Movida Bar de Tapas

Movida Bar de Tapas
1 Hosier Lane
Melbourne 3000

The original of Frank Camorra's Movida restaurants, Movida Bar de Tapas is down the cobblestone, graffiti covered, Hosier lane, accessed from Flinders Street.  Dining here has been on my 'list' for quite awhile and I was not disappointed.  It definitely lives up to the hype.

We didn't have a booking on this busy Saturday afternoon but were lucky enough to grab some seats at the bar, which really is a great way to experience this restaurant.  We ordered a lovely Tempranillo and nibbled on the complimentary bread and olive oil whilst we perused the menu.

The menu is made up of Tapas, (single serve),  Raciones, (for two) and Postres, (dessert).  We shared a few tapas, one racione and one postre.

Salt Cod and Potato Fritter

The Salt cod and potato fritter was gorgeous.  Crispy on the outside, soft on the inside.  Very moreish.  We ordered 2 serves of the fritters so we had one each.

Pollo Escabache Al Miguel - Spiced Chicken Escabache Tapa on Crisp Crouton

The spiced chicken on a crisp crouton was delicious.  A nice contrast between the soft creamy chicken mixture and the crispy croutons.  Again we ordered 2 serves.

Alcachofa - Roast Jerusalem Artichoke with Crisp Onion

The roast Jerusalem artichoke was our favourite tapa.  I've always been a little fascinated by this vegetable because Jerusalem artichokes are not from Jerusalem, and they’re not even part of the artichoke family! They’re actually related to the sunflower.

Though not the most attractive dish it was sublime.  We only ordered one of these - big mistake!

Braised Snapper and Cuttlefish with Mussels, Chorizo and Tomato

For our larger dish we had a daily special - braised snapper with mussels.  This was a lovely dish.  The fish was very succulent, the tomato and chorizo delicious.

Santiago -  St James Tart with an Almond Milk Sorbet

We finished with the St James Tart.  This is a traditional almond cake so named to honour Santiago (St. James), the patron saint of Spain.

It was delicious, moist and gooey.   The almond milk sorbet was a refreshing accompaniment.

As I mentioned Movida definitely lived up to its hype.  The service was exceptional.  Casual yet professional and attentive. I can't wait to return to try more of the menu.  And hopefully some more of the Jerusalem artichoke!!