Living up to its promises
12:45pm Thursday 8th September 2011 in Eating Out By Katie Bond
KATIE BOND visits a new Old Town restaurant to see if its ambitious website claims really ring true
EAT AT:
El Toro, 6 Devizes Road, Old Town, Swindon SN1 4BJ. Tel: 01793 485066 www.eltoroswindon.co.uk
Open:
11.30am to 2.30pm and 6pm to 11pm Tuesday-Friday; 11.30am to 11pm Saturday and 11.30am to 2.30pm Sunday. Closed Monday.
ACCORDING to the website, a visit to the new El Toro restaurant in Old Town will give customers “a culinary and cultural tour of the Hispanic world, with renowned Argentinian steaks and grills, famous Spanish tapas, wholesome peasant dishes from Central America, specialities from the Basque region and spicy Portuguese treats”.
Quite a promise to live up to, but my boyfriend Ryan and I were keen to see exactly what the new place in Devizes Road, had to offer.
As we arrived on Saturday night, people were being turned away at the door as the tiny restaurant was full – all 16 seats downstairs, plus a birthday party upstairs.
Fortunately we had booked, and we were shown to our table and ordered drinks.
We were surprised to learn that the restaurant does not sell lemonade, so a vodka, lemonade and lime was out of the question. Instead we settled for two ciders as we studied the menu.
The extensive tapas selection, with both hot and cold dishes, made it difficult to choose, but I eventually went for the chestnut mushrooms tossed in garlic oil (£3.20) and sauteed potatoes in tomato, chilli and garlic sauce (£2.25). The mushrooms were a little lacking in flavour for my taste, but the potatoes were spicy and flavoursome.
Ryan chose the deep fried fresh squid with alioli (£3.20) and the sautéed king prawns with garlic and hot chillies (£3.95). He said both dishes were tasty and well-cooked.
For main course, I chose the grilled chicken breast with Portuguese hot piri piri sauce (£9.55) and Ryan went for the fish of the day – hake with chilli and garlic. Both dishes came with a side salad and a shared portion of sauteed potatoes, which we would have liked more of.
I enjoyed my chicken, although after tasting the hake I wish I had chosen that – it was fresh and cooked to perfection, while the spices gave it an added kick.
From the five options on offer for dessert, I chose the cheesecake served with a lime sauce and fresh raspberries (£4.75), while Ryan had the Crema Catalana – a traditional Catalan custard with crunchy caramel topping (£3.95). He was disappointed that the custard topping wasn’t as crunchy as advertised. My cheesecake was good, although the biscuit base was a little too thick for my liking.
When we visited the business was just two weeks old, and there were maybe a few minor creases that needed ironing out.
But on the whole, the atmosphere was buzzing and lively, and the service and food good.
I reckon by now it should be the perfect piece of Spain and Central America in the very heart of Old Town.
