Eat & Drink
Originally published on Thursday, 19th March 2009
El Pirata De Tapas
AA Gill recently announced his disapproval of tapas being considered a replacement for an entire meal. I sort of know where he's coming from and this obsession of ours with small plates can sometimes make me want to yell, "Enough with the starters, where's the main course?"
But last week I wrote about the relaunched Fino and this week, guess what? Another tapas place. Westbourne Grove newcomer El Pirata de Tapas, however, is a little different, combining the usual suspects like jamon Pata Negra and nicely-runny-in-the-middle tortilla with a liberal helping of 'cocina nueva', thanks to Ferran Adria-trained former Maze chef Omar Allibhoy.
Endives with valedon (a type of blue cheese) foam was a lot more delicious than it might sound, octupus carpaccio with mandarin caviar, capers and paprika was light and zesty and pork cheeks in a sangria reduction were fall-apart delicious.
But the real stars, surprisingly, for someone more savoury toothed than sweet, were the puddings - a perfect chocolate brownie with saffron toffee sauce and a martini glass of caramellised pineapple with coconut foam that tasted of holidays.
And I was full. In a nice way, not an undo-my-top-button way.
Maybe small can sometimes be good.
Hours: Mon-Fri 12-3pm & 6-11pm / Sat & Sun 12-11pm
Place: 115 Westbourne Grove, W2 4UP
Cost: £40
Web: elpiratadetapas.co.uk
Book: 020 7727 5000
