• Evening
• Issue 1

Eight o'clock. BarraFina - one of my favourite places to eat-and-drink in Soho. Sunday - definitely the day I like Soho the most. 

Sitting at BarraFina's tables I usually enjoy that day-after sensation which follows great events - and you weren't there. It's a great place for simple pleasures, like sipping a glass (or more) of cava rosé while chattering on about weak philosophical topics.

BarraFina is the archetypal London tapas bar that reminds me of Sevilla the most - a place where I spent a year of my life. The chorizo is delicious and the pan con tomate almost authentic but a bit too similar to Italian bruschetta. You may laugh, but I'm Italian and there's a substantial difference.  Bruschetta is covered with tomato sauce, whereas pan con tomate is bread soaked with fresh tomato juice.

Perhaps the atmosphere around the place is part of what makes me think I have never quite left Andalucia. Indeed, the noise of traffic going down Frith Street is constant and let's face it, Soho it is not exactly the cleanest area of London.
On top of the classic wine selections, cava - Spanish champagne - and tempranillo - very spicy and pricey red wine - you can find an exhaustive choice of fino and manzanilla, Spanish sherry.

The perfect eating option is the famous jamon cerrano, an extra-cured Spanish ham that comes to £12 per portion.  Expensive, yes, but it's an incredibly sensual experience.

One last piece of advice. If you fall in the trap of ordering a drink, then a tapas, then another drink, and another tapas, the bill may create a large hole in your wallet.

But if not for that, BarraFina wouldn't seem out of place on the streets of Sevilla. 

BarraFina
54 Frith Street
Tel: 0207 813 8016
Five tapas, three wite wine, three cava: £46 - including service.