Food Review: Tapas Revolution at Grand Central

Grand Central is fast becoming one of my go to places in Birmingham. Whether I've just come back from a trip to London or want to meet friends for something to eat in somewhere super convenient, Grand Central has it all. It's no bad thing that there are plenty of gorgeous shops to pop into whilst I'm around too, and I love to run into Jo Malone, L'Occitane and Neal's Yard Remedies if I'm waiting to meet someone.

I was recently invited to try out five new dishes at Tapas Revolution. Launched in July, the new dishes include a gazpacho, honey and lemon chicken wings, spinach and goat's cheese empanadillas, lamb chops and a lettuce and Manchego salad.

However, I was also able to try out classic dishes from the menu, all created by Tapas Revolution founder Omar Allibhoy.

Having won the award for Best Spanish Restaurant at the Birmingham Food Drink and Hospitality Awards 2016 earlier this year, I was looking forward to my chance to try out some Spanish dishes.

Despite visiting Barcelona back in June, I didn't manage to try much tapas whilst I was there, mainly because I'd been warned away from anywhere that served buffet style food, in favour of venues that cook fresh. I did of course get to try a lot of paella, but I was eager to try more small plates.

Seated at a balcony seat with great views of the hustle and bustle below, we were offered drinks first whilst I looked at the dedicated gluten free menu. It was great to see such a detailed menu which even outlined which dishes were at risk of cross contamination.

I decided to go for the Ginabelle, a plum gin infused with red berry tea and served with Fever-Tree Indian Tonic and forest fruits (£9). This was a gin revelation for me, as someone who loves gin but also has a sweet tooth. Don't get me wrong, this was no strawberry daiquiri, but there was just a touch of sweetness which I really enjoyed. There is of course a range of Sangria options available too, Spanish inspired cocktails, more gin tonics, red, white and rose wine, craft beers, and of course soft drinks including horchata and authentic Spanish lemonade.

Next, we ordered Queso Manchego y membrillo (£5.75), Manchego with Quince paste to nibble on first. I love cheese, so there's very little else I need to say other than that I also love quince.

Our food arrived as it was ready, to ensure nothing was left to stand. We ordered Chuletas de Cordero, roasted lamb chops marinated with spices and served pink (£7.95), Jamon Serrano del Consorcio, 18 month cured ham (£5.25), Gambas al Ajillo, tiger prawns with garlic and chilli oil cooked in a terracotta dish (£7.95), Arroz Negro, black rice with prawn and squid served with alioli (£5.25), Huevos Rotos, baked chorizo sausage, potatoes and egg (£5.50) and finally, Patatas Bravas, roasted potatoes with spicy tomato sauce and alioli (£3.95).

My favourite dish of the bunch had to be the Arroz Negro. There's something about the salty flavour of squid ink that I just adore, and this dish was so full of flavour, it was far from a boring rice dish. With the addition of a few chunks of squid, this was the standout star. Of course, the cheese and ham were as good as I would expect, relying on a good palate to source the finest flavours.

The lamb chops were perfectly cooked and pink as promised, but I would have liked the earthy spices to have been given a kick with the addition of some sharp citrus flavours or a hint of chilli.

The prawns were fine, but could have done with being finished off on a grill or pan to add colour to the dish and an extra depth gained from grilling or caramelising the dish.

Finally, the potato dishes were well cooked and spicier than I expected. The alioli was most welcome here.

As much as I wish I could eat churros, unfortunately they're not gluten free. In lieu of ice-cream, we finished off our meal with an excellent espresso each.

The service we received at Tapas Revolution was excellent, attentive and very friendly. The atmosphere was buzzing and lively, thanks I imagine to an excellent half price offer on sangria from 4-7pm daily and 2 for 1 on gin tonics. When we visited, the restaurant was full of friends catching up and work colleagues breaking bread, and mainly sangria, making it a great place to eat and drink in unpretentious surrounds.

I'd happily return for the paella next time, and for those of you who can eat gluten, there were some excellent looking dishes including the calamari, empanadillas, croquetas de jamon and of course churros.

Have you ever been to Tapas Revolution? What were your thoughts?

Event: Cheval Blanc Moseley Press Dinner and Wine Tasting

Moseley is known for drawing crowds of young, trendy, types to the suburbs with its mix of eclectic bars and international restaurants.

Popping up next to The Dark Horse, is Cheval Blanc. A classy, elegant venue, Cheval Blanc is an upmarket bar with a real thirst for wine.

Its undoubted USP's include the hand-painted mural of a white horse and a spiral underground wine cellar which can hold up to 1,500 of the best wines, retailing at between £15-£1,000.

