Today we had lunch in Rojales, at the Cervecería Tapería El Barrio Restaurant. We have been here before a couple of times for a tostada but more recently for the Formentera tapas route, the Friday night we visited. What we noticed here that evening was there were very few doing the tapas trail, yet they were packed out with people out eating.
Today we called in for a menu del dia, wow this place really did hit the mark.
What We Had
Today, we had decided in advance we were going to sample the menu del dia here, and we said we’d both have different dishes, where possible.
Drinks
Soph had a Coke Zero and I asked for a beer, going for a cana sized, as I wasn’t sure if a large tanque would be included in the fixed price meal. There was a table of 5 who arrived as we were just getting desserts, booked the menu del dia and one of the guys asked for a tanque, so it may be possible to have this as part of the lunch, however, I’m not sure.
I did order a tanque later on, just to check the price and quality!
Starters On The Table
A lovely house salad to share was brought out, along with a bottle of balsamic and a selection of olive oils. This was accompanied by wonderful fresh, toasted, warm bread and a good sized pot each of tomato and alioli.
First Course
There were 4 dishes to choose, I went for the pork paella and it was excellent. Sometimes you get served quite bland rice with not a lot of flavour, but this dish today was one of the nicest paella dishes I have had as part of a menu del dia.
It was tasty, full of flavour and the meat was lean and tender.
Soph had the rigatoni, which was a good sized plate and filling.
Second Course
I’d say 90% of the time I go for meat options, but today I chose the Empador, and I really enjoyed it. The chips with it were seasoned with rock salt, but the fish itself was gorgeous. It’s not all that often you get fish that tastes of fish, with that meatiness of a nice fillet of fish.
Beautifully cooked, packed with flavour, the sauce was nice and there was not a single bone in the fish!
Soph today went for the solomillo and she enjoyed this too. Again, a decent sized portion, three nice, lean and tender pieces of meat. The peppercorn sauce just added to the taste.
Dessert and Coffee
Soph went first and chose the cheesecake, so I went to my back up choice of almond cake.
The almond cake was moist, very soft, and just a nice end to the food.
Soph enjoyed her cheesecake, said it reminded her of the dessert we’d had recently in Catral at a restaurant.
I took up the offer of a coffee and asked if I could have a Bombon. This was nice to finish off the meal.
What We Liked
Superb service, prompt, friendly, welcoming and they worked as a team. The food was very good, seasoned and flavourful.
This lunch time menu is very good value for the price!
What Could Be Improved
There was nothing negative about the visit today, everything was on point.
How Much Did It Cost For Lunch At Cervecería Tapería El Barrio Restaurant
The two delightful and filling menu del día were 12€ each. I had a beer to go with my meal, the tanque of Estella Galicia was 3€ extra. Thus, the total bill was 27.00€, which is excellent value.
Would We Return To El Barrio Restaurant
100% we will do so. Keep your eyes peeled here on the website or our FB page for our next visit.
How To Find Cervecería Tapería El Barrio Restaurant In Rojales
Their address is Cervecería Tapería El Barrio
Av. de Palacios, 17, 03179 Rojales, Alicante.
Google Maps link
We come off the AP-7 at junction 740, go back under the AP-7 but we take the first right, towards Formentera. Follow that road ( CV-905) all the way through Formentera del Segura. At the roundabout, go straight across, on your left you’ll see a Hiperbar and Dia supermarkets. Then take the left onto Av. de Palacios/CV-9030. The Tapería El Barrio Restaurant will be on your left.
An alternative route is:
Coming via AP-7 and CV-91, Take exit 740 off the AP-7 toward Almoradí/Rojales/Guardamar/Daya Nueva. Take the CV-860 exit from CV-91. At the next roundabout, take the 3rd exit onto Av. de Palacios/CV-9030. Coming this way, the destination will be on the right.
