Tapas and Go

Tapas is a casual style of dining that originated in Spain. Small plates of hot or cold dishes can be eaten as a snack or can make a meal. At , which , different styles influence the dishes: Spanish, Italian Greek, pan-Asian and Latin American.

The Dish: Tapas

At one visit, these were our choices:

• Crispy calamari with spicy passion fruit aioli
• Duo of sausage – Louisiana andouille and Spanish chorizo — served with carmelized onions over cannelloni beans
• Beef empanadas with red chili pepper aioli
• 24 hour marinated skirt steak with creamy onion and chive potato shooter
• Asian buns
• Roasted potatoes a la Brava

What’s In It: This restaurant borrows the best of many cuisines. Owners Alex Meza and Carlos Roman are from Peru so some of the sauces, such as passion fruit and guava aiolis, are flavored with tropical fruits. The empanadas are filled with beef, black olives and hardboiled eggs. The Asian bun is made with pork belly, hoisin sauce, cilantro and pickled daikon radish. The potatoes were dusted with smoky paprika and served with red chili pepper aioli.

How’s It Taste: Everything was good. There was not an ounce of grease on the calamari, the sausages were strong flavored, the red chili pepper aioli added a bit of a kick, the skirt steak was very tender, and the Asian buns were very flavorful. The potates were hot in temperature and creamy. 

Sides: Carlos and Alex seek to have tapas and wine complement each other. The wines they suggested were just right for what we were eating. Chicha, a sweet purple Latin American corn drink, is finding its way into some of the mixed drinks and is worth a taste.