I was drawn in on a Sunday evening for a Press Launch with the lure of tasting ten wines as well as plates of nibbles created by French chef Cyd.

An intimate space, the main restaurant is small, with room for up to 25 diners. Dominated by the glass topped wine cellar and accompanying spiral lamp feature above, the room is cleverly divided with booths, soft seating and wooden tables.

So dedicated are the owners to wine, that they have brought in sommelier Abigail Connolly to manage the venue.

Onto the evening itself, a champagne reception on a Sunday night does not bode well for Monday morning, but it would be rude to pass on such a welcome.

Following an introduction from owner Keith Marsden, the owner of The Dark Horse and The Prince of Wales, we got stuck into the wine tasting.

Sailing through a Gardet, Blanc de Blancs (£60, Champagne), Chateau Montaud Rose (£27, Rose), Eschenhof Holzer, Wagram Gruner Veltliner (£20, White, Crisp and Dry) and Domaine De Le Chauveniere, Muscat Sevre et Maine (£20.50, White, Crisp and Dry), we were taken on a tour of wines from £20 to £40 and over in this relaxed and unpretentious environment.

Giving us just a taste of what it felt like to taste 180 wines, which is exactly what the team did to put together the wine list, we continued to try a further six wines. These were: La Monasesca, Verdicchio di Matelica (£33, White, Fruit Forward), BLANKBottle, Nothing to Declare (£38.50, White, Rich and Rounded), Eschenhof Holzer, Wagram Bauer Zweigelt (£20, Red, Light and Fresh), Domaine Foillard, Morgan Classique (£43.50, Red, Light and Fresh), Nitida, Calligraphy (£38, Red, Classic Blend) and Juan Gil, 12 Meses (£35, Red, Big and Bold).

Some of the highlights for me included the Verdicchio, with flavours of honey and pears, this was my favourite. Nothing to Declare, described as a Rich and Rounded White, had hints of pear and marzipan and was again a treat.

In amongst the wine, there were a few small plates to enjoy too. Featuring highlights from the main menu, we tried a fish plate, a meat plate, a cheese plate and the white wine and vanilla poached pear, creme chiboust and shortbread dessert.

The food menu ranges from £4 for olives to £12 for a meat or cheese sharing board, and the dishes are small but full of flavour; perfect accompaniments to the extensive wine list.

Cyd is a French chef who pays attention to detail and flavour, and the produce he selects has got to be perfect before he'll let it anywhere near the menu, In particular, I couldn't fault the tea smoked duck breast with flavours of orange and black cardamon, the hearty pieces of poached lobster, the rich cheeses served alongside quince paste and the dill cured salmon.

In amongst the bars, pubs and restaurants, Moseley has finally found itself a grown-up wine bar.

Event: Johnny Loves Rosie Blogger Breakfast

Johnny Loves Rosie is a brand that I loved way back when. Known for selling accessories with a cute, whimsical twist, Johnny Loves Rosie stocks everything from belts and bangles to earrings and headbands. Stocked by asos and River Island to name just a few, the brand has even been worn by Little Mix and Louise Thompson from Made In Chelsea.

Although the brand has been around for some time, it was recently taken over by Victoria Taylor and is headquartered in Bromsgrove, near Birmingham.

I was invited to a Blogger Breakfast to get to know the brand, take a look at some of the pieces and get the inside scoop on what to expect in the coming months.

Held at Cote Brasserie in the Mailbox, I arrived to meet Victoria and Charlotte from the brand and sat down next to Heidi from Heidi-Likes. I got to meet some fabulous bloggers including Sherry Scribbles, Call Me Liz and Ally in Blunderland.

The table was beautifully decorated with fresh flowers, specially typed menus and a surprise box from Johnny Loves Rosie.

We were salivating over these cute pieces such as the watches and chokers, and I had to follow Heidi and try on the cat ears.

Sitting down at the table, we were treated to tea, coffee, and freshly squeezed orange juice, as well as a choice of breakfast items such as granola, croissant and fresh fruit, or smoked salmon and scrambled eggs.

I went for the latter with gluten free toast, and as you can see it was heavenly! I've never tried scrambled eggs with chives before but it really works.

After we'd eaten, I took the opportunity to chat to the owner Victoria and she let me in on a few secrets. As well as talking about what's hot right now (chokers of course), she predicts that belts are making a comeback.

We also spoke about what's coming up, and she showed me a sample of one of the new personalised bags. These pouch style bags will come with foil letters and will be customisable! Can you spot them on the table? I can't wait to see these and they should be out later this year.

A big thank you to Johnny Loves Rosie for inviting me to their first Blogger Breakfast.

