Name: Dehesa
Address: 25 Ganton Street, London, Soho, W1F 9BP, UK
Telephone: +44 (0) 20 7494 4170
Rating: 8

I wondered what the owners would have said if they had known that three of All in London’s most senior people and one of its restaurant reviewers had selected their restaurant for their informal weekday lunch.

Dehesa is just behind Carnaby Street and this means that if we were early we could either dive into Hamley’s (as I did) or the Apple Store on Regent Street. It’s a large restaurant that feels authentically Spanish – with high stools and booths and even a charcuterie area complete with hanging hams and an entire leg of ham on the carving station. There was also a reassuring number of Spanish people around. It was a weekday lunchtime and the place was buzzing.

Personally, I find balancing on a high stool while keeping my eye on my handbag a bit of a challenge – but my three companions were happy enough. We had a lot of business to discuss so we didn’t order a bottle of wine but the two men had beers and I had a glass of wine – which was rather nice.

We spent a while studying the menu and asked the waitress for guidance on how many dishes to order – she suggested two-three each. The guys (neither particularly familiar with tapas) were a little wary of having to order each dish – I think they would have been happier with a suggested set menu!

The chargrilled bread with olive oil (£2.55) and padron peppers (£4.25) got us started. The pardon peppers were salty without being overly so. We felt duty bound to try some of the rather expensive Jamon Iberico de Bellota (£14.90) – as the restaurant is named after the woodland in Spain which is home to the black footed Iberico pigs – which is meant to be the best ham in the world. We agreed that the wafer thin slices had a lovely flavour.

The Brunet goat’s milk cheese (£4.50) was presented on a wooden block with a little pile of raisons. Then we enjoyed a pile of salt cod croquetas (£6) although they did look a bit like something you might buy in Iceland and the lemon wedge with them was rather sad and dry. One of our two best dishes was the Confit Old Spot Pork Belly with rosemary scented cannellini beans (£6.95) – the pork was in a perfect square and quite challenging to cut up so that we could all have a taste – but the crispy crackling was a delightful contrast to the soft, smooth meat.

My companions liked the classic tortilla (£4.75) although it is the first time I have ever had it with a runny, onion rich centre - Think I prefer my tortilla firm. Our vegetarian colleague voted the courgette flowers with Monte Enebro cheese and honey (£7.95) a triumph – the Tempura like batter was light. I was disappointed with the Patatas Fritas with romesco sauce and aliolio (£3.75) as they were pretty ordinary chips rather than square cut sauté potatoes.

Although our appetites were sated, we ordered chiacchiere with zabaglione mousse and marsala syrup (£5.50) to share with our coffees. Presented on a wooden block, these little fried and dusted dough sticks (carnival sweets) are traditional Italian fare so surprising to find in a Spanish tapas bar – ours were a little overcooked but still good.

The bill for four of us was £137 which seemed a lot for what we had and the quality of the food. But it was in the West End, there was a lively ambience, the staff were quietly efficient and we were lucky that our animated conversation made up for the slight disappointment with some of the food.

This is a sister restaurant to Opera Tavern in Covent Garden – see the review here

Dehesa

Children Welcome

Credit Cards Accepted

Booking Advisable

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