Spanish Tapas

I suppose if I am going to claim to be a cultural foodie, then I better get to blogging about cultural food. Last night I dropped into Tapas Valencia in Chicago South Loop for a little Vino and Spanish tapas. According to the menu it is the “Number 1 Spanish Tapas Restaurant in Chicagoland.” Guess I picked a good one. With the Spanish music in the background, at least one Spanish hottie waiter, and some Spanish language lingering in the air, it felt a little like I just might be in Spain. That is until I looked up to see the NBA playoff game playing on the TV above the bar and heard some obnoxious American women hooting and hollering with a table covered in empty glasses.
So, what are tapas? When I was looking at the Tapas Valencia website they had a cute little video about the tradition of tapas.
- Tapa means "lid" or "cover" in Spanish. There are several explanations for why it has come to denote a type of food but the most commonly cited explaination is that in the old days when there was no air conditioning a piece of bread would often be placed on top of a drink to protect it from fruit flies. The customers would then eat the bread along with the drink served, so taverns started competing; putting different toppings on the bread. Each tavern became known for their own special tapas.

The idea of tapas is very appealing and fun as well because you are able to try several small dishes instead of one entrée as opposed to the traditional way of dining. Many restaurants have expanded the idea beyond spanish food and serve various small plate items, calling it "tapas". Also, as with any cuisine exported from its original country, there are almost ALWAYS significant differences between the original Spanish dishes and the dishes as they are served in America claiming to be Spanish. Needless to say I’m not sure that what I really got would have been a traditional dish from Spain but since I won’t be hopping on a plane to Spain anytime soon, this was the best I could do for now.
After taking a few sips of my much desired glass of Vino Rojo, Altos de Luzon, I ordered a couple plates: Queso de Cabra – Baked goat cheese with garlic bread and the Calamares a la Plancha – grilled squid with garlic olive oil. When the waiter brought me what I ordered, I was somewhat bummed as the goat cheese was actually engulfed in a bowl of cream of tomato soup and the garlic bread surrounding the bowl was your typical toasted baguette smothered in garlic olive oil. Although it was quite tasty, what I really wanted was just the baked goat cheese to spread on a fresh plain baguette. (I suppose I should just went to the cheese shop then huh?) What can I say; Sometimes I just like real, simple, and delicious. The squid wasn’t the best grilled squid I have ever had either and the amount of garlic on it would have scared anyone away from me for about a week. Many people don’t like the chewy, rubbery texture but I love it and even crave it from time to time.

Queso de Cabra

Calamares a la Plancha

Overall it was fun to do some food documenting again and I look forward to many more like it. I can already tell this hobby is going to fight the nutritionist in me a little bit as well as put a dent in my check book (wait, do people even use checkbooks anymore?), BUT on the flip side it’s also going to increase my somewhat non-existent social life that I have been needing to work on since I moved to Chicago. Salud!

What's your favorite tapas?