Bravas tapas was perhaps one of the best meals I've had in my entire life, and I do not say that…read morelightly. We stumbled in on a whim, just looking for a good place to grab a bite to eat for dinner, and found a restaurant where everything was incredible. You cannot go wrong. The Patas bravas was really good, though simple. It was presented in a really cool way, with a dipping sauce on the side. The spinach croquettes were so tasty and cheesy. The yellowtail sashimi was really refreshing. The braised short rib was INCREDIBLE- so tender and flavorful. With great onion rings. The best thing we ate, by far, was the grilled octopus. It was perfectly tender and crispy at the same time. It had such good flavor and such a good sauce. It was one of the best things I've ever eaten. The waiter was really great, we were in between a few items and he actually decided to surprise us and picked some items for us. The aperol spritz was also really tasty and well balanced! If you're looking for a place to eat near tower bridge, you can't go wrong with Bravas! The dessert was also really good- it was soaked in this delicious cream sauce and had a fun mango sorbet on the side

We arrived at Bravas Tapas for our 5:30 PM reservation on a particularly hot day. The location by…read morethe docks is undeniably charming, but the indoor dining space was uncomfortably warm. Unfortunately, the restaurant doesn't have full air conditioning--only a few lucky seats are positioned near the AC unit. We even brought portable fans, which ended up being necessary as the sun set directly into the restaurant's glass frontage, heating things up quickly. We ordered a broad selection of tapas: octopus, the salmon-wrapped sweet potato crisp, fennel salad, pork belly, spinach balls, and the bravas potatoes. The food was hit and miss. The pork belly was the highlight--flavorful and tender with a sweet glaze. However, other dishes fell flat. The fennel salad surprisingly came with canned pineapple, the spinach balls tasted like they were made with frozen spinach, and the bravas potatoes were essentially frozen fries--not what you'd expect from a place with this kind of setting and pricing. Service started out fine but slowed down significantly over the course of the meal. A couple of our dishes were forgotten entirely, and the heat made the wait feel even longer. Overall, Bravas Tapas had its moments, but between the uneven food quality, heat, and spotty service, it left us more frustrated than satisfied. It's a beautiful spot with potential, but there's room for improvement--especially when it comes to consistency and comfort.

I'm sorry I don't understand the hype…read more We waited 15min in the rain to be seated only to be given a 1.5hour dinning time. Hey initially brought a drinks menu to us when we are waiting in the queue but they didn't come to take our order until we got our table so I don't see the point. We ordered a wine and a beer. Wine tasted worse than most wine we have in other restaurants and the beer is with a thick foam and small glass.. The food is alright but with the service and portion, I didn't think we get our money's worth.

Bermondsey Street was a main thoroughfare for us. It may not have always been the most direct route…read morebut when you don't know where you're going, it's good to go where you know as you figure it out. I will say that the app - City Mapper - is worth installing on your phone. Oh, but when you're travelling out of the US, you don't want to pay the high roaming charges. Then I say, go to the "airalo" website and see if what they offer might meet your needs, and if it does, install it too. Most newer phones allow you to install electronic SIMs. If you follow the instructions very carefully, you can set your phone up to use this second line for local data access and that will allow City Mapper to run for you while you roam around. I know that I'm sounding like a commercial but that's how much I liked using the app. While I didn't always know which direction I was facing, by watching the app as I moved, I could see if I was heading toward or away from my target. Okay, back to Jose. We walked by this place several times, both during the day and at night. They always had guests, especially at night when the crowd seemed to spill out of the restaurant to the outside tables and surrounding area. People looked happy as they indulged in their food and wine. We stopped once and read the menu. It's quite small and written on a chalkboard. It looks like every now and then, they erase something and write something else up. Having been to Barcelona, we weren't particularly impressed with the menu and didn't plan on dining there. Until I read the reviews. And looked at their website and learned about Jose Pizzaro, chef, owner of six restaurants in London and one in Abu Dhabi, author of six cookbooks, a regular on BBC cooking shows AND that the Tapas Bar Jose is mentioned as a Bib Gourmand in the Michelin Guide. Service was wonderful. It was cool watching Chef prepare our food. The Pan con Tomate was so simple and yet so delicious. A slice of bread, toasted, rubbed with garlic, rubbed roughly with a ripe tomato, slightly salted and drizzled with olive oil. I could eat that every single day and LOSE WEIGHT. The Bermondsey Bomba was like a giant Porto Bakery (forgive me Jose) Potato Ball with more meat in a spicy sauce placed on top of a bed of aioli with a dollop of seasoned tomato paste on top. I could eat these every single day and GAIN WEIGHT. The Boquerones were heavenly. The Clams with Garlic and Parsley, devine. And the Patatas Bravas...come on man, they're just potatoes! Crispy on the outside, soft and warming on the inside. Once again, the aioli and seasoned tomato paste just brings it all together. Service was warm and friendly. They were kind enough to let us order in rounds so we could gauge how much to order. Honestly, we had five dishes and were stuffed. Pictures to follow.

