The first restaurant to bring tapas to Shanghai was Las Tapas. In 2004, Las Tapas' first restaurant opened on Shanghai's bustling Maoming South Road, and it was just a small restaurant with a few tables that opened to a full house. Later, the second large-scale Las Tapas opened in Laowai Street, and became the only Spanish restaurant in this street full of restaurants and bars.
Soon a third restaurant in the Jinqiao area was born, which was an ideal dining choice for many expatriates in Shanghai due to its large size and outdoor courtyard. Three of the only four Spanish restaurants in Shanghai at the time were Las Tapas. Later, a fourth branch was opened on Sinan Road, surrounded by greenery and flowers, and each location is a popular landmark on Shanghai's food map. Today, in Shanghai, Spanish restaurants of all sizes have sprung up like mushrooms. But veterans who have witnessed its birth era will still think of Las Tapas, the first low-key shop to bring new and wonderful Spanish cuisine to Shanghai.
Las Tapas employs professional Spanish chefs to prepare a variety of delicious dishes and offers more than 50 authentic Spanish tapas to its customers. The restaurant's signature dish is Iberian ham, a selection of the finest Iberian raw hams from Spain, thinly sliced and served on a plate, with a marble-like fat that slowly dissolves at room temperature into a lean crimson meat. Served with the restaurant's slices of tomato bread and the cleverly decorated sauce, it has a rich aroma and rich taste. The amount of risotto in the restaurant is really large, suitable for 2~3 people, and you need to wait for half an hour to cook. Spanish cuttlefish ink paella with carefully seasoned squid juice, fresh shellfish meat and plump prawns. A satisfying bite of fresh seafood with a chewy texture and rice filled with cuttlefish juice and seafood umami will create an amazing flavor in your mouth. Another Valencian paella has a special taste, the tender shellfish does not shrink too much, and the shrimp are large and fat, and the meat is firm and juicy. The refreshing flavor and golden rice absorb the soup and create a unique texture in the mouth. One of Las Tapas' most popular snacks is foie gras with apple slices fried in butter until they are creamy.
If you don't know how to choose from a wide variety of tapas, start with a few simple appetizers. The mushroom soup with rich truffle oil has a rich taste and is even more flavorful with crispy fried snacks. Quinoa cabbage salad with Iberian pork shoulder and grilled pumpkin is the most popular, as are the classic Caesar salad and fresh, seasonal salad that adapts to the season. Among the fish and meat dishes, the low-temperature grilled Libyan pork chop gives diners a taste of pork in addition to the cold cut, and is served with mashed potatoes and mixed vegetables. There are also classic meats such as grilled cod, Angus rib's eye steak and Australian Wagyu beef eye steak.
The three branches of the restaurant are all decorated in red tones, and the petty bourgeois and low-key environment makes diners feel like they are in a warm and unrestrained Spanish country. Among them, the Sinan Road store is located in the Sinan Mansion, which is a small western-style building with a very low-key façade. The restaurant has a two-storey dining area for privacy and a small elevator inside. The overall environment is quiet and chic, slightly dark. The service staff is kind and caring, and it is a Spanish restaurant with good value for money.
