" Great Tapas, Better Sangria "

Value for money		Suitable for...
The food		.. a date
The service		.. business dinner
The decor		.. with friends

Set in the French Concession, on the sleepy side of Maoming Lu, Las Tapas consistently serves up great Spanish fare. Specializing in tapas and paella, Las Tapas also pours some of the best (and unforgiving) sangria in Shanghai.

Not wanting a huge dinner, we ventured over to this Spanish eatery, in hopes of light, but flavorful fare. Dimly lit, the small restaurant is a suitable place for a relatively inexpensive date (well, if you just order food…).

Compelled by the joint’s namesake, we ordered an assortment of tapas. First up: Manchego cheese on bread with a tomato jam. The bread, not toasted, was just ok. Although bland and chewy, it did not distract from the imported cheese. The jam, not really seasoned, was also fairly mediocre and acted more as a glue to keep the cheese from falling off the bread. The actual cheese, however, was salty and delicious.

Next: Spanish meatballs. These were definitely more palatable. Small, the meatballs simmered in a garlic and paprika spiced broth. They were tender and juicy. The bread from the first dish was better used to soak up the soupy sauce of the meatballs.

The bruschetta with chopped tomatoes, olives, garlic, and basil was a really nice fresh contrast to the oily Shanghainese food I usually eat. The tomatoes were well – but not overly – salted, extracting the perfect amount of juice and flavor from them. The toasted bread – different than the kind served with the Manchego – boasted an adequate dose of a rich extra virgin olive oil, complementing the vegetables.

The last dish was baked eggplant with cheese and anchovies. Buried beneath a thick layer of melted cheese, I actually forgot there was eggplant in this dish. Once I did find it, however, it was delicious. Perhaps a bit on the salty side (and definitely on the cheesy side), because of the anchovies and added salt, the dish was still tasty.

After our second pitcher of sangria, I revisited the Manchego on the chewy bread: much better this time.

Having not been to this place in almost two years, I was happy to see that unlike the rest of this city, it has not changed much. Good food, good prices, and great sangria.