Event: El Borracho De Oro Press Dinner

Spanish food has always been somewhat underrepresented in the city of Birmingham. However, El Borracho De Oro is a new Spanish tapas bar and restaurant in town. Opened over a year ago, it has shamefully taken me this long to take a trip to the Birmingham restaurant.

I visited the restaurant for a press dinner on a balmy evening, where it was only right that we started the evening off outside; the perfect spot for an ice cold sangria. I picked a white Sangria for a change and sipping this outside on the grassy terrace felt particularly European.

Don't fancy sangria? There's a huge selection of wines by the glass, as well as wines by the bottle, beers, spirits and cocktails. 

Proudly boasting that everything on the menu is Spanish, authentic and fresh, the menu is a mix of tapas of every variety. There's a great choice of cheese, bread, ham or jamon of course and even an egg selection. 

We were offered a selection of tapas to try by Emma, the owner of the restaurant, who ensured we were able to try a variety of dishes to get a feel for the menu.

To start, we tried the cured meats selection (£10.50) and cheese selection (£8.95) along with a few nibbles in the form of breadsticks and almonds. Expertly sourced, the jamon was salty and perfect with booze, and the cheese varied and rich in flavour. I especially loved that the cheese was served with quince paste, an absolute favourite of mine and something that is particularly hard to find.

For the rest, there was also bread topped with tomato (£4.50), croquettes of cheese and ham (£4.50) and fried courgette flowers stuffed with cod (£8.50).

Next, I dived into plates of fresh mussels (£7.50). Served in a rich buttery sauce made of hazelnuts, paprika and white wine, these were the highlight of the meal for me. As much as I couldn't taste the nuts, the sauce, named fisherman's sauce, was heavenly and easily scooped up with the shells.

The others also tried the chicken cannelloni Barcelona style (£8.50) before the Iberian suckling pig, deboned and glazed served with an acid apple puree (£9.95).

Finally, there was churros for all, and I enjoyed scooping up the chocolate sauce alone!

All the dishes we tried were pretty reasonably priced, with the vegetarian tapas coming in at a great price for dishes that were so beautifully and carefully prepared.

Everything we tried had so clearly been made from scratch, and the sauces in particular were testament to this. So much time and care as well as expertise goes into crafting these small plates of morsels, and each dish had a personality all of its own.

I'm waiting to find an excuse to go back as there are so many other dishes I'd love to try. The staff were also really good at telling me which dishes were gluten free, so I'll be back to try a properly gluten free feast!

Have you guys been to El Borracho yet?

Event: Annexe Birmingham New Menu Launch

Have you ever heard of Annexe? I hadn't up until recently, but it seems that this Mediterranean-inspired restaurant has a great reputation in Birmingham. Opened five years ago, the restaurant is pretty sophisticated, with a French feel in the evenings thanks to its intimate atmosphere and traditional wooden decor.

I was invited along to the new menu launch a few weeks ago and was able to try a number of dishes created by new chef, Daniel Andrade.

Walking into the intimate space, we were welcome with champagne and the sultry sounds of live jazz. With bread and olives to snack on, we perched by the wine table before mingling with the crowds and saying hi to the assembled Birmingham bloggers.

Soon, the samples started to arrive in tiny, carefully arranged plates.

Beetroot

We had been invited to sample dishes from the new menu's, and there is both a three course and five course option priced at £39 and £59 respectively. These have been carefully wine-matched and come in at between £19 and £49 depending on the number of courses ordered and how big a glass you'd like (such a good idea!).

There's also a huge amount of choice, on these menu's, with between four and six choices per course. This being said, I'd definitely recommend researching the menu before you visit.

Chicken and Black Truffle

Some of my highlights from the menu include the sea bass chowder, artichoke, fava and Jersey Royals, rabbit rillette, cherry and pistachio texture, lobster corn bavarois corn bisque and dill and scallop ceviche, watermelon, yuzu, chervil and mint.

Langoustine

I was also especially taken with the beetroot slaw, goat's curd fritter and marcona almonds.

Chicken

Although I couldn't taste everything as not every dish was gluten free, the dishes I did try were full of interesting combinations, unexpected pairings and delicate flavours. Some of the more unusual flavours included mozzarella ice cream and strawberry gazpacho, dishes that you probably wouldn't expect to see in a restaurant that isn't Michelin-starred or AA Rosette rated.

Rabbit

The wine matches were also good, offering plenty of classic favourites and new matches.

Mozzarella Ice Cream

I'd love to come back here for a proper trial of the food. There are very few places to try a five course tasting menu for less than £60, and based on the samples I tried I'd be excited to go back and try out the dishes properly.

Have any of you been to Annexe?