Restaurant Review: Tapas Teatro

Yesterday was my 3^rd wedding anniversary! Nick and I don’t do gifts for our anniversaries anymore (we’ve been together 13 years, have too many things in a small apartment, and don’t really need anything anyway). Our anniversary treats these days include going out to a restaurant, particularly one that we haven’t been to before, and just spending a lovely evening together. This time around, we decided to try out Tapas Teatro, located next to the Charles Theater. We don’t live far from the restaurant (we walked to/from dinner last night) so I couldn’t tell you why we have never dined there before. The weather was perfect so, naturally, all of the outdoor seating was taken so we ate indoors. The owners of Tapas Teatro also own several other restaurants in Baltimore City including The Helmand, a superb Afghani restaurant, and b A Bolton Hill Bistro, which serves up Mediterranean bistro fare (I haven’t tried this restaurant yet).



Espinacia y manzana and papas cambrey with sangria

What we ate:

Espinacia y Manzana (sautéed spinach with apples and maple)

Pisto Manchego (Spanish ratatouille)

Papas Cambrey (baby potatoes with sweet garlic aioli)

Berenjenas Asado (roasted eggplant with curried vegetables and minted yogurt)

Miticrema (sheep’s milk cheese with Pajarero figs and reduced sherry)

Grilled asparagus with Romesco sauce (can’t remember the name of this dish- sorry!)

&

served with a small bowl of olives and pickles, endless baskets of bread with garlic olive oil, for dipping, and a pitcher of red sangria



Miticrema and grilled asparagus with Romesco sauce

Tapas are small plates, or appetizers, which can be eaten, leisurely, with wine or drinks. Order several plates if you wish to make a full meal. Think of tapas as finger foods that you munch on while enjoying someone’s company and conversation. Tapa’s restaurants tend to be vegetarian friendly because you can order a wide variety of cheese, egg, or vegetable plates. Our overall impression of the restaurant’s fare was a positive one. The spinach and apple dish was perfect- the apples were juicy, the maple cinnamon sauce was not overwhelming, and the pine nuts really added a unique flavor to the dish. The berenjenas asado was quite flavorful, contained Indian spices, and even had a bit of a kick to it- this dish was not too dissimilar to dishes we've had at their sister restaurant, The Helmand. Nick really enjoyed the ratatouille, which had a lovely red sauce with zucchini, yellow squash, onions, tomato, and toasted pine nuts while I loved the miticrema, which was creamy and sweet. The atmosphere was ambient and the food was beautifully presented. It was definitely a great a place to get tapas.

Tapas Teatro