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The January Foodie’s event broke from the normal structure as we were welcomed at Bocado Tapas and Wine Bar for a special meal where the Bocado team replicated a communal dining experience for us. The menu was extravagant and included four courses and a total of seven unique dishes, as well as having the Executive Chef educate us on what we were about to enjoy!

The atmosphere in the large dining area at Bocado is beautiful, with an attention to detail not found in most restaurants. The room is dimly lit with rich deep, warm colored paintings set against the red brick interior. The high wooden tables allowed for us to be seated in small groups and encouraged everyone to share the food which was served in a traditional, family-style manner.

The evening started with a choice of Bocado’s outstanding white or red Sangria which was enjoyed as our group mingled. When we were seated at our table, we began the night with a Cheese and Charcuterie platter with that consisted of a sheep’s milk Manchego cheese (Spain’s most famous cheese) and a dry cured Serrano ham, both of which had a deep, satisfying flavor.

The Tapas course began with a Tortilla Espanola which was described as a potato, egg and onion omelet topped with a red pepper creme fraiche. The dish was unusual and had our table perplexed as it consisted of more potato than egg, but was delicious nonetheless. The red pepper fraiche had enough heat to stand up to the potato and egg combination.

Next came the Pollo Asado Con Naranja Y Aceitunas, an outstanding combination of chicken thighs with orange sauce and olives. The dark meat chicken and salty olives proved to be a flavor combination worthy of a second helping!

The final Tapas we enjoyed was Calamares Con Ajo, a dish that seasoned Bocado visitors know is a signature dish of the restaurant and one that must be ordered. This extremely light and flavorful offering of Calamari was the perfect ending to the Tapas portion of our meal.

By this point of our meal, most of my fellow diners had eaten enough and were completely satisfied. I on the other hand was looking forward to our main course, the Paella Classica and Paella De Carne. Paella is a staple in the Spanish diet and is made from rice seasoned with saffron and then mixed with just about any other meat, seafood or vegetable. The Classica Paella was made from calamari, shrimp, chorizo, mussels and little necks and the Carne Paella had chicken, veal and duck. The combination of flavors in both dishes were truly outstanding, very different and ultimately very satisfying. Paella is truly the comfort food of Spain!

And finally dessert…as if any of us needed it! Postres Churros y Chocolate are fried dough pastries, topped with sugar and served with hot melted chocolate dipping sauce that you absolutely must order. They were the perfect ending to a very memorable meal.

From sharing food with friends, great flavors, outstanding service and a rich, but comfortable atmosphere, the dining experience at is one that was thoroughly enjoyable. -JG

As another month of Foodies approached, I was excited for the Spanish tapas menu that awaited us at Bocado. As we arrived, we were greeted warmly by a waiter who politely showed us to our designated section for the evening’s event. The best way to start a meal is with a nice cocktail. The red sangria was a nice touch with a bright splash of Spanish red wine, brandy and fresh fruit juices.

As our meal began to come out, we were given a nice cutting board of serrano ham, and manchego cheese. The chese was creamy and firm and added a nice complement to the saltly, thinly sliced cured ham, which is very similar to proscuitto. As our appetizers continued on, the Tortilla Espanola that Bocado offered up was closer to a quiche or a frittata. The scalloped potatoes were combined nicely with a red pepper aioli, with a side of olive tapenade. The tapenade on its own was extremely bitter, however when put together with the potato dish it was a nice offset to the creamy potatoes.

Our next offering was a roasted chicken dish that was extremely tender, to the point where it fell off the bone. It was a stick to your ribs sort of dish that would be perfect for a cold winter evening. The seasoning was perfect with a subtle hint of orange and rosemary. This chicken would be perfect in a homemade chicken soup, like Mom used to make.

Still in our appetizer section, we were treated to fried Calamares Con Ajo with an orange horseradish cream. The Calamares Con Ajo was cooked perfectly and the breading was nice and light. However, I found the sauce a little too acidic. I personally would have liked a little more kick from the horseradish and less of the lemon and orange that seemed to overpower the whole dish.

Our main course consisted of two different paella dishes: Paella Clasica and Paella de Carne. One dish was the meat paella featured chorizo, chicken, duck and veal. This was my personal favorite. The meat provided a really rich flavor to the dish and it was something different. Being an adventurous eater, I liked the unusual meats that you normally wouldn’t try in restaurant circumstances. The other paella was their classic paella offering. This was a rice dish with assorted seafood, calamari, little neck clams, mussels, and chorizo. The only negative thing that I could say about the dish was that it was quite salty. But with that said and knowing that there was a lot of seafood, that didn’t really surprise me.

Next was onto dessert: Postres Churros y Chocolate. A traditional Spanish dessert included a wonderfully fried churro with a chocolate dipping sauce. The churros were nicely dusted with a sugar and the semi-sweet chocolate was not overpowering and a really nice way to end the meal. Needless to say, we left Bocado with a full stomach, in good spirits and with another story to tell. -ED