El Taburete : Take A Seat At Barcelona Loft Style Bar

      El Taburete is a petite Sala Daeng Tapas bar run by Thai chef-owner Kannika KongKaew, who spent 10 years in Spain. Here, customers can experience back-alley Barcelona’s best via a constantly-changing menu. 

     The restaurant is decorated with Barcelona Loft Style. Behind a huge front door, customers will encounter a small loft providing rustic feeling with a brick and bare concrete. Moreover, it is also decorated with kitchen utensils, paintings and a huge mirror with lists of desserts written on its corner. Spanish music is constantly played on the background.

         Along the counter bar, there are four high chairs which are the origin of the restaurant’s name Taburete. Small high tables and chairs are placed closely to one another, giving the feeling of sharing. This gives the atmosphere resembling to bars in Barcelona where when the bar gets too crowded, strangers can join the table and get to know one another, as if everyone is friend. As the restaurant is quite small, it can get very crowded on the weekend. Thus, customers will likely to experience the Spanish bar culture where people come, get some drinks, have Tapas, and socialize, surrounded by crowded but fun Spanish bar atmosphere. 

Tapas y Pinchos

Complementary bread :)

         Food in El Taburete is served in the form of Tapas, however, the portion is bigger than a typical one. There are many menus in this restaurant which are unique. For example, a famous dish is called Fideuà which is made like a paella, but instead of using rice, it uses a vermicelli pasta. Espárragos envueltos en panceta con salsa de Romesco which is bacon-wrapped asparagus with romesco sauce is also prominent here. El Taburete’s desserts are also delicious such as Sponge cheesecake and blueberry sherbet which is quite similar to Japanese cuisine. 

Espárragos Envueltos en Panceta, Salsa de Romesco (195 THB)

Tortilla de patatas (175 THB) : Spanish omelette is a traditional signature dish from Spain and is often served at room temperature as a tapa.

Croquetas de Jamón Ibérico (170 THB) : A croquette is a small breadcrumbed fried food roll containing vegetables or meat. Mashed-potato-filled croquettes are often served as a side dish in winter holiday meals, such as Christmas.

Fideuà (380 THB) : Fideuà is a seafood dish originally from the coast of Valencia that is similar to paella, but with noodles instead of rice.

Buñuelos de Bacalao (225 THB) : Cod fritters, a typical dish of the Mediterranean countries such as Spain, are fried cod pasta balls crumbled and mixed with other ingredients.

The first menu that we would like to suggest is Patatas Bravas (130 THB). Potatoes are cooked until they are very crunchy on the outside. Once we bite into them,  the texture of the inside is very creamy. With the garlic mayonnaise and tomato sauce, it adds more sweet and sour flavour to the fried potato. Among all Patatas Bravas we have tried, El Taburete impresses us the most.

Patatas bravas, a typical dish in Spain, are often served as a tapa in bars. White potatoes are fried in oil and served warm with a spicy sauce.

The second menu that you should not miss is Pulpo Con Crema de Coliflor y Salsa de Pimentón (355 THB). This is a boil octopus which is served in a small portion, allowing the customers to enjoy the delicate taste of the sea. The octopus is surprisingly fresh and does not have a strong smell. The texture of the octopus is very easy to chew that we almost forget this is an octopus. With the sauce that is a little bit sour, it helps compliment the flavor of octopus. This plate, with Spanish music and Barcelona atmosphere, makes us feel like we are in the coastal area somewhere in Spain.

Pulpo or octopus is a popular tapa (appetizer) served all over Spain today. It originated in the northwestern Spanish region of Galicia, where octopus is a specialty and a common catch for local fishermen.

The third recommended menu is Jamón Ibérico (600 THB) and Manchego cheese (380 THB). The quality of both cold-cut and cheese are very good. The cold-cut is not too salty and it really goes well with the given homemade bread. Yet, Manchego cheese does not disappoint us. If you do not mind its strong smell, this plate is highly recommended, if you would like to experience a glimpse of Spanish authentic cheese. 

