What Are Tapas?
The Spanish small plates are ideal for getting lots of little bites into a meal.
Cal Boter
Crowds head to this homey restaurant to dig into classic Catalan dishes, such as snails. Even snail skeptic Guy was left impressed by this dish. The snails soak up plenty of flavor when they’re cooked in water seasoned with chile de arbol, herbes de Provence and thyme. They’re served in a white wine sauce studded with ham and chorizo, which kicks the flavor up even further. "Super tender," Guy said. "There’s good spice from the chorizo; the broth itself is dynamite. It’s a lot of big flavor."
Pulperia A Gudiña
This tiny tapas joint doesn’t skimp on the flavor, as evidenced by the menu of small plates cooked up in the classic style of Galicia, Spain’s northwestern coastal region. Guy headed here to introduce pro football player Marcel Reece to a popular Galician-style dish: pulpo (aka octopus). Tender morsels of octopus are dusted with both sweet and smoky paprika, then slicked with a generous squirt of olive oil and paired with potatoes. “It’s like the most-tender lobster you’ll ever try,” Guy declared.