Jaleo is the place for real tapas. Owner Jose Andres makes sure that all the authentic tapas are on the menu, but he also offers new and inventive little plates using seasonal American ingredients. Even better, his waitstaff always seem well trained. They don't rush you. They encourage you to hold onto the menu and order more tapas on your own schedule, not theirs. They bring out a dessert menu and offer you a coffee. Sometimes, they even make you ASK them for the check... just like Spain. I am sick and tired of being rushed out of restaurants by undertrained, uncaring waiters. Jaleo is a refreshing change.
But it is the food that keeps me going back to Jaleo. What was on the menu this time? Three absolute classics.
Pulpo a la Gallego
Few restaurants outside of Spain can make this quintessential Spanish dish famous in the verdant northwestern region of Galicia. They always mess it up. I think it is because Americans are skittish about eating an octopus and the places that offer it on their menus don't sell enough of it to perfect the preparation. At Jaleo, the octopus is fork tender - not burnt or rubbery - with just the right amount of garlic, oil, and smoked Spanish paprika. Save a piece of bread to mop up the oil and juices. That's how the Spanish roll.They probably learned it from the Italians.
When I go out to eat, I always order things that I don't like to make at home. These little fried things called croquetas don't look like much, but they are one of the greatest of Spanish tapas. Deep fried in good-quality olive oil, croquetas are stuffed with a luscious filling of béchamel and small pieces (chunks or thin ribbons) of cured jamon serrano - mountain ham. They are such a pain to make at home. Deep frying always makes a mess and béchamel is sometimes a real bear. The benchmark of a good Spanish restaurant is how well they make their croquetas. If they are not on the menu, you are not in a Spanish restaurant.
Arroz cremoso de setas y Idiazábal
As evidenced by the national dish of Spain, paella, the people of the Iberian Peninsula love their rice. I make risotto with abandon, and mushroom risotto with dried porcini and fresh crimini is one of my regular meals around the house. Jaleo knows how to make a great rice dish as well. This one, which I had never had there before, makes use of a medley of mushrooms and a sheep's milk cheese from the Basque lands. Awesome.
I went during a lunch break from a day-long marathon of archival research and therefore failed to order a glass of Rioja. No wine at a Spanish table. Inexcusable.