Barcelona Tapas Bar & Restaurant situated in the centre of Aldgate East, minutes away from the tube station. Last month my friend Hoa, and I went there for a catch-up dinner and to celebrate Chinese New Year (more like any excuse to eat out! 😛) I had been here before and remembered how much I loved it and I know how much Hoa loves paella so I recommended it!

BARCELONA TAPAS

We had booked an early dinner 6.30pm and there were already a couple of diners tucking into their food. The staff were friendly and welcoming, and asked whether we’d like any sangria when we sat down at our table. Hoa isn’t a wine person and, I didn’t fancy drinking alone, but I know from my previous experience my friends loved it, so I’d happily recommend having some if you do love wine! 

Instead, Hoa went for a dark sparkling and I tried their cream soda – Served on the rocks with an orange slice & a maraschino cherry. Absolut vodka | Licor 43 | Soda Sol y Sombra 40.0% and let me tell you, the alcohol was strong! It was tasty, the sweetness of the cream soda blended well with all the flavours.

The staff were very hospitable, and welcoming. We decided to order the following to share –

PA AMB TOMAQUET (Ve) £4.95 – A Catalan speciality of toasted bread rubbed with fresh tomato, garlic & extra virgin olive oil. 

CHIPIRONES FRITOS £8.95 Crisp deep-fried baby squid served with All-i-oli.

GAMBAS GABARDINA £8.25 Deep fried king prawns served with a sweet chilli sauce.

The pa amb tomaquet was made perfectly, I could have eaten more but we had ordered a paella (which was huge last time) so I didn’t want to overdo it! The bread was crispy and delicious, the flavours danced in our my mouths.. something so simple yet so moreish! Highly recommend! 

PAELLA MIXTA £13.50 per person Traditional saffron coloured rice with chicken, seafood and shellfish. Is made fresh as they always advise it takes 30minutes to make.

We didn’t have to wait long for our food to arrive, pa amb tomaquet arrived first then the chaperones fritos so good! The squid melted in our mouths, and the aioli made it taste even better! Gambas gabardine came after it reminded us of tempura which was tasty too.

After we finished with our plates, they asked whether we were ready for the main event! Paella mixta, we immediately responded with a yes, as this was the dish we were looking forward to the most! They spoon it onto your plate, making sure we both had equal amounts which was a really nice gesture and presented nicely on our plates. 

Hoa relished in it; she loved every bite! The chicken was juicy but I thought the dish as a whole was a little salty however I would still order it in the future! Hoa loved it so much she took the rest of her portion home for lunch the next day! 

After our mains we decided to order dessert, we always believe there is an extra compartment for the best bit and plus we never had dessert last time so I felt it had to be done this time round.

We chose to share their SELECCION DE POSTRES £20 Crema Catalana, Tarta de Santiago, churros con chocolate, and ice cream. 

When it arrived, we tucked into the churros- it was still warm and tasted amazing, crispy with a fluffy centre and we loved dipping it into the chocolate sauce. The Tarte de Santiago was moist and tasted delicious, very sweet and when it enters into our mouths it would break apart easily. We were definitely eating with our eyes as we were stuffed, and had to take the rest of the puddings home; minus the ice cream and sorbet.

Barcelona Tapas was a tasty experience, and will definitely come back for more pa amb tomaquet 😛 and try another paella dish – Traditional saffron coloured rice with chicken, PAELLA.  NEGRE / FIDEUA NEGRE Black rice or short noodles with squid. Served with allioli. FIDEUA DE PESCADO Catalan short noodle with seafood, a variation on the paella. CATALANA Meat Paella; rice, mini-Catalan sausages, chicken, & pork.