La Tapería

Les Amis' newest mid-range restaurant is a tapas affair and one of the better ones in Singapore. Mind you, that although Les Amis is moving away from the fine-dining scene and trying to establish itself in the mid-range market, it still veered towards the high-end of mid-range.

That being said, the quality of food at La Tapería did impress. In particular if you consider how, in Singapore, tapas are usually over-priced ang moh dim sums. At least here, the price may generally be north of $10 but at least the quantity and quality mostly justifies it. Bearing in mind that you are also paying for ambiance and service.

So, let us talk about the food now.

Off the bat, $4 for 4 slices of baguettes may seem excessive, but it was a worthy investment as the bread could be used to wipe up all the sauces provided.

The prawns in sizzling olive oil and garlic with chili was fresh, (Gambas Al Ajillo) and the oil was delicious to eat with the above-mentioned bread.

The gaelic style octopus (Pulpo a la Gallega) was one of the disappointments. It was soft and tender but did not wow the taste buds. There was a distinct lack of taste that not even the chili powder could compensate. Although, again, the oil was delish!

The fried manchego with Spanish Iberian salami (Crujiente de Manchego y Salchichon) was a children's (and adult's) favourite. The salty tanginess of the salami complemented the aged chewy cheese, and the fried pastry skin added some crunch.

The two squid dishes were a delight. The crispy baby squid cooking in squid ink (Chipirones Fritos en su Tinta) was a well done calamari-dish and frying it with the squid ink gave just the right amount of saltiness to complement the squid (which went well with a dash of lemon and the garlic mayonaise). 

The squid wrapped with jamon iberico (Rollito de Jamon Relleno de Calamar) was one of the best dishes. The squid was fresh and simply boiled and lightly grilled with a thin piece of jamon iberico wrapped around it which infused the seafood with a salty meat crisp.

Then came the meat dishes.

The charcoal grilled iberian pork (Pasa Iberica a la Parrilla) was a piece of ultra-tender pork chop - which I have been told "did not taste like pork!" (which would be good for all those people who have an adversity towards the elusive "taste of pork"). However, having said that, without that "porky taste" there seemed to be something lacking in the overall experience of such a tender piece of meat.

The off-the-menu wagyu beef came in 3 size: 150g, 300g or 500g and was served with a sides of potatoes and greens. The beef was done medium to medium-rare, and was tender and flavourful with a rich smell of charcoal and salt on the outsides. But they were too generous with the sauce which over-powered the natural flavour of the beef (which in all honesty, did not really need to be a wagyu).

The suckling pig (Super-Conchinllo confit) was average. You get to choose which quarter-part of the pig you preferred and I had the belly. It was fatty, the skin was crisp (veering more towards fried rather than roasted), but the meat was on the dry side, and not roasted enough to fall off the bone smoothly. The peach sauce and caramelised onions complemented the pork but was too little.

Lastly, the lobster pallea (Paella de Bogavante). A delicious, albeit slightly expensive, lobster and rice dish. The lobster was generously proportioned but dwarfed the portion of the rice - which in this case, with all the other food we had ordered, was appropriate. The lobster was fresh and succulent, and the rice, fragrant with saffron, was well cooked in lobster-broth and one of the better seafood paellas in Singapore.

The wine list was mainly Spanish, and the dry and mineral, with a hint of sweet, 2013 Laxas, Albariño went very well the dishes after breathing for a bit. 

Desserts was the churros and the crema catalana. Both were adequate although the mango bits in the latter was interesting and made it less boring than just a plain creme brulee.

At just slightly above S$500 for everything above, this was a good children/infant-friendly place that would be great for big group of friends and/or family. Dinner for one, two or three may be slightly less worth it.

La Tapería 
http://www.lataperia.com.sg/

1 Scotts Road #02-10/11 Singapore 228208
Tel: 6737 8336, e-mail: lataperia@lesamis,com.sg

Opening Hours:
Lunch: 12pm to 3pm, Dinner: 6.30pm to 10pm