BARcelona Tapas
201 N. Delaware Street
Indianapolis, Indiana  46204
http://barcelonatapas.com/

tapas [ˈtæpəs] pl n Spanish

a.    light snacks or appetizers, usually eaten with drinks

As I understand it, barhopping is a popular pastime in Spain.  When one goes out with a group for the evening, they skip from bar to bar, drunkenly chowing on the house specialty snacks or tapas of each establishment.  Most places make one particular dish and they make it well.  In America, these types of dishes are more commonly known as “small plate” items and they’re gaining in popularity.  BARcelona Tapas, as evidenced by the name, is a bar/restaurant that specializes in tapas-style cuisine. On a bitterly cold and dreary Sunday evening, I hauled my wife and family downtown for Spanish feast of epic proportions.

What We Got:  Serrano Ham & Manchego Plate, Baked Goat Cheese & Marinara with Garlic Bread, Chicken & Serrano Ham Croquettes, Bacalao, Pepper Crusted Ahi Tuna, Sauteed Broccolini, Garlic Pepper Chicken Wings, Meatballs, Grilled Sausages, Beef Tenderloin Brochette, Tres Leches Cake and Carmel Flan.  Plates ranged in price from about $5.50 to $8.00.

My lord, looking at that in print makes me feel like a hopeless glutton.  I really should seek help.

But really, this wasn’t the piggy-fest that it appears to be.  As you can see from the pictures, each plate was a fairly small portion and only equated to about one or two really good bites of food after sharing with the group.  Personally, I love dining like this but I understand that it’s not for everyone.  If this isn’t your cup of tea, I really cannot recommend BARcelona Tapas, as it is the main attraction on the menu.  By nature, I can be a little indecisive with meal choices and I love the ability to try several different items without investing too much time or money in any one given dish.  We ordered the dishes in waves and the server kindly paced their arrival.

I struggled over this review for quite some time because I could easily write a full review for each dish.  For the sake of brevity, I will highlight my three favorite dishes along with only dish that I didn’t really like at all.  As for the others, just assume that they were enjoyable enough to likely be ordered again.  See their online menu for a description if you can’t make it out from the pictures.  I might have to throw a few honorable mentions in there too.

First off, bonus points for the wine list.  I love Spanish reds…especially those of the “old vine” variety.  They had one at a very reasonable price point and I was a happy camper.

1^stPlace – Bacalao:  Crispy patties filled with a silky salt cod and potato mixture.  The creamy aioli coupled with a fresh spritzing of lemon made this my absolute favorite dish of the night.  I took more than my share and didn’t feel guilty about it at all.

2^ndPlace – Serrano Ham and Chicken Croquettes:  Although they arrive looking like store-bought fried mozzarella sticks, these little fried morsels are far from ordinary.  The cumin aioli is very good and the croquettes contain just enough salt and grease to straighten you up when the wine starts to kick in.

3^rdPlace – Broccolini:  The lovechild of broccoli and Chinese kai-lan proved to be a much needed green reprieve from the onslaught of aioli smattered fried goods.  This dish disappeared all too quickly and I found myself wanting more.

Dead Last – Grilled Spanish Sausages:  I can admit that this may actually be an okay dish. However, after consuming all of the other fried, fatty, salty items, I simply could not stomach this one.  The cumin aioli, which was heavenly on the croquettes, now tasted like I was licking the drip-pan on a gas grill.  There is only so much fat that a person can stomach in one sitting.  It was my probably my own fault for ordering so meat-heavy toward the end.

Honorable Mention – Desserts.  Both were excellent.  I could have eaten the Flan three times over.

Would I Buy It Again? Oh heck yes.  I might not order the exact same twelve dishes again, but I’m already craving the Bacalao as I’m writing this review.  All of the food was well prepared and pretty tasty, although some dishes were definitely better than others.  The overall experience was a lot of fun and the nature of the menu makes the food something of an adventure.  It’s a great place to try something new and step outside your normal comfort level without going too crazy.  The service was perfect and the atmosphere warranted a long, relaxed dining experience.  I’ve heard that this place is usually swamped, but we were there early on a Sunday evening and the dining room was fairly sparse (also the night of a Colts home game).  The price might drive some people away…the bottom line of our bill was a little on the embarrassing side, but I believe that one could eat here relatively cheaply.  Splitting the cost in a really large group tends to help.  The prices of individual plates might not seem like much, but it can add up after a while, especially when coupled with alcohol.

BARcelona Tapas might not be the best value in town, but I have to admit that it was one of the best meals I’ve had in quite some time.

-Indy Food Geek

Tags: aioli, barcelona tapas, downtown, Food, fried food, group dining, small plates, spain, tapas, wine

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