Satchmo's

This review appears in the The List's Eating & Drinking Guide 2008 – in the shops now or buy online.

The advent of tapas chains in the UK has meant that too many diners believe vacuum-packed flavours and bottled atmospheres to be an authentic Spanish dining experience. It's refreshing then to receive freshly cooked tapas at Satchmo's, even if the interior isn't as flush as other restaurants (and Louis Armstrong, rather than the Gypsy Kings. plays on the stereo). If the décor feels slightly dated, it remains fun: bright primary colours adorn the walls, with hand-stencilled borders and loud paintings. The meal deals and burgers on the lunch menu (plus wide screen TV) scream 'student trade', although for evening service napkins are placed in glasses and tables are candle-lit, lending the space a slightly more sophisticated atmosphere. Tapas are the main event and rightly so. Firm, springy rounds of good quality chorizo are cooked in a rich red wine sauce, balanced by earthy chickpeas. A charred slab of tortilla Española is thick and succulent. Mushrooms with cumin and garlic are plump, juicy and delicious. Among the desserts, a garishly-coloured neon-orange cranberry and cream cake may not be especially aesthetically pleasing, but it offers more home-made authenticity.

• High point: From-scratch flavours
• Low point: Décor like something out of mid-1990s Changing Rooms