The New Spring Menu at Iberica

I was very lucky to get invited to an exclusive dinner at Ibérica Manchester showcasing their new spring menu.  And even better Nacho Manzano, Executive Chef for the all the Ibérica restaurants would be cooking!

The man himself – Nacho Manzano (in the middle)

Clearly I didn’t read the invitation properly, I thought it would be a couple of hours of standing at a buffet nibbling on lovely tapas.

Nope, nope, nope. It was four hours long and a proper posh sit down dinner of five courses.  Maybe the clue was in the description ‘exclusive dinner’?! Well, I certainly wasn’t complaining.

Dish after delicious dish came out accompanied with exquisite wine.  Each offering colourful and curious and obviously, tasty.  In total I counted that we’d been served 14 dishes and we also got involved when the pescatarian on our table got fish dishes instead of meat.

Cod brandada

Warm lentil salad

A nice waiter gamely posing for a photo

GR 174 Red Wine

Ibérica is a beautiful, classy and colourful venue – the staff were energetic, helpful and fun – and there was a buzz to the whole evening.

My favourite dish unexpectedy was a pear and spinach salad with feta, pine nuts and pesto.  INCREDIBLE.  My other top dish was the chargrilled octopus brought out for the pescatarian (he didn’t get much of a look in as we all piled in to try it).  It tasted like a juicy steak.

Pear and spinach salad

If you get the chance do go and eat at Ibérica – it’s a glamourous fun night out and the food is awesome.  And make sure you check out the ladies toilets – they are apparently the most Instagrammable in Manchester I’m still kicking myself for not taking my phone to the loo…

 

Madrid relived in rainy Marple Bridge

This saturday amidst some weird rain/hail blizzard, Jamie and I headed up to pretty Marple Bridge for a bit of sunshine food.  Yes, yet again I’m talking about tapas!  I think I might be obsessed.  This time we were testing out Libby’s.  By day a bakery and cafe, by night a tapas bar.

Due to it’s popularity we could only book at table at 5.30pm.  We tipped up bang on time and the place was empty.  I was disappointed.  I don’t mind eating early but not in a deserted place!  However, my worries were washed away (not by the crazy rain) but by the swarm of people that literally filled out the place within the next ten minutes.  This is clearly the place to be in Marple Bridge.

The menu instantly got us excited!  A nice combo of traditional tapas with some interesting twists thrown in.  We ordered and waited.  As I’ve waxed lyrical before on this blog – there is something very pleasing in ordering food, forgetting about it and the dishes appearing at different stages of the evening.  I like the suspense and surprise.

First up manchego frito with apple and pear chutney.  Deep fried cheese basically, but a bit classier! This was wolfed down by us. Crunchy coating, gooey cheese, tangy chutney. Winner!

Manchego frito with apple and pear chutney

Then came the succession of other courses: wild mushroom and tarragon gnocchi – this came in a rich creamy sauce – the mushroom had a lovely intense flavour and the tarragon lifted the whole dish.  Next up – chilli and garlic king prawns – everything you’d expect a fine spanish version of this dish taste of – sweet, warming, tomatoey and delicious (shame about the prawn shells).  And then the true favourite –  slow braised beef cheeks – super sweet, flavourful and melt in the mouth. I’ll gloss over  the duck lasagne which didn’t live up to the rest of the fab dishes – just a bit non descript.  And finally parsnip and sweet potato pancakes – which were quite like bhajis!  They tasted of curry – that is not a criticism though – these were crispy, spicy and sensational.

Wild mushroom and tarragon gnocchi

 

Chilli and garlic king prawns

Slow braised beef cheeks

Parsnip and sweet potato pancakes

And to top the night off, once we paid the bill our waitress offered us some free bread on the way out.  There was a big shelf of loaves in the corridor that hadn’t been sold during the day.  We greedily helped ourselves to an enormous loaf of sourdough (I’ve been eating it today – so good!).

If you get the chance, do check Libby’s out.  It’s a delightful buzzy little venue, the staff are superb and the food (duck lasagne aside) is exceptional.

Madrid relived in rainy Marple Bridge, Libby’s restaurant review

This saturday amidst some weird rain/hail blizzard, Jamie and I headed up to pretty Marple Bridge for a bit of sunshine food.  Yes, yet again I’m talking about tapas!  I think I might be obsessed.  This time we were testing out Libby’s.  By day a bakery and cafe, by night a tapas bar.

Due to it’s popularity we could only book at table at 5.30pm.  We tipped up bang on time and the place was empty.  I was disappointed.  I don’t mind eating early but not in a deserted place!  However, my worries were washed away (not by the crazy rain) but by the swarm of people that literally filled out the place within the next ten minutes.  This is clearly the place to be in Marple Bridge.