Don't be deceived by the outside which looks quiet but it is buzzing downstairs. I have been to…read moreBarcelona Tapas Bar on two occasions. The first time we sat at some high stools next to the bar area at the bottom of the restaurant. We ordered just four dishes and that was enough for two. We liked it so much that we went back a couple of weeks later with two friends. This time we sat at one of the tables. We got a bit carried away with the menu and before we knew it we had run up a bill of over 150.00. This included several margaritas though which were smaller than usual but nice and strong. Dishes we liked were chorizo Iberico 5.00 (dry pieces of fresh chorizo), cabrales cheese (really nice aged cheese) 6.95, pollo al ajillo (chicken cooked in garlic and wine 3.95, prueba de cerdo iberico (pork with garlic and potatoes 4.25, gambas al ajillo (large tiger prawns in a garlic, chili and wine sauce, really hot but very good) 6.99, also the Octopus salad is really tasty for 5.00. Barcelona Tapas bar has a very authentic atmosphere with Spanish music and friendly Spanish staff. Highly recommended but watch the bill, it runs up really quickly.

Sorry to burst everyone's enthusiastic bubble, but I don't get it. After the rave reviews, I was…read moretremendously excited to taste my way through the diverse menu. Unfortunately, I found myself having to convince myself that something wasn't dry or overly salted more oft than not. By the end of the dinner, I was positive my £20 could have been better spent elsewhere. Where do I begin? Olive oil was delicious but they charge for each little dish they give you. Bread was, well, not so delicious (tasted a bit like supermarket bread with a bit of a crust) and they charged per person (although this is expected in London). Sangria tasted, as one friend put it, like sugar water. Perhaps they watered it down because we ordered it during happy hour (half off) but it didn't even taste like half the alcohol. With the exception of the jamon iberico, the pimientos padron, tacos de berenjenas, and the bunuelos de bacalao, which were fantastic, I thought the rest of the tapas were, at best, okay. This included the albondigas, the pincho diablo, croquetas de jamon iberico, and the list goes on (about 10 more). While none of these were bad, none of them stood out. At this point, the restaurant was batting .307. Good for baseball, not really for food. But probably the most disappointing dish of the night was the paella. The vegetarian paella one poor girl ordered was straight up salty, which we sent back to the kitchen after everyone had tasted it and confirmed it wasn't the case of a few sensitive tastebuds. The kitchen agreed that it was over-salted and she ordered two tapas to replace her paella, which could not be made in time. However, even the Catalana was too salty (we didn't complain because it wasn't *as* bad and this one was for 6 people). Everyone just kept drinking water and sangria to dilute the saltiness. I suppose no one aspect of my dinner was particularly terrible in any sense, but the additive property of many small problems made the meal disappointing.

The service from arrival to departure was excellent. The food was really good with a limited but…read morewell thought out selection. The location is quirky as it is located in a railway arch at London Bridge station! Great place!

We had a fantastic experience at Lobos. The drinks were good. And the food was perfect for the 4 of…read moreus. The bread and butter was to die for the butter was magical. The steak was cooked to perfection. We all wished we had more of the secret pork Iberica but it was amazing as were the the potatoes that came with it. The meatballs were good but not great and the patatas bravas were just okay. Definitely would come back. The service was quick and helpful!

It was only average. Went here for drinks and dinner with a business colleague. Had a variety of…read moretapas and two mains. Pan con tomate was not very good, a disappointment really. Jamon was not bad. I felt the tuna was too salty and the fried veal was really bland. Not very impressed with the service either which started out good but then got very rushed. I felt like they wanted us out of there. With so many great restaurants in London best to try somewhere else.

Great food and wine here. Quality of the ingredients is great and the service is attentive and…read morepersonable. Really nicely set out and good vibe. My only tip is that the food is bigger than traditional tapas! We over ordered against the recommendation of the waitress - but it all sounded so good we wanted to try more! Oh and get the arroz negro! Delicious!

This tapas takes me back to Spain. I love all the locations. Food is consistently good across them…read moreall. Excellent and fresh ingredients. The flavors boom. The drinks are vast and complement the food so well. I always make a stop here during my visits to London, which are a few times a year!

Great tapas spot! We came for a post Pilates bite and got a few dishes to share, followed by a…read moreglass of sangria before leaving. The bruschetta specifically stood out. The tomatoes were so decadent and the bread so fresh and soft. We also really enjoyed the arancini for something a bit more savory. The tortilla was also great and a bit heavier of a dish for those who are hungrier. The staff seemed a bit uncoordinated but overall friendly. It's a very modern vibe and I loved the open concept kitchen.

