thebandit27 Posted June 22, 2016 Posted June 22, 2016 A few folks on the main board asked me to post a review after I visited Aro Tapas last weekend, so here we go... I went with a group of 12, including my twin 3-year-old boys. We had a reservation and were seated quickly. At the urging of my cousin, I ordered one of their Gintonics--the Hibisco (gin/hibiscus bitters/plenty of other aromatics). The presentation was very cool with the dry ice, and it was nice and refreshing. I wouldn't say that it was worth the $15 price tag, but I'm pretty uninhibited when it comes to spending money at restaurants, so I would probably encourage an avid cocktail person to get one. We were told that it typically takes 4-5 plates per person to fill up, so I planned on going that route. Since 11 out of 12 of us had never been there, we decided to start with two 6-cheese platters and two orders of the world's greatest ham (we divided the bill up in two groups of 6, so each group had one of these). The cheeses ranged from 1-year aged manchego to creamy goat style to pungent bleu; they were excellent. The ham was tasty as well. Overall, I'd strongly recommend a cheese platter, but I'd step it down to 3 cheeses ($20 instead of $30 for 6) since they serve it with toasted baguette slices and honey anyway. The ham, while tasty, is a luxury item that I don't think added anything to our dining experience--at $18, I'd leave it out. Moving on to large plates, my kids really want to split a hamburger, so we got them the Hamburguesa de Hangover. At $12, this was easily one of the best values on the menu. It was a good portion (looked like 8 oz.) perfectly cooked, included a fried egg, and the harissa that dressed it was just spicy enough for the kiddos. They also got the Patatas Bravas--crispy fingerlings with a garlic aioli. A bit salty for me, but still a solid choice--an $8 serving was a good enough side for them--and they eat a LOT. They also wanted to try the asparagus because it came with bacon; not bad, but it needed the brown butter aioli that accompanied it to make it anything noteworthy--I'd probably pass on that one. Mrs. Bandit got the Arroz con Pollo, the chicken confit was nicely cooked; the rice/peas side was nothing special. I think this one was overrated at $17, and I'd steer away from it, though the saffron aioli was unique. The cauliflower side she ordered, however, was both delicious and hugely portioned. Nice touch with including crispy chicken skin. Side note: when my son saw that come out, he literally leapt out of his chair and ran over to her asking to have some; it was hilarious. I'd strongly recommend this one. I treated myself to the Albondigas, meatballs made from a pork/beef mixture and served with a spicy sauce. It was a decent portion for $10, but the taste was excellent. Rich flavor from the pork, good texture from the beef and breadcrumbs, and the sauce was a nice complement. My side dish, the Zanahorias con harissa, was fantastic. The carrots were were nicely cooked to retain their crispness, and the harissa was reminiscent of a proper Inidan curry, but balanced with a citrusy flavor. Solid combination. For dessert my kids each had a scoop of ice cream, which was a good deal for $3 apiece. Mrs. Bandit wanted something with a more Latin flavor, so she got the churros, which were decent enough on their own--nicely fried and seasoned, light, airy, crispy. The real highlight for that dish were the sauces: liberal helpings of salted caramel and dark chocolate served on the side for dipping. Good stuff. I ordered the Ojo de Buffalo, which was basically a chocolate brownie surrounded by chocolate mousse and topped with bits of sponge candy. It was excellent. Each of the desserts were $10, which I felt was overpriced, but again, I'm fairly comfortable spending whatever when I go out to eat. In general, if I'm grading on a scale of 1 (worst) to 5 (best), here's my marks: Food Taste - 4 Menu Variety - 5 Service - 4 Food prices - 3 Drink Quality - 4 Drink Prices - 2 I will definitely go back, but I think I'll take a different approach next time. I'll probably get the smaller cheese platter, no ham, and go with two large plates and one vegetable plate. Toss in a Gintonic and you're probably looking at $75/head including tip.
BarleyNY Posted June 22, 2016 Posted June 22, 2016 Thanks for the incredibly detailed review. I saw it pretty much the same way. There was excellent variety, including some things you just don't see elsewhere (I really enjoyed the lavender g&t I had) and the tapas sharing is always fun, but some dishes weren't as good as others. Also I'm a value shopper and I felt the prices were a bit high for what we got in value. I'll go back again, but I'm not in a huge hurry.
BuffaloBill Posted June 22, 2016 Posted June 22, 2016 Thanks for the heads up... Pricey for WNY but cheap as compared to other places.
ricojes Posted June 24, 2016 Posted June 24, 2016 (edited) Can you please write up a different local restaurant every week? Much better than the Gusto.... Edited June 24, 2016 by ricojes
thebandit27 Posted June 24, 2016 Author Posted June 24, 2016 Can you please write up a different local restaurant every week? Much better than the Gusto.... I don't know about every week, as it can be difficult to sneak a real sit down dinner in the schedule with twin 3-year olds, but I'm happy to provide these occasionally if folks really want to read my drivel I just don't want to pretend like I'm some food genius or come off as one of those pretentious food critic people. Thanks for the kind words.
ricojes Posted June 24, 2016 Posted June 24, 2016 (edited) I am heading to Tappo tonight. I have been there for drinks on a couple occasions, but this will be my first meal there. I have heard pretty good things. Also, i have a 3 year old as well, so kid friendly reviews would be great! Edited June 24, 2016 by ricojes
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