I predict this to be one of the new Toronto hot spots, as it was only a week since it's opening and the energy was buzzing in the air of this restaurant and as the hour got later, beautiful people were flocking in to have a cocktail or to wait patiently for their turn to dine!
The service was on spot and made us feel very welcome. I was quite happy to find that they had many varieties of cava by the glass and we sampled most of every one over the course of our dinner, getting tipsier by the glass! We ended our evening with a sampling of their sangria - and wow, was it strong and put us both over our edges from nicely buzzed to a little drunky!
The menu is simple and rustic Spanish tapas, raciones (sharing plates) and full mains.
We cannot resist and order an array of delicious tapas including:
- a charcuterie plate with spanish chorizo, jamon, and other deliciously cut meats for us. One note is that we did have to ask for bread to accompany the plate as it was just served as a meat platter for us to indulge in
- we needed to try a cheese and initially we were going to order our favourite spanish sheep's milk cheese, manchego but the menu is full of manchego options so we opted to try a drunken sheep's milk cheese and it was a huge hit.
- the Spanish octopus was out of this world- tender little bits of octopus served on a crostini. They were perfectly cooked and a huge stand out.
- we also attempted the sardines, although we were not huge fans of sardines due to their fishiness but the freshness and plump juiciness of the sardines made this dish enjoyable
Another thing to note is they import fresh produce and seafood from Spain every 2 days so we were getting as close to authentic Spanish ingredients as possible.
We were very full at this point and I hope to come back and try their gorgeous servings of paella as they looked and smelled simply delectable.
Instead we opted for smaller sharing plates like their manchego and leek croquettes which were soft pillows of creamy decadence. Another must try!
We ended the eve with Leche Frita con Helado de azafran which is battered milk - sounds weird but was an amazing dessert. The churros were also a huge hit and are always a must have!
Finally our server came over with a nicely wrapped bread loaf for us to take with us home. He spoke to us about how they would like to promote their baker and the fresh bread he bakes. I believe this bread will be sold in the next few weeks in their retail space but we were very lucky to take some delicious olive and nut infused bread home with us and was thoroughly enjoyed the next few days in my household!
It was an outstanding evening and I would recommend coming back for dinner with a big group so you can actually share the heaping portion of paella or a nice intimate date spot to share smaller plates of tapas.
**** 1/2 stars
Patria - 478 King Street West (King Street, located in the alleyway behind Weslodge, west of Spadina)
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