Review: BARcelona in St. Louis

The Spanish cocktail hour custom of tapas is an example of civilization at a higher level - especially if dinner is not served until 11 p.m., or even midnight.

Tapas, as demonstrated with flavor and excellence at BARcelona, are small plates topped with delicious morsels, like a cocktail party where the hors d'oeuvres are truly worth eating. They're designed for a couple, or maybe two, to share while enjoying a pre-dinner drink, or drinks. In Madrid, at a sidewalk cafe, the Guru spent several hours with drinks and a variety of nibbles, then went off to dinner. It's a little different in St. Louis, where many (and the Guru, too) can make an entire meal from the appetizer-sized morsels, perhaps topped off with some paella to share.

The best thing about a tapas restaurant is that a diner can spend a lot, or a little, time and/or money while experimenting with a variety of tastes and textures. Small, perfectly cooked, flavorful lamb chops, topped with a rosemary aioli (that's garlic mayonnaise in French), are the most expensive dish at $7.50, while delicious, spicy roasted potatoes are less than half the cost, as are roasted peppers, also with garlic. The Spanish, a Mediterranean people like the French and Italians, use a lot of garlic in their cooking.

Mike Johnson, who did some exceptional cooking at the late Cafe Mira, is reportedly the man in charge of the kitchen at BARcelona, but he was not visible on a couple of meals at the small, rather noisy spot, which was a former site of Cafe Provencal (now moved to the Seven Gables). The meals were excellent, and reasonably priced, and the sangria was an excellent mix of red wine, fruit juices and perhaps a little cinnamon that kept the drink from becoming too sweet, at which point it does not work with the tapas.

Garlic and spice lovers, like the Guru family, are very happy with dinner, though some dishes were not quite as spicy as we would have preferred. Still, there were many good tastes, especially the white Spanish anchovies (boquerones), perfectly marinated in vinaigrette. These fish are close cousins to those that are stuffed into small cans, packed in salt in the Italian style or rolled around capers. They are not overly salty, but have a delightful herring-like flavor. They should, of course, because they're related; in parts of the world, all small fish are lumped together with the generic title of herring, whether pickled, smoked or prepared in any other manner. Only a few St. Louis restaurants, and fewer grocery stores, offer them, but they're a delight.

They're served cold, with 10 other cold selections on the BARcelona menu and 20 warm ones. There are a couple of soups (gazpacho and a snappy, superior black bean), a salad and paella, which can be ordered for one or for several ($10.95 per person). BARcelona's paella is quite good, although the rice leaned slightly toward al dente, and the dish featured several different fresh shellfish, pimento strips, green peas, nicely spiced sausage, chicken and a soft fish that probably varies with season. The combination, flavored with a hint of saffron, is excellent.

Service, brisk and competent, allows for diners to order a few things at a time, sampling a variety of tastes and spices, or alternating between hot and cold, or in whatever combination that pleases. However, if ordering hot tapas, hold the order to a couple per person to keep the dishes from getting cold. The servers return with superior timing to take subsequent orders, and the kitchen works rapidly.

Four is probably the ideal number to share a single order, and there's no law that says a refill cannot be ordered. Over the course of a couple of visits, our favorite probably was the shrimp sauteed in olive oil with thinly slliced garlic and a dash of extra chilil oil. The shrimp were cooked to perfection and the dish had a little heat that was just right. The garlic, sliced very thinly, was cooked long enough to retain flavor, but to lose the bite. Serrano ham was tangy, smoky and delicious, and a good variety (three or four types) of Spanish olives, marinated in oil and spices, were a delight, and the traditional potato and onion omelet (tortilla Espanola) was tasty, though rather heavy and dull.

Chill evenings called for warm tapas, and the steamed mussels were tender and good, with an overtone of Rioja wine for extra flavor. The assortment of sausages brought one or two that were spicy and a couple that were mild, but of pleasing flavor, and excellent with the crusty bread that arrives as rapidly as it is depleted. Chicken-and-sausage brochettes were superior, as were the spicy roasted potatoes and the grilled salmon topped with large caper berries and lemon. A spinach-mushroom empanada pastry with a garlic-cumin sauce was severely lacking in flavor, and a the classic bacalao, or salt cod croquette, was disappointingly bland. Baked goat cheese was good, but its tomato sauce had been cheated of its proper, tangy seasoning.

That list, of course, is only a beginning. Chicken wings, roasted peppers, grilled vegetables, beef brochettes and a variety of other dishes are available, and desserts are worth saving some space for, with an orange flan outstanding and a dark brownie above average. Tres leches, a traditional pound cake made with three types of milk, was passable, but without honors.

BARcelona, off to a good start.