Iberica Summer Tasting Menu

hat makes a chef really happy? I shiny new piece of kitchen equipment. Head Chef César García was grinning from ear to ear when he was talking about his new Josper Grill in their summer outpost, La Terraza. I can see why when they served up a never ending series of delicious grilled dishes from their summer menu. (Note: The Josper is a chef’s most coveted piece of kit and it cooks at a very high heat and gives a really good chargrilled flavour to food.)

We started off at the bar indoors where we sampled Red Berry Gazpacho, Salmorejo Puree with apple granite, Pear,spinach and cheese salad, Ensaladilla Rusa, Spanish Foie Salad, Sea Trout with ajoblanco and pitu sauce.

On the terrace, we sample a variety from their tasting menu.

Tigres – mussels in white bechamel sauce, coated in breadcrumbs and served in the shell. Mussels are not my faovurite things but it seems I am wrong. Served this way, it was perfect. Rich creamy sauce and the added crunch makes this my new favourite mussel dish.

Fillet of mackerel with a zingy escabech and clam sauce.

A smokey piece of Monkfish tail served with cider vinegar and potato puree. The green smear is a sorrel puree which adds a little bit of citrusy balance to the dish.  They should offer this in a full main course size as it is just delightful. The char from the grill adds another level of complexity to a seemingly simple fish dish.

This is one of 3 grilled Iberico pork dishes we were served. Their pork is sourced from a family farm in Majorca that is run by Jose Ferrer. Note the smear on the plate is the best dressing for this amazing pork. It is made from garlic, paprika and parsley. Ask them for more as it works really well with that plate of meat.

The 3 different cuts of pork being served are Pluma (Iberian pork loin), Albanico (Iberian Pork Should Extension), Secreto which is the bit between the ribs and shoulder. In the old days, the butchers will cut this piece off and save it for themselves instead of passing it over to the owners of the pigs. It is the most prized cut. All the pork is served medium as this is the best way to have Iberico Pork.

The wine chosen to go with the meat was the V eritas Vinyes Red.

Chef Cesar delivering a big plate of grilled steak to the table. This is from a Galician blond rib of beef. These are ex dairy cows, can be up to 17 years old. It has a very high fat content and has recently been made really popular by a few restaurateurs in London. I tasted this Basque beef. In the UK, all the old dairy cows are sold for a pittance to be made into cheap mince and dog food. Maybe the dairy farmers are missing a trick and can make a bit of money from their old dairy cows. Bring on a marketing campaign!

A quick mention about the side dishes, make sure you order some of their crispy chips and piquillo peppers. (Another stand out dish we had at another time is their Iberico Ham, eggs and chips dish, simple but oh so delicious).

Through all the dishes, we had a perfectly selected Spanish wines. They have the biggest selection of Spanish wines and their sommelier will guide you accordingly.

We finished with a lovely dessert wine, Casta Diva cosecha miel, D.O.Alicante. This was chosen to go with the La Tarta de Abuela, an upside down creme caramel and a Spanish caramelised rice pudding.

Try and catch their summer menu while you can. They have really excelled this year. Those grilled meat dishes, especially the Iberico Pork ones are just superb.

Iberica La Terraza

Cabot Square,

Canary Wharf,

London

Tel: 020 7148 1565

EatCookExplore was a guest of Iberica