmosphere is more rustic and fun. The bar area was packed when we arrived.
sounds not bad at all. maybe is time to call out my girlfriends whom i went barcelona with for a reunion!
thanks Kang.
also…. nice pictures!!!!!! is this x mm f1.4? 50mm? =P
I’ve heard lukewarm reviews about this place. Were the padrons bad, or is that just how Mark sees them?
The razor clams look suspiciously like normal clams.
Greedy Diva – Glad we agree on this, yeah I certainly liked it too. The atmosphere is quite chilled out and I thought everything was pretty good overall.
Suzie – Thanks! Am using a 35mm f1.4 here for all the shots here.
Lizzie – You might want to ask Mark about that. Thanks for pointing the clams, have now amended the write-up.
Mmm looks like the kind of place that’s not worth crossing town for but nice to know about if you’re looking for something in the area!
Your line “I ended up spitting more than I swallowed” made me laugh out loud in the office! OK I’ve finished work, I’m just waiting for a lift home, but still got some funny looks!
BTW maybe I’m the only person but I was distinctly underwhelmed by Lantana. There were 3 of us and none of us were impressed with our food, quite a bit ended up left on the plates. Drinks were good, and apparently their flat whites, I think they’re called, coffees, were good. I’d have put it down to being unlucky with my dish if it weren’t for all three disappointing us.
Sounds good, and certainly more interesting than the typical tapas food. I’ll make a note not to order the trotters.
Kavey – lol, glad to hear you enjoyed that one, never really sure when I overstep the line or not sometimes. I’ve only ever been to Lantana once for breakfast and have been dying to try their lunch. It’s always too busy (which is a good thing I suppose) but would love to give it a try for myself. I am still very miffed about how a steak sandwhich could ever be ‘that’ good!
Wild Boad – Oh yes, I found Barrica to be pretty good, would be interested to hear your thoughts on it when you eventually visit too.
Lizzie – HI! How did you come to the conclusion that I thought the padrons were bad? Are our brains telepathically linked? What am i thinking right now? Well… if we were we should go on TV because Derren Brown makes loads of money from doing that shit. But something is wrong with the connection, maybe its chinese whispers… and that’s not just because both of us are chinese in some way. But since you mention it and I’m too lazy to write it up in my blog, I must say that it was the first time I’d knowingly eaten Padron peppers *gasp* and I thought they were quite tasty. Like slimeless Okra/Lady’s fingers. I love Lady’s Fingers slimey or not.
x
and Kang – yeah yeah nice photos mate.
Sitting here in my cold cold office there’s nothing I want more right now than a selection of hot tapas. The padrons actually sound delicious, i LOVE ladies fingers! Have noted as a must go.
Being a long term admirer of most London Tapas joints, Tierra Brindisa, Barrafina and the close by Salt Yard to name a couple, i thought i would give this new joint a whirl. well this visit left a lot to be desired and as such the new neighbour of Salt Yard will not stay the course. Service was appalling, no greeting on arrival so after 5 minutes stood at the door we asked for our reservation. shown to a table another wait to receive a menu and eventually asked if we would like a drink, a request which was then asked again by a different waiter. the food on the whole was good, braised chicory with picos, chorizo, jamon bellota, patatas bravas all being dishes any self respecting Spanish joint should be able to deliver! 2 dishes we did order never materialised even though we were told twice they were on their way. the ambience was decidedly “friday night” too. it seemed like the place didnt know whether to be a tapas bar OR restaurant and was trying unsuccessfully to be both. They could do well to look at how FINO and BARRAFINA differ. will stick to tried and trusted favourites from now on.
Went today to Barrica with my husband after reading a few reviews about the place. Being spanish myself I know very much about spanish food and let me tell you how dissapointed i was with the food,the croquetas were ridiculous i make better bechamel than that!the sauce for the patatas bravas wasn’t the real thing and had a strange taste, we also had lamb that was ok and pork chicharron which i didn’t like. Haven’t got any complaints with the service and i think the place is good if you only going to have some drinks, did like the variety of wines they had.
[...] told you Barrica was good. Not all of us agreed two years ago, but we probably do now; Afterall, they’ve [...]
[...] — Metro [Marina O'Loughlin] The Times [Giles Coren] — Dos Hermanos [Simon Majumdar] London Eater [Kang [...]