Los Gatos, Swindon (From This Is Wiltshire)

Los Gatos, Swindon

11:53am Thursday 28th January 2010 in

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I’D BEEN meaning to eat at Los Gatos on a Sunday for some time.

Although it is only usually open in the evening on the sabbath, once a month the tapas bar holds a paella lunch.

I kept forgetting to book, so when the restaurant put on an extra one last week to raise money for survivors of the Haiti earthquake, I jumped at the chance to attend.

In a bit of a twist, and a lovely show of community spirit, the paella lunch was hosted at The Old Bank across the road in Wood Street in order to pack in more diners. The two restaurants worked together to raise £6,650 for the Disasters Emergency Committee.

Although we ate in the more spacious Old Bank, eating at communal tables with Spanish guitarists playing in the background meant none of the intimate and friendly atmosphere was lost.

And the paella was cooked in the Los Gatos kitchen and brought across the road in huge pans.

Neither cooking in one place and serving in another, nor the fact they were catering for three times as many diners as usual, fazed the staff - who were all working for free to aid the fundraising.

I can’t imagine that quality was affected in the slightest, as the paella was fantastic.

The rice-based dish, flavoured with real saffron, was packed with fresh vegetables, chicken and a host of seafood - mussels, prawns (shelled and unshelled ) and razor clams. It was better than most of the paellas I’ve eaten in Spain.

Obviously the occasion was a little different from usual - diners were asked to make a donation rather than pay the menu price and there were raffles and an auction - but if other meals I’ve had in Los Gatos are anything to go by, it’s always a good experience whether it’s in laid-back or lively mode.