Allowing The Spanish Sun To Shine in Nottingham!

Food: La Tasca, Lace Market

THINK Spain and you imagine enjoying food al fresco style on a sun drenched patio whilst your waiter brings you another glass of sangria or your favourite glass of wine.

So whilst a rainy summer’s evening at La Tasca in the Lace Market might not be feel exactly like the Costa del Sol, it’s welcome and taste on this visit on a typically heaving weekend night more than made up for the lack of Spanish style 30 degree heat outside.

This might be a chain, but it still does an impressive job more than most at making you feel at ease and putting extra effort into the service.

It’s a definitely a step up from the mock American and Italian joints in town where the atmosphere has to be painted on the walls. La Tasca feels Spanish, because it is! With native waiting staff to boot.

Tapas is without doubt highly underrated. And whilst some point to having to order half the menu to feel a substantial meal has been enjoyed, the vast majority here was generous in size and cooked exceptionally well.

After some full flavour olives, jamon serrano(cured ham) and gently smoked cured beef (Cicino)were an impressive start even if the serrano was slightly on the rubbery side.

Despite every table in sight being full, the service proceeded at a fast rate throughout the evening but staff were never too busy to stop and properly chat.

But it was the quality of the tapas that really shone through. Pescado blanco frito or deep fried white fish, gambas gabardina or deep fried king prawns and costillas de cerdo or the succulent pork ribs were promptly put to the sword.

Texture and flavour oozed from each dish and despite adjacent tables enjoying the same, the quality was good enough to feel you weren’t just another bum on seat. Tried and trusted maybe but ultimately stylish

Each was also completely cooked thoroughly, as you’d expect of course but it makes such a difference when each nibble is still warm on the plate, something sadly missing when experiencing dishes in a restaurant in the same part of town earlier in the year.

Meat paella or the spicy Spanish sausage and the alitas de pollo, marinated chicken wing and a fresh baby spinach salad completed the mains between the two of us.

What again stood out though was that no dish dominated or left you not wanting to try others. Obvious it may seem but with so much to experience and enjoy, one bad dish could have ruined the appetite for others. It didn’t.

This matched with a bottle of saugvinon blanc los trenzones lam macha, or a lively wine with gooseberry notes satisfied the tastebuds completely.

Service that was chatty and informative from manager Claire Geovanni and her team also meant the night was friendly from start to finish-and notably extremely efficient.

Helado con cholcoate y lmedqas and moussse de chocolate for dessert carried on the good feeling.

La Tasca incorporates the relaxed Spanish ethos and feel of a Catatonian style eatery but it matches it with the expectations and taste requirements of your demanding British diner.

Well worth missing a siesta for!

La Tasca, 9 Weekday Cross, The Lace Market, Nottingham

T:0115 959 9456

Anything but a joke

Food: Ha! Ha! Bar and Canteen, Lace Market

WITH a name like Ha! Ha! Bar and Grill you’re always looking for the joke.

Limited menu? Poor value for money? Noisy adjacent bar area?

Fortunately Ha! Ha! doesn’t fall into any of these categories and appears to have got the blend just about right which is maybe why the chain has 24 outlets nationwide. And is still growing.

This isn’t the most exclusive place to eat in town granted. But the ambience and quality on offer on this busy Thursday evening spoke of an outlet that more than deserving its place in the ever attractive throng of restaurants and bars in the Lace Market.

During a recession there’s always the worry some eateries that market themselves as both bar and restaurant can fail to miss the all important details. The separate dining experience can suffer as they desperately try to get the punters through the doors.

But Ha! Ha! covers all bases. Tactful décor and large enough to feel that the food isn’t just a sideline but small enough to feel you’re not a battery hen just squeezed into a corner of the bar.

With the service attentive but not pushy, the tone was set.

Spicy chicken wings and liver pate immediately impressed if just a little heavy on the balsamic vinegar on the salad with the former. But this was nit picking. An encouraging first course with the quality of the dishes was already remarked upon given the £3-£4 price mark.

And the value and taste continued. Steak medium to well done was exactly that. Not a big ask you might think but it’s startling how few eateries in the same bracket can’t achieve this first time. Chicken and chorizo pasta also had enough depth and texture to stand out as genuinely tasty dish.

Dessert creativity obviously wasn’t high on the agenda. But it didn’t matter. Sticky toffee pudding and raspberry cheesecake were as good as tasted anywhere else in town. The favourites done simply are often the best and this was no exception.

