Barrafina

Forget sophistication, but for raw enjoyment this place is very hard to beat at any price.

Stars on the menu are the quail, the lamb rump, the patatas bravas and any seafood.

The only downside is the queue, even worse if the seafood runs out before you get to the front.
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C Y
9 Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 9
Monday, November 28, 2011

Eaten at Barrafina many times, so expected to wait for 45mins-1,00hour. We went there on Saturday 12th November and took our place in the queue, over 2 hours later we were finally seated. What really irritated was watching staff bump what I can only assume were friends up the queue. This happened 3 times and a total of 8 seats were taken out of turn. As a result by the time we sat down all the fresh fish and sea food was gone. We did the english thing and didn't make a fuss but in different circumstances and with customers who are not so compliant, things could have turned nasty.
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2 Overall rating
Food 5 | Service 0 | Atmosphere 1 | Value for money 3
Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Sorry to bang on. Went back there last Wed. Same deal.

Got there early, already half full. Watched as all the stuff was prepared in front of us.

Over-ordered and ate every scrap. Highlights? All of it.

One niggle. £2 for 2 small slices of bread is a little steep. Especially as you want loads of bread to mop up all those wonderful juices. The lamb sweetbread special needed about 8 slices, it was that delicious.

Top place.
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benjamin163 - View all reviews by this user
9 Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 8
Saturday, May 21, 2011

Finally. Got in there at the bar because we made a point of going down there at 12.15. It was already half full! And now I know why.

Surroundings are very cool. Just a bar that stretches round with fixed bar stools and waiters and chefs behind the bar taking your orders and cooking them.

All very lively and buzzy and cool. Great fun. Very Soho. But the best bit is the food.

We ordered just about everything on the medium sized menu, and everything was memorable. Octopus. Soft, succulent, beautifully flavoured oli. Memorable. Roast pork. Melty, sweet, daringly sauced and seasoned, generously served. Memorable. Tuna tatare. Perfectly balanced seasoning. Beautifully chopped. Hints of the orient with the sesame oil. Lovely mousse accompaniment. Memorable. Tortilla. Charred outside, melting inside, rich, naughty, memorable. (fun to watch them prepare too.) Bruschetta. Fresh, vibrant. generous. memorable.

We carried on ordering. It's hard not too when you can see what everyone else is getting.

Pimientos de Padron. Classic. simple. Memorable. Roast Sea Bream. Simply done. Perfectly done. bold seasoning. Memorable. Couldn't eat any more. Gutted I didn't order the chips. They looked amazing too.

Bad points. Well it's not great if you're in groups because you sit in a line. And if you get there after 12.30 you'll be waiting an hour. And you certainly rack up a bill because if you're like me you just keep ordering and ordering because you don't want to miss out.

Other than that the place is perfect. They even serve the beer ice cold.

A triumph. Believe what everyone says.
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benjamin163 - View all reviews by this user
9 Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 8
Saturday, May 14, 2011

The first time I went to Barrafina was about two years ago. I've been back a dozen or so times since then and love it a bit more everytime I go back. The 'bar-style' setting creates an incredible buzz, however because of the seating arrangement you wouldn't really want to be in a group of more than two. What I love about this restaurant is its fast-paced, random nature. The staff are great, the head chef Alicia works magic in the kitchen. This is the way Spanish food, particularly tapas should be served and eaten: fresh, bold, creative, artistic, bursting with flavour and leading the taste buds on a merry dance!
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Deji Fisher - View all reviews by this user
9 Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 9
Monday, April 04, 2011

A stunning lunch yesterday. Short but interesting wine/sherry list, sharp yet friendly service and great ingredients, accurately cooked. Everything (about 10 tapas) we tried was delicious but special mention to the spectacularly moreish ham and cheese croquetas, sweet lamb cutlets with silky parsnip puree and punchily flavoured morcilla with fried quail's egg and red peppers. The bar-only seating overlooking the chefs cooking adds to the buzz and sense of theatre. Compares favourably to the daddy of them all, Cal Pep in Barcelona.
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markj - View all reviews by this user
10 Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10
Sunday, March 20, 2011

great food and wines.

seating arrangements are quite awkward, and i am not a fan of eating standing up or having to wait for a seat to become free.

but oh well... food is great!
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Yevgeniy - View all reviews by this user
9 Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 8
Tuesday, December 07, 2010

I had to review Barrafina because it is my favourite restaurant in the world, it is charismatic, interesting and worth the wait. I find it very interesting that some reviewers have left 1 star but I certainly think Barrafina is a refined taste, and not for those in need molly-coddling. It is fast-paced, the staff are busy but vibrantly engaging if you so wish to engage them, they are extremely knowledgable about the food, sources, cooking methods and anything else you might want to know. Understandably there are times when they are run off their feet trying to navigate the space, deal with the customers and the queue but even at these times I find if you give them the polite words they deserve you will certainly be looked after. Barrafina thrives on their fiercely loyal clientelle, I said thrives not survives as extra testament to that fact, Barrafina is a different breed of restaurant, and a very aquired taste. A previous reviewer states that the staff think they are better than the customers, do you go to a restaurant hoping to receive a sense from those waiting on you that you are superior? I recommend this place whole-heatedly to everyone but especially, those who love tapas, those who are interested in something different, and those who really love absolute top quality food.
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Nicola - View all reviews by this user
8 Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 8
Wednesday, December 01, 2010

Excellent!!! The food and wine were really great and the service up to very high standards. We had to wait for about half an hour to get a seat, but that is expected at least on a Saturday night. After all the possibility of having some wine and tapas while on the queue makes waiting time seem less and at the end the food is really worth it. Strongly recommended for people who love good mediterranean food and not only...
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Constantinos
10 Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 9
Sunday, November 21, 2010

I have been a customer of Barrafina for a long period of time. I have waited up to an hour to eat there and recommended it mercilessly to both native Spaniards like me and friends from all over London. Last week, we ordered a glass of white wine and a glass of brut while we where waiting to eat and whereas the wine was chilled to an acceptable standard the brut wasn't. My partner kindly ask for a chiller glass and was told by the waiter that it was chilled enough. To that purpose, he simply touched the glass and went away. We were put off staying the full 45 minutes we had to wait and decided to leave but the waiter blatantly refused to delete the untouched brut from our bill. When he called the manager, she told us that she wanted to touch the glass herself to which my partner suggested that she went to pick the glass up herself from the end of the bar if she felt it was necessary. She hesitated for a long, embarrassing ten seconds talking back and forth to the waiter and looking around but she finally took it off the bill. We were frankly appalled and left promptly and I can safely say that we have no intention of coming back any time soon. Barrafina has great food, but so do dozens of places in London and for those prices I expect to be treated with a lot more elegance in such petty disagreements.
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Maria
2 Overall rating
Food 5 | Service 0 | Atmosphere 1 | Value for money 1
Monday, September 06, 2010