Café Riazor

A Chelsea Hidden Gem Has Been Serving Tapas Greatest Hits for 50 Years | Eater NY

"Traipsing downstairs through a maze of red-painted wrought iron, I arrive in the semi-dark den of Café Riazor, a compact tapas bar whose roughly 30 seats sit beneath white stucco walls and ceiling decorated with wooden reliefs of knights and flamenco dancers, plates limned with Spanish landscapes, and a nostalgic bullfighting poster. The vibe is quietly nostalgic and comfortable — a place to linger on comfortable furniture with neighborhood regulars rather than a scene-driven crowd — and it still reads like one of the last century’s Village/Chelsea Spanish spots, part of what was once Little Spain and once the sibling of the more famous Rio Mar (which closed in 2004). Bottles of decent Spanish or Chilean wine run about $50, carafes of the sturdy house red are $32 for 500 ml, the white sangria (my move) is $13 for a tall glass or $28 for a pitcher, and the beer to get is Estrella de Galicia. The tapas menu lists more than 25 choices — patatas bravas, grilled fresh sardines, octopus in olive oil and paprika, and chicken, ham, spinach, or potato croquettes — and three tapas will make a meal, though a main can be shared: caldo gallego ($7.75) is a lovely soup of collard greens, potatoes, and white beans in a rich, chorizo-spotted broth; callos a la Gallega is a tripe stew with chick peas; and ternera a la Gallega ($24.75) brings veal cutlets in a lemon-caper sauce with fries or yellow rice. The food is copious, wholesome, and competently prepared rather than flashy or intensely flavored — it tastes as if the recipes arrived unchanged from 1974, when the restaurant was founded, not altered for Instagram or TikTok." - Robert Sietsema