We were excited to learn about a new Spanish restaurant only a few miles from our home. I'll start by saying that the tapas were quite authentic and reminded the mister and me of our trip to Spain a couple of years ago. The patatas bravas were perfectly cooked and the tomato sauce was creamy and tangy with just a hint of spice. The garlic mushrooms were garlicky and mushroomy. The octopus was well-cooked, not at all chewy, garnished with 3 different paprikas (something of a paprika tasting), but could have used a touch of salt. I enjoyed my bacon-wrapped scallop and the mister enjoyed his tomatoes in vinegar, though $8 might have been a bit high for a plate of sliced tomatoes.
I recommend the sangria, which was fruity without being overly sweet. We tried the white sangria as well, which tipped into the sweeter arena and wasn't as much of a favorite.
My main concern about the restaurant is regarding the marketing. Unfortunately they initially promoted Patios as 'Latin cuisine' which led to some confusion from customers who expected standard Tex-Mex. The owner's son (our able server, Jose) told us that they changed the menu a few months ago and dropped the 'Latin' from their restaurant name (in fact, there's a big 'Now Open' Â banner over the empty space in the front sign - Patio's Now Open Cuisine). I think it was the right move - I just wish they'd billed themselves as a Spanish restaurant from day one. They also need to do some serious advertising, maybe a Groupon or other daily deal, and should work on getting themselves some social media attention, because their location is not ideal for their concept.
The chef is from Spain, and the owner is from Mexico but his family is from Spain. The owner also dabbles in molecular gastronomy and brought an olive spherule amuse bouche, a gin fizz with gin foam, and a 'molecular mimosa' to the table for us. He reports some of these will be on their menu soon.
Both for the sake of the owner & chef and for our own sake, I hope Patios gets the attention and business I believe it deserves - I'd really like a good tapas place, particularly one where the chef can develop some interesting and creative dishes, near the house. The mister and I will be spreading the word and we hope that others will do the same soon!
Whether you agree with it or not, Pinterest is changing how I see stores and restaurants. Â If I were to open, manage or be a part of either one, I would want that awareness of what else is out there.
With that being said, Pinterest and some social graces is what Patios needs.
First, let's start with the hostesses. Â They are young and appear to be inexperienced. Â When I came in I wanted to sit in the bar, but there appeared to be a party going on so I was not sure if I was allowed to sit in there. Â The hostess was part of the bunch and came over to me and asked if it was just me and then proceeded to walk into the restaurant area. I stopped her and asked about the bar, she said I could sit there. Â I told her it might be a good idea to start out with that question first - okay- that was snobbish of me, but for those of you with service industry experience your hosts can make and quickly and easily break your experience.
Behind the bar was a mess. Â Uneaten food (clearly an employees), boxes of wine, plastic bags and containers. Â It was unappealing.
It was happy hour (2-6) so I asked the one girl working behind the bar what the specials were. (This is were I think a specific happy hour menu would be nice.) There were drink specials, but no food specials?
I had the red sangria, she added pineapple and blueberries to the glass so when I finished my drink the fruit really did not have that spectacular  wine taste- the whole reason for sangria!
Now in the bar I mentioned the party- it was loud and made up of... employees! Apparently they were doing a wine tasting, but it was a bit much. Â The restaurant area was empty- why not have a tasting there? Keep it clean, keep it educational and figure out the party later.
When it appeared this was done there was lots of shouting about scheduling and this was all taking place at the hostess station... right behind me. Scheduling should be done in the back, not in the front of house.
Take out menus- some of you are going to die- are FULL page one-sided print outs of the menu. Stapled. It looks and is cheap.
The staff appears to be very young and inexperienced. Â The manager was very nice and totally made up my experience by offering tastings from the bottles the group had left.
+The prosecco and CB chardonnay are amazing.
Owners, if you should read this, think about the following:
* Bar display. Â From the booze bottles to the wine, all can be improved. What do you want people to drink? Oh- the plastic bagged mint- very, very poor form.
* Chairs and stools. Holy cow are they noisy!! Invest in some felt pads.
* HOOKS, HOOKS, HOOKS!! Women have purses, shawls and coats, give us a place to hang them in your bar.
* Ambiance. Â This place could be sexy- but where are the candles or the fire. And the music selection- I would have loved to hear more of a Chipotle mix than just standard Latin mix.
* Hostess: they need guidance. Why aren't they taking to-go orders? Being right next to the bar it is very noticeable when employees are there just to chit-chat or work on scheduling?! Also- why is she shouting at people?! Walk over and speak to someone, no need to shout.
* Stop printing those menus. Â Invest in some good card stock and make it two sided if you must. Â I would suggest doing matchbooks. Â Also a happy hour menu- drinks and food.
* Well alcohol. Â Yeesh. I can get better at the Olive Garden.
* Advertise- you have a huge bank of apartments around you- make some offers! Do the same with the lo local businesses around you.
I will be back, but I want to see growth. : )
The 5 best restaurants in the 2015 Denver Restaurant Week
3,611 Views | Category: Denver
The complete list of 2015 Denver Restaurant Week businesses
1,972 Views | Category: Denver
The tourists' guide to Portillos: 5 must have dishes
3,318 Views | Category: Chicago
Pho = Pronounced "fuh" not "foe" for pho-king sake
2,915 Views | Category: Denver
Indulgery selected to exhibit at Collision Conference
2,987 Views | Category: Press Releases
Not Logged In
BUSINESSES
Local Businesses
Near Me
My Favorites
SOCIAL
Blog & News
MY ACCOUNT
Login
Register
Contact Us
Add Your Business