The menu instantly got us excited!  A nice combo of traditional tapas with some interesting twists thrown in.  We ordered and waited.  As I’ve waxed lyrical before on this blog – there is something very pleasing in ordering food, forgetting about it and the dishes appearing at different stages of the evening.  I like the suspense and surprise.

First up manchego frito with apple and pear chutney.  Deep fried cheese basically, but a bit classier! This was wolfed down by us. Crunchy coating, gooey cheese, tangy chutney. Winner!

Manchego frito with apple and pear chutney

Then came the succession of other courses: wild mushroom and tarragon gnocchi – this came in a rich creamy sauce – the mushroom had a lovely intense flavour and the tarragon lifted the whole dish.  Next up – chilli and garlic king prawns – everything you’d expect a fine spanish version of this dish taste of – sweet, warming, tomatoey and delicious (shame about the prawn shells).  And then the true favourite –  slow braised beef cheeks – super sweet, flavourful and melt in the mouth. I’ll gloss over  the duck lasagne which didn’t live up to the rest of the fab dishes – just a bit non descript.  And finally parsnip and sweet potato pancakes – which were quite like bhajis!  They tasted of curry – that is not a criticism though – these were crispy, spicy and sensational.

Wild mushroom and tarragon gnocchi

 

Chilli and garlic king prawns

Slow braised beef cheeks

Parsnip and sweet potato pancakes

And to top the night off, once we paid the bill our waitress offered us some free bread on the way out.  There was a big shelf of loaves in the corridor that hadn’t been sold during the day.  We greedily helped ourselves to an enormous loaf of sourdough (I’ve been eating it today – so good!).

If you get the chance, do check Libby’s out.  It’s a delightful buzzy little venue, the staff are superb and the food (duck lasagne aside) is exceptional.

Sunday afternoon tapas at Manchester’s El Gato Negro

It wasn’t out of choice.  We did actually want to go on Saturday evening, but El Gato Negro is so popular that we had to opt for a 2.30pm slot on Sunday. This award winning restaurant originally based in Rippendon launched in Manchester’s King Street on 22nd February is booked up for weeks on Fridays and Saturdays.

But actually, what a great time to eat – we felt pretty chilled and sophisticated as we leisurely tucked into our elegant tapas dishes in the simple and classy surroundings of this restaurant.

So I’ll cut to the chase.  The highlight for me without a doubt was the tortilla with white onions and potato served with aioli.  I wasn’t over the moon when Jamie ordered it as my experience is of something dry, bland and a bit pointless really.  But OMG – when this tortilla arrived, I forgot about everything else on the table.  It was just so light,  fluffy, moist and flavourful – stuffed to the gills with some kind of fresh herbs (no idea what – I was too busy eating it).  Go to El Gato for the tortilla alone.

The other food was also excellent – charcuterie; freshly grilled sardines with lemon, garlic and parsley butter; lamb skewers with spiced chickpea puree and harissa (Jamie’s favourite).  But again it was something more ordinary that captured my imagination: a tiny bowl of celeriac remoulade (aka coleslaw) with the meats.  Oh yes!  This stuff hit the spot – just creamy, nutty and sweet.  I could have polished off a big bowl of that.

Another unexpected delight was the Navarrico chickpeas with butternut squash, chilli, garlic and caramelised cauliflower.  Obviously with those ingredients the dish was bound to look a bit beige – but the flavour – my! This spicy treat was a fabulous accompaniment to all the dishes – however El Gato’s chefs made some magic that elevated the dish to special status.

There was something classy and uncomplicated about the whole afternoon, helped by the staff being attentive and friendly (and a lot of them seemed to be Spanish).  And what I love about tapas is it feels like Christmas to me.  You order a load of stuff and then it keeps appearing one dish after another each like a brand new surprise.  And being surrounded by lots of nibbly tasty things is officially the best way to eat.

It’s worth giving this place a whirl – it’s beautifully and simply decorated and above all the food is authentic and brilliantly executed. Cost-wise – our meal came to £68  – including wine, beer, five tapas dishes and bread. Apart from the restaurant – we had a good sneak around and there’s a lovely looking bar on the ground floor (pictured below) where you could just go in for some simple cold tapas.  Even better, tucked away on the top floor  is a cocktail bar with delightful views of the city and a retractable roof! I’ll so be there in summer.

Have you been to El Gato Negro? I’d love to hear your thoughts. And I’m keen to know about any other great tapas experiences to be had in the North West.