Tendido Cuatro

The Spanish tapas obsession is still going strong in London and this little group of restaurants is hands down one of the better ones I have tried. They have a few locations, three being on Old Brompton Road in South Kensington, all in a little cluster. But this one is a bit further down into Parsons Green. It’s not as sceney as Tendido Ceros, but I kind of like how it is hidden away in fact. Each one of these restaurants are different, serving from full portion, to tapas, to snacks. I have gone to all of them but I choose to write about this one, as it’s my favorite in terms of food. Everything I have ordered here, time and again, is extremely well prepared and seasoned, and therefore delicious. I like the style of the tapas as well; they smarten them up but still leave them simple with a touch of flair. The wait staff is really lovely too, very attentive and friendly. On my last visit, the waiter kindly wrote down my wine with all its details on the back of a napkin.

The one tapa that stands out to me is the seared tuna. It is seared slightly on the outside and perfectly pink on the inside. This doesn’t sound like anything groundbreaking, but somehow it is terribly mouthwatering. It is served with a lovely alioli and is perfect to share as it is sliced into bite size chunks. It is really fresh and high quality, which is what you need if you want to eat it this simply.

I also always order the grilled octopus here. I am pretty sure they braise it slowly first and then grill it, as it is as soft as a perfectly cooked chicken breast. It’s a good “octopus beginner” dish. It is served simply with grilled potatoes. I had this dish often in Spain, where they usually sprinkle Spanish paprika on it. Here they do not, choosing to cook it with chorizo. It is cooked so the delicate flavor of the octopus really shines through and pairs brilliantly with the paprika scented sausage. Bear in mind, the portion sizes of the tapas are quite large, so you can’t order as many as you would normally do, say in Spain. But it keeps you coming back to try the others.

The tuna tartar is also really delicious, served with an avocado alioli and tiny bits of caviar. The ever popular pedron peppers are wonderfully simple and amazing too, just deep fried and sprinkled with salt. But sometimes that’s all you want. The asparagus is cooked in the same fashion but served with an excellent red romesco sauce. They also serve calamari, and you can get it grilled or fried, both are great although I prefer the cleanness of the grilled. The quality of the Iberian Ham is very high, and served simply sliced. The classic acorn flavor is subdued and softly pronounced.

The key to why all these little dishes work so well is the simplicity and freshness of course, but it is also the expert cooking and presentation. One of my biggest problems with Spanish tapas in Spain is the massive amounts of oil that everything is always swimming in. I really appreciate how the Tendido group cleans it up for you. Also, In Spain, the focus is hugely on the sausages and chorizo in tapas bars. For instance, If you order the “tuna salad” in Andalucia, which is on every menu, it is always tuna from a can with some lettuce and jarred olives. My Canadian girlfriend and I always have a laugh about it as she lives there and dreads it. It is really odd because very close by, on the southern coast of Spain, some of the best tuna in the world can be found. In fact, I heard rumors that the Japanese buy up 90 percent of it. The reason really is that tapas vary greatly from region to region in Spain. The Tendido group does a great job of collecting some of the best ones and serving it all in place.

Overall it is a fun way to eat as you share everything, and Spanish tapas hugely deserve all the attention they are getting at the moment. This is definitely a great venue to try them out.