La Flamenca Spanish Restaurant, Bath

La Flamenca
An Authentic Spanish Restaurant in Bath
12A North Parade
Bath
BA2 4AL

Tele; 01225 463626
Fax; 01225 463676

Web-site www.la-flamenca.com

This Tapas bar / restaurant can now by seen on Sky Channel 160 - Britain's Best Breaks. TV Travel Show.

I do not have Sky TV so can't comment on the coverage of this but have visited the restaurant a few times ...
...the world.

La Flamenco consists of a restaurant and Tapas Bar. Tonight my friends and I were going to be eating in the restaurant, however, we would be having the choice of the Tapas Bar menu, as I had pre-arranged when booking. A party this size on a Saturday night has to be (like most good places) booked well in advance. I would suggest if you are booking here to give yourself about 4-8 wks, I will explain why in the next paragraph.
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La Flamenca
An Authentic Spanish Restaurant in Bath
12A North Parade
Bath
BA2 4AL

Tele; 01225 463626
Fax; 01225 463676

Web-site www.la-flamenca.com

This Tapas bar / restaurant can now by seen on Sky Channel 160 - Britain's Best Breaks. TV Travel Show.

I do not have Sky TV so can't comment on the coverage of this but have visited the restaurant a few times so here is my review based on the first experience of this little bit of Spain within an historical City.

LOCATION

The restaurant is situated in the heart of the city, within a 5 min walking distance of the railway station. North Parade is the street that runs between the Sports Centre (Cricket ground) and Pierrepont Street (A3039). It is also about a 5 min walk to Bath Abbey, The famous Sally Lunn's and the Great Bath Rugby club.

PARKING

Although parking is becoming restricted within the city centre, due to the building work taking place (2008-2012) there are several car parks with a 2 min walk of the restaurant. These can be found in Manvers st, North Parade @ the sports centre and next to the Bath Spa Station. There are several Park n Ride schemes that are situated on the outskirts of the city, but check closing times if you are having a late meal.

WEBSITE

The restaurant's web-site is easy to enter and navigate. It has English and Spanish buttons on the Home page that allows you to enter the relevant area. A location link will take you to Multimap from which you can print off or just check up on where to find the restaurant.
The welcome page gives an over view of the characteristics of the eating establishment, to which I must agree they are spot on.
There are 6 tabs to help you navigate around the site and locate the information you require. These are Home, Restaurant, Tapas Bar, Wine Lists, Reservations & New / Events. The wine lists are detailed, there are other choices available in the restaurant that are special features of the night.

I found these very helpful and used the Reservations to book our Girlie Night out Table. From here I could also print off menus and wine lists for the 15 girls that were coming.
When planning a night out for a party this size, having the option to print off and distribute info like this is great, as it gives guests chance to look at what's available.

On arrival we did have a few minutes to spare so decided to have a drink before going in. The restaurant is situated very close to Lambrettas Bar and several other bars were at the end of the street. So close to other drinking holes, always good ! It is also within walking distance of several very good hotels in Bath.

THE RESTAURANT and My Night There With The Girls

The iron stairs leading down to the restaurant are, a warning to stiletto lovers and more mature diners, steep and need full attention when descending. There is a railing running the full length the stair case to help steady your descent to the basement level, where the restaurant is situated.
We entered through a small door on the left at the bottom of the sturdy stairs and were immediately hit with bright colours and wonderful decorations that transported you to the wonderful shores of Espanol.

The warming buzz of chattering amongst drinkers and diners reassures you that this is a friendly and to be. Because the restaurant and bar in located under the road, it has arched ceilings that add to the acoustics of the atmosphere. Our party of 16 women in totally ranged from 18 years old to 62 years. We are a mixture of family and close friends all varying in occupations. One thing we all have in common is that we all work very, very hard so make sure we have at least 1 good night out every few months. We hadn't tried this restaurant before but love trying foods from all over the world.

La Flamenco consists of a restaurant and Tapas Bar. Tonight my friends and I were going to be eating in the restaurant, however, we would be having the choice of the Tapas Bar menu, as I had pre-arranged when booking. A party this size on a Saturday night has to be (like most good places) booked well in advance. I would suggest if you are booking here to give yourself about 4-8 wks, I will explain why in the next paragraph.

Normally a large party would have the set menu (£25 pp) compromising of about 5 courses of very good quality settings.
However, as many of our party, including myself, have small appetites this would have been a waste of good food and money. I had explained this when booking and was reassured it would not be a problem and our needs would be catered for.

BOOKING

Booking was a bit of a long drawn out affair to be honest, hence the suggestion earlier to book well in advance. I had filled in the reservation form, via the web-site, giving all the details asked for 2 months before our party date. Due to having to organise and book a mini-bus I wanted to make sure we could get a table first. My booking request had a response within 48hrs asking for further details, to which I responded to immediately. However, over the next 2 weeks I receive no further contact from them. I sent another email which again had no reply over the following week. I therefore, phoned the restaurant to check if everything with the booking was ok. I was told all the details for the booking was absolutely ok and had a table booked for the 8pm slot we had asked for.

