The guide to the best tapas in London

The concept that has won the Barrafina group acclaim is simple. You sit behind the bar around an open kitchen area, observing the chefs as they prepare the luxurious tapas dishes – tortillas, Iberian pork cheeks, ham croquetas, patatas bravisimas and more. Each restaurant also has its own daily specials, and you can complete your meal with an array of drinks, including fine Spanish wines and sherries.

The Tapas Brindisa joints strive to provide London with a taste of Spain’s sincere hospitality, authentic food and wine. They use sustainable ingredients, sourced from Spain, to prepare classic tapas such as Padron peppers and marinated anchovies, cheese and charcuterie boards, grilled delicacies and mores. The wine list features a selection of all-Spanish bottles, and you can also try different cocktails and aperitivos here.

Celebrated chef and restaurateurs Dani García's Shoreditch outpost BiBo is located in the basement of the Mondrian Hotel. Inspired by the flavours of Andalusia, the stylish restaurant serves contemporary tapas dishes such as cod fritters, fried chicken brioche and porcini croquetas, as well as one of the most Instagrammable paellas out there. You can also drop by on weekends for a Spanish brunch feast.

Boqueria is named after a famed food market in Barcelona. The contemporary restaurant draws on Spanish culinary tradition and quality ingredients, sourced straight from the country, to serve authentic tapas such as Spanish tortilla, chorizo with cider, Padron peppers and more. There’s also an array of Spanish wines and sherries to enjoy beneath the harvest baskets hanging from the ceiling.

A renowned tapas restaurant in Mayfair, El Pirata is known for providing quality food at good value. Its popular set lunch includes a choice of two tapas with bread, aioli and a soft drink, while the main menu features a wide array of tapas, including cheeses and charcuterie. You can complete your meal with one of the more than 140 Spanish wines on offer. On Saturdays, they also do brunch.

Having pioneered Moorish cuisine in London, Moro and its Morito offshoots serve tapas from all ends of the Mediterranean, resulting in the intriguing mingling of different culinary traditions. Classic Spanish tapas such as boquerones and Padron peppers rub shoulders with kofte, dolma and more, letting you plan out your own flavour cruise.

Simple yet elegant in style, The Little Taperia brings Spanish charm to Tooting, as well as a tantalising array of authentic Spanish delicacies. The menu spans a wide range of classic tapas, from Manzanilla olives and Padron peppers to croquetas de jamón, grilled octopus, patatas bravas and more. You can also find more unusual options here, such as the Spanish take on the Scotch egg, made with blood sausage and piquillo peppers.

There might be a couple of countries between Italy and Spain, but you wouldn't know it at Salt Yard. At this charcuterie bar and restaurant the culinary traditions of both countries overlap in the form of small plates, with jamón sitting side-by-side with mortadella, pecorino with Manchego, and courgette flowers with patatas bravas. The buzzy spot also offers seasonal cocktails, aperitifs, regional wines, sherries and other tipples to complement your meal.

Renowned chef and restaurateur José Pizarro operates various tapas spots around town, from his cult joint on Bermondsey Street to the refined restaurant on the first floor of the Royal Academy of Arts. Pizarro’s restaurants are famed for his simple and authentic tapas, as well as an impressive array of fine Spanish wines and sherries to go with your meal.

Siblings Barrica and Copita are inspired by the tapas bars of Spain and offer a casual atmosphere for sharing tapas and sipping drinks. At Barrica, the culinary highlights come courtesy of a bespoke charcoal grill, while the fare at Copita hints at Moorish influences. Both restaurants have a seasonal menu that includes classics such as patatas bravas, and they both offer carefully considered drinks lists with plenty of Spanish wines and sherries.

Backed by the exclusive distributors of Basque and Spanish wines and beers to London’s restaurants, you know the drinks game at The Tapas Room’s several locations around town is on point. You can buy the bottles to take home, as well as various products of Spanish origin. The tapas menu at these restaurants and bars includes charcuterie, cheeses and classics such as croquetas and Padron peppers, as well as more gourmet specialties.

The refined, vividly coloured Cambio de Tercio in Kensington counts a courtful of tennis players among its patrons, including superstar Rafael Nadal, as well as other celebs such as Hugh Grant and Piers Morgan. Perhaps they’re hoping to find Nadal’s secret sauce for winning in the inventive tapas that fuse tradition with modern techniques and global influences, or in the award-winning wine list with supposedly the largest selection of Spanish wines in the capital. The group also includes two more casual tapas bars on the same street.

Taking advantage of the fact that the best Scottish seafood is often shipped to Spain due to low demand in the country, Escocesa specialises in seafood tapas. The open kitchen with counter seats offers an entertaining glimpse into the preparation of dishes such as garlic prawns and seabass ceviche, and there are classic small plates such as patatas bravas and jamón croquetas available as well. For a more intimate dining experience, you can sit at the tables in the back. On weekends, they also offer freshly made paella.

What Escocesa does for seafood, Lobos does for meat. Championing prime meat cuts and good wine, these tapas bars let you indulge in your animal instinct with dishes based around Iberico pork, for example ribeye steak, meatballs and marinated pork fillet. They also serve classic Spanish small plates such as tortillas, chorizo and patatas bravas.

Specialising in the charcoal and wood grilling that is characteristic of Basque Country, Lurra also sources its produce and ingredients from the region. This includes the cows that are bred to an old age instead of being slaughtered young, which impacts both the marbling and the taste of the meat. As is custom, there are different classic Spanish tapas to choose from as well, such as boquerones and croquetas. The comprehensive wine list features many fine Spanish and Basque wines.