Jamón Ibérico or "Iberian ham", is a famous ham produced in Spain. Iberian ham is often served with manchego cheese as an appetizer.

The last menu that we would like to recommend is Sponge cheesecake and blueberry sherbet. The Sponge cheesecake is very soft and it is not too sweet while the blueberry has a sour flavour which seems to twist with the sweetness of the cheesecake. The chef also hides a little twist in the ice-cream by adding alcohol into it. Combining the ice-cream with the cheesecake, it goes well together. However, please keep in mind that alcohol seems to play a huge role in here. So, if you do not mind getting a little drunk, a second plate is highly recommended. 

Tarta de queso is a famous Pintxos (Basque version of tapas) in Basque country in Spain. Traditional Basque cheesecake are popular across the region especially around San Sebastian.

Our impression

            Its Barcelona loft style and overall atmosphere of El Taburete allows us to escape from the Bangkok vibe into a Spanish Tapas bar. If you are looking for a place where you can hang out and chill in the late evening or at night, El Taburete can be a perfect escape for you to enjoy drinks and Spanish cuisine. We do love this restaurant, as it allows us to express our personality to the fullest. The fun environment, with Spanish music in the background, invokes our exciting emotion and our courage to have the guts to talk to people who sit next to your table. Besides Broken Eggs, El Taburete can be another perfect choice for a gastrobar where customers can come and grab some drinks, while enjoying Spanish atmosphere. 

Location : 5/6 Saladaeng Rd, Silom, Bang Rak, Bangkok 10500

(300 m. away from Bts Saladaeng Station and 50 m.from Soi Saladaeng 2)

Contact : 096 145 4563

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Tabureterestaurant

Price : 300-500 THB/Person

Office hour :

Mon. - Sat.  4.00 p.m. - 11 p.m.

Bibliography

Taburete. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.facebook.com/pg/Tabureterestaurant/photos/?tab=album&album_id=2239177949477975&__tn__=-UC-R.

Bkk. (2017, January 18). Taburete (ศาลาแดง) ร้านอาหารสเปน - เมดิเตอร์เรเนียนสไตล์บาร์เซโลน่า. Retrieved November 8, 2019, from https://www.bkkmenu.com/eat/we-recommend/taburete.html.

Uno Más : A semi-alfresco tapas bar and restaurant on top of Centara Grand.

         Uno Más is famous for its stunning view on the 54th floor of Centara Grand at CentralWorld. There are three distinct zones at Uno Más with the air conditioned bar and lounge in the front of the restaurant, the front terrace zone which has the raw bar, cold kitchen and open air seating, as well as the back terrace with semi al fresco dining, hot kitchen, larger tables for bigger groups and a duo of linen draped lounge couches. As it is located on the rooftop of Centara Grand, it offers an amazing broad view of Bangkok. The visitors can have dinner while watching the sunset at the same time. 

        Inside the restaurant, the overall vibe is Spanish coastal area with wooden ceiling beams, and a turquoise blue, white and orange color scheme which is a nice contrast to the dramatic black and dark red, commonly seen in Spanish themed restaurants. This fancy fine dining restaurant also offers Spanish live music and the restaurant opens until 1:00 AM.

          This restaurant offers innumerable wine options due to its famous Las Vegas style wine cellar and its 2000+ wine bottles. There is also a special feature which is called “Flying Angle” - an acrobatic wine angels service.

Intricate Spanish plates

          Uno Más offers a collection of intricate tapas plates, premium seafood, including a selection of lobsters, oysters, shrimp and clams. Jamón Iberico is placed on the counter showing the customers a sight of Spanish famous ingredients.  

         This luxurious restaurant has a variety of food and drinks. The food is fairly acceptable, but it is not strikingly astonishing. For example, the mushroom croquettes and the bravas can meet the standard. For its famous plate Uno Más Paella, it is quite disappointing. The texture is sluchy and watery, almost like risotto. We tried to find the crunch in them, but it turned out that we could not find it. Moreover, it has a strong taste of pepper and it is a little spicier compared to Paella from other restaurants. So, if you are looking for a traditional Paella with crispy texture, Uno Más Paella might not be the best option. 