And the appeal was there for all to see. Fellow diners bridged the generation gap with twenty somethings on a first date through to pensioners lapping up the value for money.

Bar and Grill it might have in the name. But Ha! Ha! just as a restaurant in itself would easily still hold its own.

Substance over style

Food: Chiquitos, Cornerhouse City Centre

IN a world of style over substance, it’s a pleasant surprise to see a Tex-Mex diner turn the phrase on its head.

With a new menu that’s as enticingly authentic as it is delicious, the only disappointment at the city’s branch of Chiquitos is the uninspiring surroundings - but at least the kitchen gets the important part right.

Since taking up one of the Cornerhouse’s desirable slots late last year the restaurant has responded to their clientele’s wishes by transforming the look of their menu with some exciting new dishes to sit alongside old favourites. And as well as being friendly and helpful the staff are more than happy to go out of their way to point you in the right direction with a few recommendations of their own.

Given the choice, try and secure one of the booths that adjoin the vast window affording you some delightful views as the sun sets on the reflection of the Council House off the Royal Concert Hall.

You will also be spared the worst of the unfortunate décor that aims for rustic Mexican charm but lands closer to tacky cowboy saloon children’s party, complete with Mexican flag bunting hanging from the ceiling.

There may be a market for this casual vibe, but it fails to do justice alongside an impressive kitchen performance.

When it comes to food, Chiquitos shove their nose up at the idea of haute cuisine starters. You won’t find any delicate food sculptures amounting to little more than a couple of mouthfuls here. Instead there’s filling fistfuls of barbecued chicken wings or hearty bowls of chicken, bacon and avocado salad that fall only slightly short of main meal portions.

The mains themselves continue to deliver on the promise of the starters. You’ll find a great deal of grill classics, from steaks to burgers, grilled to perfection alongside a range of tangy, spicy and original sauces. The Cuervo Tequila sauces are a must-try.

If you are looking for something a little adventurous then the menu caters well with citrus marinade pork fajitas, or sizzling pans of king prawn or duck that let you take the DIY approach to Mexican cuisine.

The dessert menu marks the departure of hot n’ spicy and the arrival of cool and sweet. Almost all the choices come with refreshing vanilla ice cream and a fresh selection of summer berries to accompany your inevitably devilish choice.

It’s hard to go wrong with the Choc’ito Fudge Cake but if you are looking for something a bit different then try the rich Pecan Pie which is still light enough to practically melt in your mouth and brings out the best in the fruit accompaniment.

Ultimately, this Mexican diner is one of the best kept secrets in Notts and performs well above expectations for a chain restaurant. With the majority of mains priced at north of a tenner, and very few bottles of wine under £15 it isn’t cheap but there is value to be found, especially in the starters.

Simply put, Chiquitos is a makeover away from securing the city’s Mexican food crown.

'Hammie' creation marks British Sandwich Week

THE BRITISH Sandwich Association are helping the British farming and food industry beat the recession with the launch of a truly great British sandwich – the Hammie – for British Sandwich Week.

The new sandwich range features three ham sandwiches, Granary® bread and a selection of ingredients sourced from British suppliers.

The recipes are being made available to commercial sandwich makers nationally with the aim of encouraging the whole industry to support the campaign from mid-April through to the end of May.

“We felt that this was one way that our industry could play its part in supporting British farmers and food producers through these difficult times,” says BSA Director Jim Winship.

“Wherever possible the industry will be using British ingredients and we hope that the public will support our efforts by making it their number one sandwich for the period.”

The campaign, which will be launched in mid-April in advance of the official Week, is being supported by Rank Hovis and Kitchen Devils as well as suppliers of key ingredients.

The BSW Hammie has been designed as a triple-pack sandwich containing three different

sandwiches. However, retailers and caterers can adapt the recipes to suit themselves, using any single, double or triple version.

“The BSW Hammie range is intended to be flexible,” Jim added.

“Retailers can use one of the recipes to make a single Hammie , a combination of two or the full set – whatever they feel suits their particular customers and business.”

There is no cost involved for retailers and caterers to take part. To get the detailed recipes and information about the Week retailers and manufacturers simply have to register on the BSA

website at www.sandwich.org.uk or call 01291 636338.

Copies of the full recipes will then be made available to them.

The three sandwiches that make up the BSW Hammie range are:

- Gammon ham with cream cheese, chives and cucumber on white bread

- Gammon ham with English mustard mayonnaise and lettuce on Granary® (malted)

bread

- Gammon ham with free range egg and watercress on Granary® (malted) bread