So Tinto West End wasn't exactly where I thought it was, so it was pure good fortune I took the Sat Nav. It's on the west side of Mansfield Park as it happens, overlooking the playing court where, strangely, some guys were playing bicycle polo. Cool!
We chose Tinto cos we have a long association with the Battlefield one, we were passing through Partick, and we were in a rush, so tapas was an ideal lunch. On walking in it pretty much looked like the Tinto we know, except more comfortable, roomy, and less cluttered. Classic Scottish-Spanish décor, a bit tacky, but fun, and more understated than Battlefield, but also with an Estrella tap. Yaayyy!!! There simply is no room in the Battlefield one for such luxury!
The place was empty when we got seated, but within half an hour a number of tables were taken. Not bad for a new place on a Sunday lunchtime. I think they definitely went for a gap in the market, the only other properly West End tapas bar being Café Andaluz.
The service as expected was very friendly and attentive, with a bit of banter between the waiter, the owner and us. A quick look at the menu and I ordered probably more or less what I order each time - boring I know - the Albondigas (meatballs in a tomato sauce), Carne de Ternera (beef strips in a spicy, oniony sauce), and the Estofado Cordero (spicy lamb stew). My partner ordered Olives, Pollo Rebozado (chicken in a paprika batter), bread and something else I can't quite remember and probably can't be bothered to ask!
The waiter delivered our olives (notice I said "our"), bread & complimentary salted almonds shortly after our drinks. Bizarrely the family next to us moaned about the free nuts, saying they were nasty, strange because I hardly eat salt and I think they're really nice. The olives are, like the sister restaurant, really unusual, they range from ones the size of an anorexic pea, up to the size of a large melon, well not really but at least a very large grape, and they're nicely marinated. The only slightly damp squib at this point is that they seem to have stopped serving balsamic vinegar with their bread & olive oil, they are using a sherry vinegar and it's too strong and doesn't pool properly. Damn their eyes! : )
So we polished all that off very quickly and yes, there was a slightly longer wait that we wanted, but not too long. Soon we had food galore, all the dishes came at once. The Albondigas looked and tasted exactly as I'm used to in Battlefield, they are large, very tight, and flavoursome, amongst the best I've had, with a mild but tasty tomato sauce. The Cordero, again very tasty, very tender, but a little mean in size maybe, and the same can be said of the Ternera. I also had a couple of bits of the Rebozado and I can confirm not only was the portion generous, the chicken was moist and the batter was light and tasty - very much like the best fish batter in fact.
The owner asked if it compared well with the other restaurant, and it did. Is either Tinto my favourite tapas bar? Well no, but I frequent the original one cos I do believe it is very good, and the menu is interesting and definitely good value. When your only moan is that they give you sherry vinegar instead of balsamic I think you have to say hats off and here's 5 stars.
...and I've just remembered what else my partner had Gambas Pil Pil ie. King Prawns in a chilli sauce. Apparently it was nice too. read more