Uno Más Paella (1450 THB/S)

Bravas (190 THB) : A typical Spanish tapas dish in which potatoes are fried in oil and served with warm spicy sauce and mayonnaise.

Ajo Blanco soup (350 THB) : It is Spain's famous chilled summer soup, made with bread, almonds, garlic, olive oil, and vinegar, then topped with refreshing green grapes.

Crystal Bread (150THB) (Bread with tomatoes) : This is a typical Spanish light dish which can be served as an appetizer.

Trio Manchego (550 THB) : Manchego is a cheese made in the La Mancha region of Spain from the milk of sheep of the Manchega breed. It is aged between 2 months and 2 years.

         The restaurant starts off by giving us baskets of bread as a complementary dish. They are typical Spanish bread such as Pan Rustico. We are quite impressed by this because it reminds us of dining in European restaurants. Also, the bread is tasty and authentic. 

          The ingredients’ quality are great, for instance, the seafood and the cold-cut. We are impressed with the prawns in Gambas al ajillo because the prawn’s size is big and the quality is fresh. Prawns soaked in olive oil are accompanied by roasted bread, allowing customers to enjoy a unique and special taste of the oil by dipping the bread in, even after all the prawns are gone. 

Joselito Ham (990 THB) : This ham is from Iberian pigs reared on the open range in woodlands owned by Joselito in the southwest of the Iberian peninsula. It is considered one of the best hams in the world.

Gambas Pil Pil (690 THB) : This dish of shrimp cloaked in garlic-infused olive oil with smoky hints of paprika and a touch of sweetness from sherry. This is a classic Spanish Tapa dish.

            The most well-known dish that we could not miss from this restaurant is El cochinillo con un plato. It is not only about the taste of the pig, but is also about the presentation and activity which is provided by the restaurant with this special menu. Customers who order this dish will also get to experience the traditional practice of this menu which can be dated back to the 15th century. Basically, the baby pig will be cut with the edge of a white plate, which is later smashed before the customers (or sometimes by the customers themselves), as part of the spectacle, the traditional method for breaking it into pieces. It is also believed that the breaking of plate will bring luck to them.

Credit : http://www.unomasbangkok.com : Cochinillo is a Spanish dish consisting of a roasted suckling pig with succulent meat, tender and crispy skin. The dish is served throughout Spain, and it is especially popular in the region of Castilla.

        Another menu that we would like to recommend is Crema Catalana which is a traditional Catalan cream dessert with salted caramel ice cream that the restaurant adapts the menu into its fancy version. The cream is served cold and it is very creamy and tasty. It is not too sweet because there is a salty salted caramel ice cream and a sour twist at the bottom. This dessert is accompanied by a piece of small cinnamon cake. This is also one of our most favorite Spanish desserts.

Crema Catalan (320 THB) : In Catalan cuisine, crema catalana is a dish that is similar to a crème brûlée.

Our impression

          If you are looking for a luxurious formal fine dining with a spectacular view of Bangkok, with an excellent quality of ingredients, we highly recommend you to visit Uno Más. Due to its location, one should keep in mind that the price is very high, compared to other Spanish restaurants around Bangkok. Moreover, the restaurant allows the customers to experience some of Spanish traditional practice such as breaking the plate.

        From our standpoint, we are not quite impressed by this restaurant. Partly, it is because of its too formal atmosphere. Although the open-air section of the restaurant is decorated informally, we can still feel the high class fine dining atmosphere. Furthermore, the food taste is quite disappointing, compared to other restaurants. Although the quality of the products is excellent and fresh, the taste seems to be its drawback. All in all, Uno Más is for those who may look for a romantic escape from the busy atmosphere of Bangkok. But for those who seek for authentic and fun atmosphere of Spanish cuisine, this might not be the best option. 

