The magic begins the moment you descend the narrow steps into this cozy, low-ceilinged culinary…read morecocoon. The atmosphere is intimate and inviting, and we were welcomed as warmly as ever by the staff--especially David, the manager, who is an absolute gem. The menu changes daily (I've posted the one from our visit), and the dishes are designed to be shared--typically three to four per person. Portions vary, so it's worth asking about the size before ordering. It's difficult to recommend specific dishes since the menu evolves constantly, but honestly, you can't go wrong here. The only item that didn't quite win me over was the barley rusk, while everything else was outstanding. Highlights included the baked sea bream, hand-rolled Cretan pasta, croquettes, and octopus--each beautifully balanced and full of flavor. I also love that this is the kind of menu that invites curiosity--where you find yourself asking, "What's that?" only to discover a cheese or ingredient you've never heard of before. All in all, it's a very special restaurant--perfect for celebrations, but just as wonderful for any evening when you want a meal that feels like a discovery.

This place is perfect…read more Walking down Church Row and following the staircase into this small, hip, and trendy/romantic atmosphere is great. The staff are welcoming and the menu, both for food and wine, is full and tempting. There are basically 3 rooms: one (to the left) is street-facing and cozy, the central room is warm and friendly, and the one furthest to the right is intimate and trendy. The whole place has a wonderful feel and even better food. The menu is partially fixed, with some items as specials. They recommend 3-4 dishes/person as the plates are small, and I found this to be very safe. For 3 of us, we ordered 6 dishes and found it to be the right amount, but we also really enjoyed the complimentary bread and olive oil. We shared: Serrano ham croquetas £4.5: This is one of the best things I have had....ever. It's so comforting and flavorful, with the softness amongst the crispness and chewy ham. Simple but comforting and just excellent. Bruschetta £3.5: Perfectly acidic tomato on fluffy bread with fresh basil and garlic. It was stunning and simple and perfect. Cheese board £8: 3 cheeses with crackers and nuts. This is fun to eat and comes with a jam that was just lovely. Scallops, Jerusalem artichokes & crispy jamon cinco jotas £11.6: The scallops were cooked to perfection, and the time we had it, they came with a beautiful chestnut puree that took the whole thing to the next level. If you love scallops, you will love this. Grilled baby chicken & romesco £6.5: perfectly tender, juicy, and flavorful. The puree added nice texture and heat. A winner. Courgette flower, goat's cheese & fig jam £7.5: We need to seriously talk about this. This is incredible. It's elegant and simple, but something really special to enjoy. Wild rabbit, carrot purée £8.5: This is perfect. The rabbit isn't too gamey, but is tender and flavorful. The carrot puree is the best I've had--sweet and well seasoned and compliments the rabbit perfectly. Boyfriend and I were going crazy for it! The wine selection is also impressive. My boyfriend's cousin enjoyed the Rose, and we had some sips and it was just lovely and delightful. This place is great for hangouts, dates, anything. Truly delightful!

Always the best in every way- fantastic food, beautifully presented, excellent service staff who…read moreare attentive and friendly, in a setting which is lovely.

Date-night-worthy Italian…read more My wife and I came here for an early dinner date while we were in London without kids and were impressed. We got the meatballs arancini balls on pea pesto, papardelle with wild mushrooms, rigatoni with basil pesto burrata and pistachios, and potted tiramisu. The standouts were the aracini, burrata, and tiramisu, but everything was quite good. The arancini were good for what they were but helped a lot by the being paired with pea pesto. I now wish arancini was plated on top of a counter-balancing sauce or food more often. The burrata was just fantastic and combining with pistachios and basil pesto brought the whole dish together in a way that really pushed things beyond the norm. The tiramisu came in a pot with a mint leaf sticking out the top. As with the other standouts, the tiramisu itself was good, but the whole presentation just really nailed things. The mint leaf went beyond decorative to actually boosting the whole dish. They also had a solid wine list and were willing to let us re-cork and take the rest of the bottle back to the hotel.

nice atmosphere, staff was friendly. It was a successful evening. we'll be back. for sure.read more

It did not taste like tapas from Spain. Most everything was deep fried with sauce over it.read more

This place is a revelation in North London as it could easily be in Barcelona or in New York. I…read moregive this five stars also because I'm biased as it's a great place in my neighbourhood which adds to its appeal. It's genuinely good though - a tapas place where the food is outstanding and the staff friendly and helpful. The place wouldn't be out of place in Brooklyn with its exposed brick work and long bar and it gets very lively (and quite loud) on weekends. Other nights it's just as good for a slightly quieter dinner and value is great for the high quality.

Very authentic and extremely tasty....the octopus alone is worth the trip here. Top quality Jamon…read moreand great wines too....the orange wine i had, from Tenariffi believe, is the best example of this style I've ever had. The staff are friendly and know their stuff as well... this is my second time here, and it was just as fantastic as the first.

The food and port are well worth it! Portion size is perfect to share a few plates and felt very…read moreauthentic for Spanish tapas.

