Opened in May 2018, Tinto Taperia is a small but perfectly formed Spanish restaurant located next to the Theatre Royal on New Road, Brighton, writes Nick Mosley.
Now New Road is an interesting case, as despite being ash the heart of the city’s self-professed cultural quarter – and having won numerous awards public realm design – it is also a meeting point for miscreants, drunks and addicts who whilst usually good-natured can be intimidating and disruptive.
With so much investment by the council, Royal Pavilion and Museum estate, Brighton Dome, independent businesses and most recently Ambassadors Theatre Group with their refurbishment of the Theatre Royal, it seems a rather depressing state of affairs. I have no doubt in my mind that it puts off all-important visitors to the city.
Anyway, on a more positive note, once through the doors of Tinto Taperia I was out of earshot of the raucousness and view of tattooed topless men stumbling around.
I dined in a pre-theatre time slot with a colleague from the local tourist industry. Not that we were going to the theatre – we were actually off to an event at Brighton Toy Museum – but I wanted to see how the pre-theatre market was holding up in the city. It didn’t seem particularly busy at 5.30pm but by the time we left the venue was filling up nicely.
The interiors are stylish and very on-point for a contemporary Spanish eatery. We made a beeline for one of the high tables as a like to have a good nosey at whats on other diners tables but there are also more cosy banquettes.
The menu is pretty expansive with a choice of sharing platters, paella and 25-30 smaller tapas plates where you’ll find all the classics from chorizo in cider and padron peppers through to crispy deep fried mixed seafood and ham croquettes.
Pricing is reasonable with tapas style vegetable dishes around £7, meat dishes around £8 and seafood dishes around £11. Obviously the beauty of tapas is that you can try – and share – lots of different small plates so we picked five with an accompanying bread basket which was more than enough for us but hungrier diners would probably want to order a couple more.
First to land on the table was a rather delectable dish of prawns a la plancha – five hearty grilled shrimp smothered in garlic, olive oil, parsley and tangy lemon. Slightly smoky in taste, if you eat with your eyes then this is most definitely a dish for you.
My dining partner is always a bit fussy with her chicken. Despite always protesting that she prefers breast, little miss greedy guts always seems to gravitate to thigh which – in my opinion is where the the best moisture and depth of flavour can be found. Cooked skin-on in wine and garlic – and well seasoned – it was nothing short of perfect.
Sautéed mushrooms offered exactly what it said on the tin – or rather in the menu – and, yep, you guessed it were cooked in white wine and garlic.
I don’t think I’ve ever met a Brit who can enjoy tapas with ordering a side of patatas bravas – double fried chunks of potato smothered in a spicy paprika and tomato sauce. Again, a faultless example of an ever-popular dish.
My personal favourite was the egg and potato tortilla – freshly made an stuffed with a layer of goats cheese. Hearty and utterly delicious; it was better than any of the egg dishes I ate in Girona a month or so later.
My only disappointment was the lack of clams and garlic in white wine, which is my personal favourite tapas dish but you can’t have it all your way all of the time.
A choice of paellas are available at £18 per person based on two sharing. If you were going to the theatre then you might want to consider pre-ordering as these dishes are cooked on demand so the wait time can be up to 40 minutes. I should note that around half of dishes are market as gluten-free.
With a 175ml medium glass of house red and white wine at around £6, Tiinto is eminently affordable and a really lovely place to escape from the bustle of the city centre without breaking the bank.
Tinto Taperia, 7 New Road, Brighton BN1 1UF
01273 727 766 • www.tintotaperia.co.uk
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