Let's take some pictures with the spectacular view of Bangkok at night! :)

Location : 999/99 Centara Grand Hotel Rama I Rd, Pathum Wan, Pathum Wan District, Bangkok 10330

Contact : 02 100 6255

Website: http://www.unomasbangkok.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/UnoMasBangkok/

Price : 1000-1500 THB/person

Office hour :

Mon. - Sun. 4 p.m. - 1.00 a.m.

(Last food order 23.30 hrs. and Last tapas order at midnight)  

Bibliography

Spanish Restaurant Bangkok - Rooftop Dining at Uno Mas. (2019, November 7). Retrieved from http://www.unomasbangkok.com/.

Uno Mas. (2019, April 17). Retrieved November 7, 2019, from https://bk.asia-city.com/restaurants/bangkok-restaurant-reviews/uno-mas.

Tuohy, L. (2018, October 11). Is Uno Mas' monthly brunch with endless tapas, jamon, and bubbly one of the best values in Bangkok?: Coconuts Bangkok. Retrieved November 7, 2019, from https://coconuts.co/bangkok/food-drink/one-creative-endless-tapas-bubbles-uno-mas-monthly-brunch-sky/.

Broken Eggs : Gastrobar and its extraordinary Tapas

Breaking away from the restrictive reputation of Spanish-sounding names and cliche decor, Broken Eggs is a hip Spanish tavern that’s unafraid to inject a contemporary spin to tapas bites - Theeraphong

Credit : https://goo.gl/maps/hhqmBVQPvyX3kLHMA

             People might be familiar with Spanish restaurants with full course dishes, serving cold cuts, Tapas and Paella. However, Broken Eggs, a name of Spanish traditional dish Huevos Rotos, is different because it is a gastrobar where Tapas is the heart of this place. A drink-centric tapas gastro bar offers a combination of old and new tapas creations by chef owner, A Galicia native, Jacobo Astray. Although he used to be a chef at elBulli, one of the best restaurants in the world with three Michelin stars, the food here is rather fun and informal, with the fusion and creative mixture of ingredients. 

Astray was cutting the Iberian ham right in front of us when we were interviewing him. He also gave each of us a piece of this famous ham to try. It was very delicious.

             The atmosphere of this gastrobar is truly informal and friendly for everyone. It makes us feel like we are in a gastrobar in Spain where we meet our friends and have a pre-drink before we go out to enjoy our night partying and clubbing. 

            Inside the restaurant, on the right side of the restaurant, we will encounter a long bar where high chairs are placed. On the left and the middle parts, small high tables and chairs and a long table are placed allowing a group of friends to hang out and have a drink and Tapas. One of the restaurant’s features is a massive wall painting by Spanish artist Sath, which is a painting of a huge elephant chef cooking with an enormous octopus helper, accompanied by a chicken who are laying eggs. 

Astray told us that an elephant represents Thailand, while an octopus represents a region of Galicia where he came from. At the bottom of the picture, there is a hen with a ton of eggs representing the name of the restaurant, Broken Eggs.

La comida española : Spanish food

Broken Eggs offers a variety of drinks, such as Thai craft beers, Galician beers (Estrella Galicia), wines, sangria, cava, sweet wines, gin and tonic with its classic formulas and premium. 

              90 % of the food here is Tapas served in small plates. They are mixtures of different tastes and textures which reflect Jacobo’s mix and match creativities. The other 10 % is a Spanish traditional rice dish Paella. Because this place is gastrobar, its tapas are not simple, but it is a creative dish with good quality products. 

Sangría (160 THB/glass) : Sangria is an alcoholic beverage from Spain. This Spanish punch traditionally consists of red wine and chopped fruit. Sangria is one of the most popular drinks from the Spanish cuisine.

Paella Valenciana (520 THB) : Paella is a typical Spanish rice dish originally from Valencia. Paella is one of the best known dishes in the Spanish cuisine. The original recipe of Paella Valenciana consists of round grain rice, varieties of green beans, rabbit, chicken, a variety of lima or butter bean and snails. However, as it is served in Thailand, the chef changes from using rabbit and snail to use chicken and seafood instead.