Spread out across two floors, the Michelin-starred Sabor spans the varied range of Spanish cuisine. Sit behind The Counter on the ground floor and watch the chefs prepare an array of tapas such as piquillo croquetas and pan tomate. One floor up, the stylish El Asador restaurant focuses on Galician and Castilian dishes cooked in the traditional wood-fired oven, offering an array of upmarket tapas such as confit rabbit shoulder or grilled squid. Alternatively, pop into Sabor’s bar for a quick bite and a drink.

Lurra’s cousin Donostia adopts a serious approach to tapas and pintxo snacks. Using quality seasonal produce, the professional chefs in the open kitchen prepare refined takes on Basque specialties, for example squid a la plancha with ink sauce and Iberico pork tenderloin. Tapas classics such as tortilla and patatas bravas are present and accounted for as well. There’s a concise selection of Spanish wines and sherries to pair with your meal.

Barrafina spin-off Parrillan offers a unique concept – seated on the outdoor terrace, you can cook the tapas-style dishes by yourself, on a bespoke miniature grill at your table. You can choose from different meat, seafood and vegetable specialties, such as pintxo skewers or beef sirloin. The Borough Yard branch also has an indoor area where you can let the chefs do the heavy lifting.

Leaning on Michelin-starred Chef Director Nacho Manzano’s Asturian heritage, the Ibérica restaurant group spearheaded the expansion of authentic Spanish dining in London. Its venues are designed by architects to provide a sophisticated setting in which to enjoy specialties from across the Iberian Peninsula, made from conscientiously sourced ingredients and paired with Spanish wines, sherries, G&Ts and other refreshing drinks.

The herd of hams hanging from the ceiling at Bar Tozino makes it pretty clear you can get your fill of jamón here. The famed dry-cured ham is carved into thin slices right at your table while you sip one of the fine Spanish vintages on offer, pretending you’re in a bodega in Barcelona instead of an archway in Bermondsey. You can also try other classic tapas dishes such as patatas bravas and king prawns at this rustic joint.

Putting a, heh, twist on classic tapas cuisine, this chic Marylebone eatery draws on global culinary inspiration to serve dishes such as ravioli and broccoli tempura in addition to well-known Spanish staples such as Padron peppers and jamón croquetas. They source their ingredients from sustainable producers and prep them using creative contemporary approaches. They’re also quite passionate about wine and will gladly recommend pairings for your meal.

The successor to the beloved Little L’Oculto, generally considered to have been one of the best tapas joints in town, L’Oculto is a larger restaurant, wine bar and delicatessen. They offer a diverse array of snacks, charcuterie and cheeses, tapas and sharing dishes, for example glazed octopus and Spanish tortilla. They import a number of Spanish wines as well, including orange wine from Valencia.

They might have a different name, but petiscos are essentially a Portuguese take on Spanish tapas, so we're throwing them in here. Decked out in the characteristic blue-and-white azulejo tiles, the Bar Douro venues provide an authentic Portuguese experience. You can observe the chefs in the open kitchen as they prepare traditional small plates such as bacalhau and smoked sausage, enjoying a glass of wine from the award-winning, 100% Portugues wine list as you do.

The unpretentious Mar i Terra in Southwark emphasises congeniality and sincerity, providing a welcoming atmosphere to relax in. They source their ingredients from artisan producers in Spain, and the menu covers the full range of classic tapas dishes such as patatas bravas, tortilla, chorizo and jamón Iberico. You can complement your meal with one of the vintages from the idiosyncratic Spanish wine list.

Emerging from lockdown as the refurbished Tranga, the inventive tapas joint formerly known as Trangallan is now not just an eatery but also a shop specialising in ethical Spanish products. The Galicia-inspired menu changes daily according to hyper-seasonal produce and the catch of the day, though you can always expect a selection of authentic tapas such as chorizo picante, boquerones or tortilla in addition to the other seafood and meat plates.

With candles, low-lighting, and wood panelling, The Port House is an intimate venue that's ideal for a romantic evening. The atmosphere is cosy and welcoming, and there's a big choice of tapas dishes. Options range from olives to patatas bravas and chicken wings, plus there's wine and port from Spain and Portugal.

This palatial eatery is spread across a vast area of the historic Lloyds Bank building on Lombard Street, with tiled floors, elegant seating and natural light recalling the finest such establishments in Madrid. The menu, overseen by a renowned Michelin-starred chef, spans the full range of traditional tapas, with fine Spanish wines and sherries to go along. You can enjoy a drink at the grand marble-clad bar, and private dining and catering options are available as well.

Homey Fitzrovia tapas restaurant Broken Eggs is a family-run business that focuses on one dish in particular - authentic Spanish tortillas with an assortment of tempting fillings. Other dishes like cheese and charcuterie platters and salads are available too to perfectly complement the eggs. This is a great spot for a sociable Spanish meal.

If you always make a beeline for the croquettes when you're having tapas, Bar Kroketa is for you. From the team behind Tapas Brindisa, this modern eatery focuses on crunchy croquettes filled with béchamel sauce and tasty ingredients. The available fillings change regularly, and other Spanish small plates are served to complement them.

Dine in elegant and vibrant surroundings at Penelope's. The cuisine at this Covent Garden restaurant is pretty vibrant, too – think Spanish tapas with a distinctive Israeli influence. Try dishes like Israeli paella or Iberico ham carpaccio served with raw tahini and pomegranate syrup whilst you sip on cocktails and enjoy an atmosphere enhanced by DJs.

Foodies can head to one of Jamon Jamon's locations when they're craving tapas. These cosy but stylish eateries are laden with greenery and create a cool space for a meal. A broad assortment of classic tapas are served that'll satisfy newbies as well as dedicated tapas fans. Spanish wine, beer, and sangria are also on the menu.