What exactly constitutes tapas? It’s one of the great gastronomic conundrums of our day. Purists might insist that tapas should be snacks served and consumed at a bar, but a definition that narrow does a disservice to restaurants that invite you to quite literally make a meal of it. Neither, though, should it be so broad as to simply mean dinky dishes of any description – that way madness lies (a friend recalls miniature shepherd’s pies from a north-east England pub). Are tapas merely appetisers? Has the fad for small plates muddied the waters even more?
At Cardiff’s “Catalan kitchen” La Cuina, they hedge their bets by categorising the items at the top of the menu as “starters/tapas”. Unfortunately, on our visit, that results in confusion at the delivery stage: the member of our party who has gone down the tapas meal route receives all her dishes at once, at the same time as the starters, and is then left twiddling her thumbs as the rest of us tuck into our mains. Still, consolation is close at hand in the form of a deliciously fresh white wine, which bodes extremely well to someone who subscribes to the view that a restaurant can be fairly judged on the quality of the cheapest thing on the wine list.
There’s no doubt over the identity of La Cuina’s star attraction: the sensational rosemary-infused mountain lamb, impossibly tender beneath a crispy skin, atop roasted veg. By making it a sharer, the proprietors appear determined to test diners’ etiquette and diplomacy skills; it takes every fibre of my being to resist the temptation to grab the meat by the bone and do a runner so as to have it all to myself. Elsewhere around the table, the dish branded “simply duck” proves to be anything but plain, given the welcome zesty companionship of orange, grapefruit and pomegranate; a hefty steak is declared “bloody lovely” (pun intended); crunchy Cantharellus croquettes disappear in a flash; and, later, the salted chocolate ganache and trio of ice creams have the sweet-toothed among us singing.
If we’re being hypercritical, the slow-cooked potato wedges are a little too al dente and the portion of mille-feuille roasted potato could be more substantial. But, starter/tapas mix-up aside, the service is first class – a fork that tumbles to the floor is instantly replaced, a bottle of Fentimans ginger beer is presented as though it’s a vintage champagne – and all things told, it’s obvious why La Cuina is the sort of local independent restaurant bustling with contented diners on a Saturday night.
15 Kings Road, Cardiff. 029 2019 0265 / lacuina.co.uk
words and photos BEN WOOLHEAD
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