Our first favorite dish is Burrata cheese with raspberries, pistachio and basil oil (360 THB). It is a fusion dish with an influence from Italian cuisine. The dish is light and sweet, combining with a rounded taste of Burrata cheese. We decided to order this dish because it is recommended by the chef although it is not originally from Spain. Well, as always, the chef does not disappoint us. We can only describe its taste through the Spanish word "suave" which we find it quite hard to translate the feeling into English. But if we have to, we would translate it to soft, smooth and refined.

Burrata cheese is a fresh cheese found in a typical Mediterranean diet.

Our second most-loved menu is Eggplants with honey and miso (180 THB). Again, this is not a authentic Spanish dish we are all familiar to. The chef plays with the fried eggplants served with tasty sauce made with honey and miso. It is also a light dish which you can enjoy, with the feeling of healthiness, and also vegetarian-friendly as well.

This fried eggplant with honey (Berenjenas con Miel) is a popular tapas throughout Andalusia in southern Spain, also known locally as berenjenas fritas con miel.

Although the majority of the food is a small dish served in a form of Tapas, Paella Valenciana (520 THB) is astonishingly impressive. However, the taste is unique. When the first spoon of Paella enters our mouth, it reminds all of us suddenly of Tom Yum Gung or Thai shrimp soup. Although it is not that spicy, its smell and texture is quite similar to our traditional dish (Tom Yum Gung fried rice). With the glimpse of lemon juice, the dish becomes more sour and therefore, quite flavorful. Spanish rice is plump full of the flavor of chicken stock. We decided to ask the chef whether he has adapted Paella into Thai people's preference of Tom Yum or not. Unexpectedly, he said no. So we decided that there might be some similarity between Spanish rich dish and Thai famous ingredient. In this case, we guess that it must be the sour taste from lemon, the red color of Paella, and the fact that these two dishes are so full-flavored.

After we finished our meal, it would be incomplete if we do not order dessert. We decided to let the chef design for our dessert. The chef served us with Arroz con leche or as we know as Spanish traditional rice pudding. However, the chef decided to hide some playful element in our dish - the mango. By combining Arroz con leche with mango, this fusion dish reminds us of Thai sticky rice with mango. Although it is not completely authentic like Spanish rice pudding in Spain, this plate is bold because it dares to adapt a Spanish traditional dessert and put it in a new context of Thai setting. We completely love this dish. Also, highly recommended!

Arroz con leche is the Spanish version of Rice Pudding. However, it is widely believed that this dish has origins in Moorish cuisine.

Our impression

          Among all Spanish restaurants we visited, we love this one the most. Not only its Tapas are impressively rich in flavor, but also its atmosphere is authentic and playful that it reminds us of Tapas Gastrobar in Spain. Broken Eggs is an informal gastrobar where you can visit anytime, whether to enjoy the drinks or to taste its simply delicious Tapas. You can also follow the Spanish culture of the youngsters of doing bar-hopping. First, come to Broken Eggs, grab some drinks and have some Tapas. Next, you go out, enjoy your nightlife, among the most famous nightlife area in Bangkok, around Thonglor-Ekkamai.

Location : 112/7 Ekamai Road, Klongtan Nuea Wattana, Bangkok 10110

Contact : 02 047 7811

Website: http://brokeneggsbangkok.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/brokeneggsbkk/

Price : 300-500 THB/person

Office hour :

Tues. - Sat. 5.00 p.m. - 11.00 p.m.

Sun. 12.00 a.m. - 4.00 p.m.

Bibliography

Theeraphong, P. (2018, March 30). Broken Eggs. Retrieved November 11, 2019, from https://www.timeout.com/bangkok/restaurants/broken-eggs.

Moonsiri, T. (2017, October 18). Broken Eggs แกสโตรบาร์ที่จริงจังเรื่องทาปาส. Retrieved November 11, 2019, from https://www.soimilk.com/restaurants/news/broken-eggs.