Victor Chong
Google
We had a great impression of Barulho when it first started as a little tapas & drinking hole. Always gave us an impression where we can find great (and authentic) Spanish-ish cuisine we love so much.
Been a while since, and while the service is relatively attentive, I was kind of bothered being served what seem to be a “white wine” glass when we ordered a bottle of red (we referenced other table’s red wine glasses!).
We were so looking forward to reminiscing what we had in Portugal/Spain and so it didn’t live up to it-
Charcoal grilled octopus comes with a few rings of calamari in the plate… not sure what’s the point?! Is it to fill up the plate or fool the customers ?! What’s your intention?
While I did enjoy the generous Pimenton-olive oil sauce, I don’t quite understand the purpose of the bed of marinated olives served with it, over-powering the grilled octopus.
Cos lettuce salad dish, which traditionally (the Spanish version) had the cos lettuce charred, served with manchego cheese and anchovy dressing, an absolute delight. But this salad is simply raw & cold, and without a hint of anchovy in its dressing, if any… so I can only describe the dish as a normal lettuce from fridge, tasteless, though with cheese & green apple stripes.. totally under-seasoned!
Then the grilled rack of lamb, well, nothing Portuguese/Spanish about it. If anything, it’s simply drowned in sweet marinate. It says “charcoal grilled” on the menu and I see them using the Josper charcoal but nothing smoky nor grilled; again, disappointed- simply drowned in some sweet marinate.
So overall, well, if you have not been to Portugal/Spain or had any knowledge of what the cuisines are about, maybe it’s not too bad, just another restaurant serving some fancy food.