A great spot with an amazing view. Clarks behind the bar was engaging and professionalread more

Absolutely a must visit when in London. The vibe is excellent & the views of the city are…read moreunmatched. Don't miss out on this experience.

I was astonished at how unassuming and unfussy this place was for such a big name chef, tucked away…read morein a corner of Spitalfields market. I wasn't too sure what to expect from Portuguese tapas but what we got was lots of small plates with (as Gregg Wallace from Masterchef would say) big flavours! We went for variety when ordering. Not all the dishes were five stars but there were some definite highlights - for me it was the 24-month-aged St Jorge cow's cheese which did somersaults on my tastebuds, whilst my guy really liked their beef sandwich. We found the runner bean fritter a bit of a waste but both dived for the last mussel which was served in a small tin and beautifully seasoned. The custard tart which you have to reserve a slice of early as they only make one a night, was actually a bit disappointing - I found it a little too gooey for my liking. Every dish feels very thoughtfully prepared, and it was so nice to feel that thought and care extend to the service here, with a lovely welcome from the front of house who made sure we were happy sitting in the front 'outside but inside' area. Our waiter also took very good care of us, happily advising on dishes and in my case the wines too, as I hadn't heard of many of the grape varieties. So the 5th star is for their charm. A good feed if you're in the area with a very relaxed, rustic feel, but be warned the prices stack up quickly with this type of food! I could easily be persuaded to return though, as I already know which dishes I'd ditch and which new ones I'd order next time... ;)

I had high expectations for the Taberna do Mercado since the ratings were quite high and I am a…read morePortuguese food lover. I have to admit that our diner at the Taberna was flawless. We sat at the bar to watch the cooks and see how they handled the food. They put so much enthusiasm in their food: resting the meat properly, seasoning, checking texture, tossing away what they weren't happy with. Even though we had some favorites (hear me here: Heaven bites), all dishes were great. The tinned fish, served with pickles and fresh sourdough toasted bread brushed with olive oil, are definitely a must have. The green beans fritters are served with an acidic sauce that makes it a perfectly balanced dish. The cod is fresh and cooked as it should be. The egg yolk pork fat desert in a port wine sauce is worth trying. The staff was really friendly and the cooks would always take the time to answer our questions. The selection of wine is good for all ranges of price. We had a bottle of wine and about 7 dishes and a dessert to share for 115£ (which isn't bad for London price.) I left the place thinking I'd love to come back for a sandwich for lunch or a whole suckling pig with friends. Well done for a restaurant to fill your appetite while making you want to come back straight away. Definitely a place I would put on my list of London's best restaurants, along Hawksmoor, Ceviche, Dishoom and Franco Manca!

Great little restaurant in beautiful leadenhall. A little hard to find. It's on the second floor…read more Very attentive service. Went above and beyond to make my daughters birthday special. Food is great. Simply and expertly prepared with fresh ingredients. Reasonably priced. Cool comfortable vibe.

Stayed a few blocks away from Leadenhall Market and went exploring on a Friday evening after work…read morefor some drinks and good food. Was not planning on having Spanish Tapas while in London... But it was quite a treat! Friday's in Leadenhall Market are CRAZY busy. But La Tasca had some seating and we strolled on up the super steep stairs (do not consume loads of sangria or Rioja while here! You will thank me later if you safely make it down the stairs without tripping!) The place is pretty large and has dim lighting (which I love), but it was SUPER LOUD. There was a group there that was extra rowdy and not super considerate of those around them. We thought they were celebrating a bachelor party but turns out they were just having a turnt up Friday in London town. We got there in time for their happy hour and were eager to put in our orders for food and drinks. The server was not the friendliest and almost made it a point to ignore us. We were the quieter table at the restaurant, fairly low maintenance, yet ordering quite a lot of food! So not really sure what her deal was. We ordered a few pitches of their house sangria which was PHENOM. I really love solid Sangria and they did it quite well. We went a bit crazy as usual with the food and ordered a little bit of everything. Their grilled octopus was very well done! Reminds me of the kind I had on the beach in Barcelona. They also had a really tasty bone barrow with chorizo. The chorizo was amazingly crispy, but man you felt those arteries getting clogged with every chomp! Totally worth the heart attack in my opinion...We also got their traditional sampler platter of jamon iberico, queso machengo, chorizo, etc. It was perfect with the sangria!

Tapas style restaurant with lots of seating behind the bar. The seating area in front of bar is for…read moredrinking. Lots of space in this restaurant. Good for groups of all sizes. Spanish restaurant. We enjoyed the anchovy, eggplant, squid . The sea bass was okay. You can skip this dish. Can be quite loud with people drinking and talking loudly near the bar area. Service is a little slow. Mandatory 12.5% service charge

If you're looking for authentic Spanish food DONT come here. The sangria wasn't good it's out of…read morethe draft with carbonation and the food wasn't good. Patatas bravas weren't good and even the bread sucked. Very disappointing because I was looking forward to coming here.