BACK TO THE NIGHT IN HAND

As I had previously mentioned on arrival we were very pleased with the atmosphere and surroundings that meet us. The small foyer area at the entrance displayed a large caged area replicating a well stocked wine cellar you would expect to see in the cellar of a mediterranean villa. The Tapas bar and toilets were situated on the left and within easy reach of the Restaurant positioned on the right of the entrance. We were shown to our table which was clean, well set out and had easy access to every chair. The beautifully carved wooden chairs were a lovely reflection of Spanish craftsmanship and enhanced the rustic feel of the place.
The waitresses were very polite and friendly. We were invited to order drinks at the bar and then return to our table when ready to order.

DRINKS

My friends and I had a mixture of drinks, several of us opting to try the freshly made Sangria (Well, when in Rome - Spain, where ever ) This fruity little number arrived in clay jugs and was very colourful in appearance - due to the floating fruit salad on top. (Guess we're having dessert first then). The aroma from the fruits and spices reminded you of a warm summer's day - fabulous and very easy to drink!!! The taste was smooth and warming and had a little kick that reminded you gently that there was alchol involved here. Hmm, you do get through quite a few of these. The price for a jug was £9.50 and we did get about 3 glasses per pair from each jug, so good price for a restaurant. Several of the girls order wines ranging from; Rioja Vega @ £16 and a Chardonnay Principo de Viana @ £14 a bottle, although slightly more than the clay jug contents were apparently "well worth it". A glass of whin starts at around £2.75 with bottles ranging from £10-£50. A fair selection of reds, whites and rosa are available.

FOOD

I was glad everyone was enjoying the wine because the service was a bit slow. After 20 mins I asked the waitress if we could have some menus. To which she replied she thought we were all having the set menu. OH GOD! That loud thump was my heart hitting the rustic, stone tiles on the floor. That communication thing was rearing its head again. I repeated the booking details and our telephone conversation to which she grimaced and said she would go check. She returned after a few minutes … with something in her hands… bril the Tapas menus. She was very apologetic and very quickly handed out the menus explaining that a specials board was situated in the Bar and please feel free to look. A very professional come-back I feel. Ten minutes later we were all ready to order and getting hungry. There were a few small bowls of olives and 1 piece of bread each. Hmm, good job we have small appetites. The waitress was quick to return and so began to take our order. However, the last 4 girls had decided on Paellas, it was only now we were told they would take about half an hour to cook, as they are made from fresh. A group rumbling of stomachs prompted the waitress to offer us some more bread and olives to keep us going, which we accepted. The bread was plain, baguette slices, a little on the ordinary side, but the olives were a mixture of pitted green and black with a hint of garlic in the olive oil and wonderful.

My friend and I ordered a selection of tapas ranging from the Albondigas con Tomate (meatballs in tomato) £4.50, Patatas Bravas (potatoes)£3.32 and Berenjenas con Miel (Aubergine in Honey) £3.25. Each tapas was absolutely delicious in its own way. They were served in little clay dishes that are of similar design and style to the Sangera Jugs. All were piping hot and freshly made. They were all well presented in appearance with lovely colours making them very appetising. The delicate flavours didn't overwhelm the other ingredients but complemented each other in a truly delightful manner. The girls who were ploughing their way through the Paellas were just as pleased with the freshly made dishes, saying they were well worth waiting for. The rice was soft and fluffy with delicate flavours enhancing the prawns and squid pieces. (Was this because they were just so hungry or were they really that fantastic?) The tapas range it vast with each one varying from £2.50 - £10.00 and veggies are cantered for very well.

I would recommend ordering many different ones to share between you; this will give you a great range of the wonderful dishes available.
During the meal a Spanish guitar player emerged at the end of the restaurant and began to play. He was soon joined by a Spanish dancer, with castanet's, who between them struck up traditional rhythmic songs that reflected the ambience of this Spanish delight. Both were dressed in traditional costumes and really looked as if they had just stepped from a postcard of Spain.

THE BILL
This was the only down-side to the whole evening (well it usually is). When I checked through the bill I discovered items that we had not ordered totalling over £18 and we had been charged for the bread and olives that the waitress offered to 'keep us going' while we waited for our orders to be cooked. Normally, I would over look this, however, when you have added the service charge I felt this needed to be addressed. The waitress took the bill back and returned ten minutes later with a revised bill and no apology. (NOT a professional come-back) They were very, very busy by this time and staff were trying to do their best.

We didn't let it spoil our opinions of the night and place because we had experienced the most wonderful food, drink and atmosphere.
I would recommend this little bit of Spain in the beautiful, historical home city of mine to all.
It was great to visit a Spanish restaurant that could bite any of the numerous Bath Italian restaurant's butts - giving them a good run for their money.

Just check your bill guys. 

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