Wow we are SO glad we came here before a show in the west end. This will now be a most stop while…read morein London. What a great spot! We love port and therefore wanted to try this. We sat at the bar and were warmly greeted. It is very cute and cozy inside. Not a ton of tables, and it is a small intimate space, so great for dates or small get togethers. Our bartender was fabulous and helpful. We tried a variety of ports and they were all great. I loved that I could try so many different kinds which I normally don't get the chance to do. We didn't have any food since we had other dinner plans this evening but the tapas looked great and we would certainly try them upon returning.

I love tapas because I'm awful at making up my mind what to choose in a restaurant. This is the…read moreperfect solution - lots of little dishes to share! I went in on a Saturday lunchtime and found the service very efficient without feeling rushed. It was surprisingly quiet, so we forgot about the world around and were able to concentrate on the delicious food. The dishes are in the range of about £3.50 - £5.50 each and they're usually split into 2-3 bits, so can be shared if necessary. I recommend getting bread as well - it's great for soaking up sauces and is nice, soft ciabatta style with tomato sauce to dip it in. Particularly recommended: - deep-fried chicken soaked in garlic - not at all greasy and very tasty - potato with layers of goats cheese, ham and tomato - prawns with scrambled egg and asparagus (much, much taster than it sounds!) The sangria comes with a good amount of fruit in it and at £3 a glass is cheap and plenty enough to last a meal (if you can resist another one, anyway!). All in all a really nice place if you're into tapas and a great introduction if you've never tried it.

Fantastic! I love this place - a brilliant selection of hot and cold tapas with a range of drinks…read morein a very stylish room. My favourites are the selection of cheese, the garlic prawns and the little ham croquettes. Try a jug of sangria with it - it's very well done here and compliments the food greatly. This is a lovely place, decorated in a way inkeeping with the food and very private. The tables are well spaced, so you don't feel cramped or overheard. I like this place for dates or for a meal with a good mate. Always busy, so best to book it unless you've got time to have a drink at the bar first (which is no bad thing here). Go for a great, relaxed meal on one of Oxford's loveliest streets.

Food 4.5/5.0 Service 3.5/5.0…read moreValue 3.0/5.0 Decor 4.0/5.0 Overall 4.5/5.0 Super good food. Bar seating, but there are small tables outside. No reservations--you arrive and wait by the back counter (where you can only have a drink) until a table or bar seats open up. Would absolutely go back.

Cozy and inviting eatery.....make sure to make a reservation it's small but a very popular…read morerestaurant. The staff works beautifully together even with the limited space in their cooking area. It was like watching surgeons work together.....bravo to them all for providing such wonderful service and making each dish a standout. Open air kitchen where the grilling is done counter side. Fresh fish galore (it's on ice within eye view) the fish is selected and grilled based on order. This tapas hot spot should be top on your list of places to eat. Sharing plates is all the lure of these dishes. I have never been a fan of peppers but these grilled padron peppers with oil and sea salt were superb. The ribeye cap was bought to use with a large serving spoon it was beyond tender (yes the spoon was adequate to cut this succulent meat). It took barely any effort to chew since it was so perfectly prepared. The grilled octopus with paprika was the phenomenal. We should have ordered a second serving, it was a real palette teaser. The prawns were a lot of work and extremely hot, they were bought straight out the skillet to table so pack on the patience removing the shell. The mini meatballs along with the grilled squid with ink sauce is a must try when selecting items from the menu. Don't leave without ordering the flan, it was probably the best I ever tasted. Thank you for a memorable birthday dinner, Barrafina gets a 10 out of 10 from me.

Great atmosphere, fresh&delicious food, quick & efficient service. Absolutely recommended!read more

I am surprised no one has left a review for this place. A friend took me for the first time the…read moreother day - AMAZING. Reminded me of tapas in Barcelona authentic ! Steak was perfect and tender, and traditional Spanish tapas - ive found it hard to come across a really good Spanish tapas place in London and this one far beats it all.

The friendly staff at Tapas Stories accommodated our large group and checked in on us several times…read moreto make sure we had everything we needed. They were patient, kind and attentive. Beyond that, the food was a let down. The sharing platters were tiny, the sides were also small and steeply priced. Quality was ok but it didn't make up for the quantity. The seats at the tall table were uncomfortable and the place was hot and humid with little ventilation. There are no toilets in the restauran and you need to pay 1£ to use the ones outside. This was an ok find for a Tuesday night in a pickle, with a big group and no reservation but I won't be coming back anytime soon.

This food was interesting. the service was really good and the covid situation was handled well but…read morei had the mac and cheese and was seriously disappointing!!!!! it was just pasta with melted cheese on top- just a ball of cold cheese. my friend had the vegan burger and said was very good and tasted very realistic so 8/10 for that one but omg the £7 cheese pasta really let this place down. the toilets were nice tho but were we meant to flush the TP down the loo???????? good vibes tho.

Great vegan options! They have a full blown vegan option for almost everything off of their…read moreoriginal menu! This place is awesome. Super cute design inside. Their vegan mac was super good but their vegan philly cheese steak was slacking hard. Their chili cheese fries were pretty tasty! But wish I would have tried their chkn and waffles. Highly recommend if you are looking for vegan junk food!