Having been brought up visiting Spain and Portugal as a child I developed a taste for that style of food. I think Tapas is fantastic as it enables one to have a mix of little dishes rather than just one large main and makes the meal that little bit more exciting and interesting.
Another invite via twitter and I found myself traveling to Putney. We could see the restaurant, just about, as we crossed the bridge (it’s the building with the white writing).
Alquimia Spanish Restaurant and Tapas Bar
A lot closer.
The view from the restaurant is lovely and there is seating outside for clients to enjoy the views albeit a little bit on the cold side now.
The River Thames
The inside of the restaurant is tasteful decorated with the Spanish influence obvious but not excessive.
On the menu today:
To begin a glass of cool, crisp delicious cava with olives and freshly made warm bread.
We had two types of bread, one with green olives and one with fresh rosemary although both were lovely the rosemary bread was the best I have tasted to date and just the thought of it now is arousing my taste buds.
Red Tuna Tartar, mixed Tomato Concasse & Guacamole
The colours and presentation are aesthetically pleasing stimulating the senses and enticing one to dive straight in. A well thought out dish even down to the final finish with a scattering of sea salt flakes. On tasting it is absolutely fantastic, fresh, a great mix of flavours and extremely healthy. The guacamole is lovely and smooth the fish is so easy to eat and it’s hardly surprising this vanished fast!
Artichoke Salad
How pretty does that look. Again fresh and natural flavours make up this lovely salad. With just a light drizzle of Olive oil there is no overpowering dressing so one can simply enjoy all the contributing flavours in the dish.
Free Range Chicken and Ham Croquets
I could clearly see both ham and chicken in the appropriate croquet. Both had a nice crisp coating, the centre was smooth except for where you found pieces of chicken or ham. The flavour of each came through well. You can see these are good quality from the pictures.
Grilled Prawns with Garlic Oil
Perfectly cooked so they were still firm we popped off the heads and scraped up all the gorgeous juices until there was not a single drop left. I do love prawns when they are cooked correctly and these were really lovely. Make sure you use the lemon, a good squeeze of the juice over the top and a sprinkle of some of the sea salt flakes really adds to the existing flavour.
Iberian Pork “Pluma”, with Apples and Red Fruit
The aroma alone was enough to get one salivating whilst taking pictures. The combination of sweet and salty work very well and the meat was tender. There were pieces of fat yet these seem to have a crispiness to them thanks to a little oven roasting and where normally I would have removed it in this dish it went perfectly. Not a dish I would ever have considered choosing myself I am very pleased that it was included within the press menu served for me. The delightful mix of flavours and textures create a dish that is in a word a “Masterpiece”.
These guys surely deserve full marks for presentation. Each dish looked delicious and clearly a lot of thought had gone into making them look inviting and of course taste simply divine. The dishes may be slightly smaller than those offered to normal restaurant patrons as these made up a press menu that I had come in to trial. Could this be the best Spanish Restaurant in the UK? Quite possibly, no others that I have been to so far have come anywhere near close with the quality of ingredients and standard of cooking demonstrated here.
This is undeniably worthy of being called a Fab Find!
020 8785 0508
Alquimia
Spanish Restaurant & Tapas Bar
3B, 30 Brewhouse Lane
Putney Wharf
SW15 2JX
London
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Looking at the delicious food you sampled made me feel so hungry and jealous. I need to book a table now. Lol
It was lovely 😉
We are lucky to have a lot of great tapas places in Manchester and it looks like you have a great one there too.
Food looks amazing, your photography is amazing too! I’ve never been to a spanish restaurant, this needs to change! xo
You really are missing out their food is very good.
The food looks amazing, but I do like my more basic foods and those croquettes look YUMMY!!
Their food was delicious I wish they were a little closer as I’d be there every week.
What a lovely location for a restaurant. We big fans of Tapas and love the variety. The food looks lovely
Same here I love the mix of foods it makes meals more fun.
Well I’m hungry now! Everything looks delicious x
Ooo the food looks and sounds fabulous!!! I have never tried artickokes but was saying just yesterday I’d like to try them!
You should they are lovely and can be served in different ways x
I adore rosemary bread and those prawns sound fantastic. Hoping to visit London in December so will be looking out for somewhere to eat.
Enjoy their food is lovely 😉
The food looks delicious. Making me very hungry now.