I mentioned that when we travel we never pre-determine lunch, but we find free wifi and Yelp a place close by. Sometimes we’re just lucky enough to just come across a little gem serendipitously and that’s exactly what happened with La Tasca. La Tasca is a Spanish tapas establishment directly across from Chinatown in DC. We were hungry, hot and very tired and were cautiously excited about our little find (keeping expectations low means less disappointment!). Plus they had free WIFI which meant I could upload more pics to Facebook for my family and friends back home; JT has his head buried in a map app or a sports app to keep up with the latest scores :)!
La Tasca has a couple of locations in around DC, but It doesn’t scream chain. The service was great, and the food, well…it was dang good, we dug in before I remembered to take a photo, yep, that good. The quality and presentation brought us back immediately to our trip to Barcelona, Spain last fall (only it was way hotter in DC). Talk about a lovely memory!
The décor is kind of kitschy Spainish but we sat at the front looking onto the street so it wasn’t that offensive. I suspect this place would be great for larger groups.
Tapas means small, sharing portions which is perfect for JT and I. For lunch they have three sized specials: 2 for $13, 3 for $19 or unlimited for $24, we chose 2 & 3, and it was perfect.
Our meal:
Tortilla Torera: this is Spain’s traditional potato and onion omelet and here it’s served cold. It was lovely, as good if not better than some we enjoyed in Spain.
Brocheta de Gambas y Vieiras: these were Skewers of shrimp and bacon-wrapped scallops drizzled with a wonderful lemon emulsion, served sizzling hot with just enough garlic to get your mouth watering.
Garbanzos con Espinacas: this was an incredibly delicious Andalusian-style chickpea and spinach stew, i just wish we had bread to sop it up with (yes, I wrote that).
Empanadas de Carne, not the traditional empanada that i’m accustomed to, these were two good-sized stuffed pastry shells filled with ground beef and cheese. I’m not used to cheese in my empanadas but OMG was this good! It was also deep fried which I generally don’t prefer but it was soooo worth it. I almost wish we had ordered two more!
Our last dish was another cold tapas Tabla de Jamón y Queso, this was a very simple plate with Serrano ham and Manchego cheese served on artisanal bread brushed with the traditional Catalana tomato spread. This was the weakest of the dishes, but only because the others were so AMAZING!
The presentation was beautiful on all the dishes and I’m really sorry I didn’t take photos of all the plates. My only complaint was that they brought everything at once and the table wasn’t quite large enough for all the plates.
And that concludes our visit to DC, thanks again to Jed and Liz for their generous hospitality and advise.
Overall rating of La Tasca, DC (in my opinion): Decor 1.5/5, service 3/5, food 4/5, Value 3.5/5, Noise: 4.5/5 (1 being very noisy, and 5 being very quiet).
Disclaimer: We purchased our meals for full price and my opinions just that, my opinions.
La Tasca
722 7th Street NW
Washington, DC 20001
202–347-9190
dc@latascausa.com
Hours of Operation
Sunday-Thursday 11–10
Friday-Saturday 11–11
Bar Open Late Weekends
[…] added and the type of meat used. Last year when we were in D.C., we had Empanadas at a great little Spanish restaurant and they put their own twist into this delicious patty…they added soft cheese! Boy was it […]
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I love all of your restaurant reviews. They are so helpful to reference and as I mentioned I know we’ll be hitting DC one of these days. And this review reminds me that I’ve been craving empanadas. I need to either find them on a menu or make them ASAP! 🙂
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Thanks Kristy, I enjoy writing them too because it makes me remember the lovely meal, but I am glad that you find them helpful. My Mom and I used to make empanadas a lot, we’d freeze them and then just nuke when we had an urge for one!
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Eva, the lack of photos is always a proof of a particularly good moment we spend. I kept on forgetting to do it the majority of my best trips… The restaurant sounds great indeed. I love tapas and other snacks instead of bigger “normal” meals.
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Sounds like the restaurant decor was weak, but the food was great and that’s what counts in the end!
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Thanks Fran, so true, but décor could ruin it, thank goodness I was facing the window so it didn’t matter.
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Much like you, when I travel, lunch is probably the meal to which I pay least attention. I always count on finding something along the way. “Something” is not always a good thing. Sounds like you found a gem, though, and the perfect lunch for a day of touring. I wish we had a chain of quality tapas restaurants here.
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Hi John, that’s why Yelp is such a great tool, you need not be disappointed again!
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I wonder if I can talk my nephew into a road trip to TO when he comes back from school. I’ve always wanted to go to a real tapas restaurant. I’d even treat for the unlimited if he does the driving. 🙂
Savoury empanadas are on my list of things to make soon and I have a nice list of filling possibilities as I don’t eat olives and they’re in many recipes along with raisins and hard boiled eggs. I may even deep fry. I’m feeling pretty adventurous after my fresh live lobster and mussel experiences.
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OOPS!!!… I need to have my coffee before I start reading my blogs. Totally forgot that you’re not in TO. I’m sure he wouldn’t mind a road trip to Washington. I just have to get my passport renewed which is a bummer.
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Hi Maria, a road trip to DC would be great, I’m sure that both you and your nephew would love it, so much to eat, see and do! I think you should be able to get into the US with a birth certificate, but check up on it.
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I wasn’t born in Canada and I don’t think my Yugoslavian birth certificate, if I still had it, would be a big help. 🙂 Even my Canadian citizen certificate probably won’t help. I don’t want to chance it.
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Probably better to be on the safe side. If you travel to the US often, Nexus is amazing, you just speed through those queues.
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The restaurant sounds really pleasant.
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Thanks Angie. I wish we had one like it in Toronto.
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I like tapas given in stages too so I can enjoy each one. Sounds like a good meal, Eva.
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Hi Maureen, it was a little strange since the place wasn’t even busy.
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Would have loved to see photos of the dishes, but when one is hungry, photos are low priority. Your descriptions of the dishes makes me wish I was there, Will you be trying to duplicate any of the dishes in your kitchen? Glad you had a grand time in DC.
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Hi Norma, I haven’t made tapas in a very long time, so it’s probably time again! It’s a lot of work with lots of planning. I definitely want to make the empanadas soon. My hubby is having a cocktail party for my upcoming benchmark birthday and I’m allowed to make three things for it!!! I’d really like to make ALL the food but he won’t let me!
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For a benchmark birthday you should sit back and enjoy, I am glad JT put his foot down and limit you to 3 things.
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Ah yes, you’re probably right, but I’m also a bit of a control freak 😉
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Mmmm kitschy Spanish interior sounds so cool! And the food sounds incredible, I’d love to try this place!
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
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Thanks CCU, it does have a ‘certain’ charm for sure.
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I think when you’re going to a place you don’t know, it’s good to take advice from people in the know. This restaurant sounds really good. I love tapas but I do like it if they come out in stages and are not dumped on the table all at once xx
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Thanks Charlie, Yelp is a great resource for sure. The table was rather small too which made it difficult to navigate.
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