La Tienda

I don't know how my parents never heard of this Spanish restaurant before, that's why, it was only a few weeks ago that I got to dine here.

Anyway, I love the place. It seems to be an expats' hang-out place actually because there were a lot of them in there. Also, the presence of the musicians wasn't helping in concealing that. I was (half) smiling as I went inside the restaurant because I could hear people speaking in Spanish (ah... the dream, felt right at home, kidding.). The place has very cozy furniture. And even if it was the middle of the week, there were a lot of customers having dinner there.

Now for some food review:

Paella Mixta de la Tienda (Php 645) - paella with chicken, pork, Spanish sausage and seafood. One of the best paellas I've had (and can be in fact compared to what I had in Barcelona a few years back). The rice was perfectly cooked. It wasn't dry, in fact, it was moist enough, not making the consistency the same as that of a porridge. I had a bit of hesitation towards the taste of the Spanish sausage. I just think it was a little bit overcooked. Other than that, everything tasted amazing.

Gambas (Php 295) - garlic flavoured shrimp in olive oil. There were a total of 8 pieces of (small) shrimps in it. It actually tasted great as it was cooked just right and I love everything that has garlic in it. I would have appreciated it though if they took off the spines of the shrimps (which should always be the case in serving them).

Salpicado (Php 255) - tenderloin tips. We thought we ordered the main course serving of this dish however we were served with the tapas portion. It was fine since we wouldn't have finished it anyway. The meat was a bit hard to chew, I wish it could've been more tender. The taste is good though.

I especially loved the service in this restaurant. The waiters were pretty attentive and fast in serving what we ordered although you have to order the paella ahead of time as it takes them 45 minutes to prepare. I will drag my family here some other time.

La Tienda
43 Polaris St., Bel Air
Makati City, Metro Manila
890-4123; 895-1651