I review a lot of restaurants that tend to not actually be near where I live, which is brilliant but also a shame as there are some fantastic restaurants in Bristol. I first went to Bravas on Cotham Hill in Bristol pre-blog time with my brother and sister in law, where we stumbled upon it when looking for some grub on a Friday night. The room was buzzing and it was like stepping straight into a taps bar on Les Ramblas in Barcelona. We had such a great night there, I’ve been meaning to go back to write about it. I took my rentals there where we had a wonderful evening, trying all sorts of wonderful delicious!
First up was the Duck Egg with Chorizo Migas. Recently, I’ve become addicted to duck eggs. I think my meal at The Duck and Waffle broke my fried egg hatred to pure love. The rich duck yolk with the paprika oil from the chorizo mixed with crisp bread crumbs was a wonderful starter dish.
You can’t go to a tapas restaurant without ordering a wedge of a tortilla. It may not seem like the sexiest dish to order, but a well-made tortilla can be a thing of beauty. I fell in love with a tortilla in Seville at the Easter where it was served warm with buttery onion, not set fully and of course with a glass of fino sherry. This delicious tortilla was served with creamy garlicky aioli. I love garlic so this was perfect.
Next up was one of our favourite dishes, so much so that we ordered another plate between the three of us. Fried Aubergine and Molasses. Light straws of crispy sweet, salty aubergine with a sweet tang of molasses. I could have happily had a massive plate of these beauties!
One plate my dad polished off in a flash was the Grilled Lamb with Hazelnut and Parsley Salsa. Soft pink lamb with the nutty salsa to cut through the richness. Lovely dish.
I love this time of year when the asparagus is coming into season and is lovely and plump. We had a simple dish of Grilled Asparagus with Garlic and Herb Butter, simple but delicious.
The menu at Bravas has a brilliant mix of dishes for meat-eaters and veggies alike. One of my favourite veggie dishes is the Spanish Lentils with Goats’ Cheese and Walnuts. What a wonderful combination! The creamy cheese with the nutty lentils and the woody walnuts, another dish that got hovered up!
Lastly, after we had our savoury fill was the Presa a la Plancha or Ibérico Pork Cooked on the Grill. Tender, pink, flavoursome pork with a hint of smoke from the grill. Busting the myth that pork has to be cooked all the way through, this pork was perfect and tender, whilst still being moist. A revelation in meat form.
Now you wouldn’t think that the Food Nerd family would have room after that tapas feast for dessert. Wrong. We always have room for dessert! Ordering the Dessert Board we all dived in. Consisting of a Strawberry and Cream Tart, Baked Cheesecake, Caramelised Hazelnut Meringues and Salted Chocolate Truffles, was a dream platter. Everything was perfect, sadly we were driving or we would have gotten the glasses of Pedro Ximenez sherry that the dessert board came with. I predict many more visits to Bravas in the future.
Address Book
Bravas
7 Cotham Hill, Bristol BS6 6LD
Tel: 0117 329 6887
Website: bravas.co.uk
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