Spanish Fly

paella valenciana

i never really had much spanish food in my life. for most part, the only influence of spanish cuisine that i had in my mind was that of tapas. tapas is a generic term for spanish appetizers, which can be served warm or cold. it spans a huge range and can cover practically anything. apparently in the US and UK, tapas has evolved such that people eat it for a whole meal (wiki). which is true. i used to eat lots and lots of tapas in the states as a whole meal, and not really as an appetizer of any sort. and it was really cool coz on thursday afternoons, they would have all the tapas for half price. haha..

but back here in singapore, i was only introduced to tapas, and paella, by d. originally, i didn't even know what paella was. so off we went to this place called tapas tree, somewhere along clarke quay. the place is pretty nice, and you have a choice of sitting indoors, where it is very dark and more quiet, or outdoors, which is much more breezy, energetic and where all the fun is. during the night, a live band comes to play and they start singing all sorts of spanish classics. pretty nice. but i got annoyed when i sat too close to them coz they were practically singing in my ear.

the menu has a nice selection of tapas, both warm and cold, meat and seafood types. i've only tried a few of them as we've always been eating paellas. (that plus tapas is so expensive for so little food). i've tried the meatballs (which were just ok), the mussels in white wine, and some others. but honestly i think that the star of the restaurant is the paella.

churros

They serve various types of paella here. They have the all meat paella, the seafood paella, the meat and seafood paella, squid ink paella and several others. i prefer the seafood paella and the squid ink paella. the meat paella isn't too good to me. the chicken is kind of dry and tasteless and the sausages aren't really too good. but the seafood one is great. i love the fish and the squid and all the shrimp. so that's the one i usually get. the rice is moist and slightly salty, and you can really taste all the flavorful goodness in it.

i've also tried the squid ink paella. this one is one more that i really like. the whole pan is pitch black and the rice is cooked in yummy squid ink and lots of squid. but i think eating this alone can get a little boring. i think its best to go in a large group and get them both. it's usually meant for sharing, so you don't really order your own food. then you get the tapas as starters.

for dessert, what d really likes here is the churros. wonderfully sweet, soft, and fluffy, the churros come freshly made and served with a side of chocolate sauce. yum..

so come try this place if you feel in the mood for something different than usual. maybe you won't like it, or maybe you will. but be sure to not sit too close to the band.

Tapas Tree

menu
http://www.thetapastree.com/TheTapasTreeMenu2007.pdf

3D River Valley Road
#01-08 Clarke Quay
Tel: 6837 2938