Charlotte from the MKFM news team was invited down to try the tapas at Olé Tapas Bar in Wolverton, here is how it went...
Olé Tapas Bar is a family-owned business by a beautiful Spanish Family, Juan and Beatriz, tucked away in the Triangle Building, Wolverton Park.
I have heard so many good things about this 'hidden gem' in Milton Keynes and after trying it, I can definitely confirm it needs to be shouted about more.
As you pull onto Wolverton Park Road, where the restaurant is located, you are straight away transported into feeling like you are abroad. With MK Biergarten next door, and lots of al fresco dining tables available, it is the perfect place to go if you want a lively atmosphere.
As soon as I walked in, the staff were extremely friendly and welcoming. The exposed kitchen makes for a great central feature and allows for the chefs to introduce themselves too. The host sat us down and had a really nice conversation with us, we spoke about the restaurant and about our day. The restaurant, despite being small in size, was extremely lively and you could tell by the conversations and laughs on the other tables that it really is a place to enjoy yourself and be sociable.
We were then brought over a menu, we couldn't believe how much was on there! There was so much to choose from, an 'from the allotment' menu, filled with veggie, gluten free and vegan options, a 'from the sea' menu, offering seafood, and a 'from the farm' menu, which included, you guessed it - meats! As we were so stuck for choice, we asked the lovely member of staff serving us for recommendations. She recommended we picked two options from each menu section, giving us a large variety. We were a table of two and it was so hard to decide how much food we needed between us, so we went with her recommendation- and I am so glad we did!
We went with the six pieces of tapas, two from each menu. The portion sizes were extremely generous and the presentation was even better. We chose the Tortilla de patata, Berengena Frita, Calamares fritos, Gambas Al Ajillo, Pollo Bravo and Croquette de jambon. Other than the Calamari, these were all brand new dishes to me.
The mix of flavours and taste from each of the dishes was phenomenal. I 100% recommend getting a big mix of the menu options like we did. Our lovely waitress told us that the food we ordered was actually what most people get, so if you want to get a proper taste of the popular items that Ole Tapas Bar have on offer, I really recommend those.
My favourite was the Croquette de jambon (Picture 2) The portion was spot on and the ratio of filling was also perfect, the creaminess mixed with the meaty bits of ham and crispy croquette... amazing. My partners favourite was the Gambas Al Ajillo (Picture 1); he is a huge seafood lover and he said it was one of the best prawn dishes he has ever tried. The garlicy sauce was just so different and filled with so much flavour.
Another favourite of ours was the Calamares fritos (Picture 7). Now I love calamari, both me and my partner do, but when the waitress told us these were the best in the UK, she really wasn't lying! It tasted so fresh and if you gave me that dish and told me it was straight from the coast of Spain, I wouldn't even think twice - really made me feel like I was on holiday.
We were so full by the end of it, but we couldn't not try the Churros or Almond sponge cake (Picture 12). These dessert dishes were amazing. I was so stuffed from the tapas, but the desserts tasted so good that I couldn't not finish them off.
Olé Tapas Bar is a beautiful restaurant, with Spanish decor and authentic Spanish flavours. The staff are also amazing - extremely friendly, welcoming and helpful. It is definitely one of my new favourite spots in MK, and we will definitely be back!
