Alegrias Spanish Tapas
Shop 9, 332 Darling St
Balmain, NSW
Alegrias is a hidden gem. You have to walk past another restaurant before you enter into it but when you do – WOW Alegrias is such a beautiful venue. Elegant, High ceilings, glittering chandeliers with an inviting warmth of the timber décor. It really is lovely and there is also an upstairs dining area and a dining area outside.
Alegrias has been open for 2 and a half years and they seat 130. There is a private function area that seats 40 and they cater for functions as well.
There were authentic Spanish flamenco dancers that entertained. They were spectacular and danced downstairs where patrons were mesmerised, then the dancers moved upstairs where they danced and captivated their audience here as well.
We started with Rustic sourdough that was served with extra virgin olive oil, romesco sauce and aioli. This was a very appetising way to commence our meal. Next was Tabla de entremeses – a selection of 18-24 months dry cured serrano ham, manchego cheese, Salamanca chirizo, Salamanca salami and Spanish marinated olives. How divine is serrano ham! Wrap the cheese up in this and place on the sourdough – divine! The olives too – oh so good. They are imported from Spain and they were truly delicious. This was a very tasty selection of meats, cheese and olives.
Being HUGE fans of croquettes we had to try these. We had croquet as de pollo y serrano – golden fried chicken and serrano ham croquettes served with aioli and we also had the croquetas de espinacas y queso azul – golden fried spinach and blue cheese croquettes served with a traditional aioli. These were winners. Mlady especially loved the golden fried chicken and serrano ham croquettes and Sir loved the golden friend spinach and blue cheese croquettes. They had great flavours and were soft and fluffy.
Next we had Gambas al ajillo – the most famous king prawn tapa, sautéed in a garlic and chilli infused oil, served with rustic bread. These gorgeous huge prawns arrived sitting on black slate – they were cooked perfectly not overdone and were mouth- watering.
Sir as we know LOVES duck so we just had to try this. We had the Pato endos cocciones con pera y salsa de anis – crispy skin confit duck leg, grilled duck breast served with pears and star anise sauce. This was truly amazing! Seriously one of the best duck dishes ever! The duck was cooked perfectly. We loved everything about this scrumptious dish.
To complement our delicious meal we shared dessert. We chose – Alegrias flan – traditional Spanish crème caramel served with a scoop of gelato (we chose vanilla as vanilla goes with everything). This was as refreshing as it was yummy.
Our next sharing dessert was the peras al vino – succulent pears poached in Spanish red wine served with caramelized fig gelato. This was delicious. Beautiful soft poached pear soaking in this delectable Spanish red wine – lovely.
For drinks we had a lovely red – ramon bilbao Rosado and Sir also had a Vermv which is known as a “before lunch appetiser”.
The food here is authentically delicious and the servings are substantial. We were fortunate to see the amazing flamenco dancers that were wonderfully entertaining.
Sir and Mlady dined as guests of Alegrias. A big thank you to Kevin (owner) who spent time with us from his busy schedule. Thanks also to Naema, Eva, and Alba for looking after us on the night.