Casa Tapas, Manchester

A sumptuous feast straight from the Med!

Sundays in December are often chaotic. Angry shoppers, people pushing and shoving to buy an ever increasing list of presents, screaming brats getting under your feet and people moaning (already) about hating turkey and sprouts. People, I have the antidote if you can empathise with the aforementioned. A summery Mediterranean slap up lunch far away from the city centre! May I introduce Casa Tapas...

Casa Tapas is one of those cosy yet modern eateries that is decorated in such a way, you think you are actually outside in an Andalucian courtyard in Grenada. Upon entering the restaurant, you are transported into a sunny holiday world far away from the hustle and bustle of last minute Xmas panic buying. It is located in Didsbury, the perfect area for cafe society away from the city centre, so you can incorporate a visit to Casa on a coffee/bar crawl.

On Sundays, Casa does a deal for £10.50- any 3 tapas, soup to start, garlic bread and salad. A feast fit for a vindaloo queen. Unlike my most hated La T**ca, Casa has an eclectic selection for veggies and not just boring salads and Iceland frozen chav feed. Now let me talk you through my feast.....

Tomato and basil soup started proceedings- home made, rich and served with delicious crusty bread, it was the perfect start to a winter warming feast. Next came every food lover's favourite side order- garlic bread. This too was crusty and tasted home made. The salad exceeded my expectations. Normally, restaurants (and places that have the cheek to call themselves restaurants like La T**ca)serve some limp lettuce as a salad. This was the full monty. Feta cheese chunks, olives, beautiful dressing and crisp veg. So far,so good.

Now time for the actual Tapas! Vindaloo Queen went for the spicy option (obviously) of Patatas Bravas- my, were they totally brava! Next dish to come was tortilla, this was a slightly different variation on the usual cold eggy recipe. Casa Tapas' take on this ubiquitous Spanish dish was dare I say better than in Spain! Layers of potatoes made it a far more appealing dish than some of the greasy cold offerings I have exprienced when working in Espana. I don't know if any of you have been unfortunate to try Barcelona Airport's tortilla baguette, if you haven't, please don't do it and eat your Easyjet 'snack pack' instead. For those of you who know what I'm talking about, I do hope you were prepared enough to bring your Imodium and Rennies!
The third dish to come was a veggie paella- WOW it was HUGE! It came in a proper paella pan and exceeded the size of your common or garden tapa. I was gonna need help with this bad boy...

Needless to say, I was stuffed and full of the Latin spirit after this impressive display of Andalucian grub. As a veggie, anything Spanish is a minefield for me but Casa Tapas made it a pleasant stroll through a scenic food landscape. I promise I will make room for dessert next time though...

Buen Provecho amigos!