So Sotano in Bree St has a sexy new Pintxos Bar & I went to go check it out

Last week Friday I popped into Sotano in Bree Street (did you know this Mouille Point favourite had opened a 2nd branch in town btw? Now you do…. 🙂 ) to try out their new Pintxos Bar:

A first for Cape Town & only about 10 days old now, the Pintxos bar is open from Mon to Sat from 4pm to 7pm. Pintxos (also referred to as pinchos & pronounced ‘peen-chos’) are small snacks typically eaten in bars, traditional to Northern Spain.

Sotano on Bree is split into 2 levels:  Upstairs you’ll find their main open plan dining area with a cosy lounge & bar.  Downstairs you’ll find the new Pintxos Bar space which has a very relaxed vibe with a fireplace (which is going to be fantastic in winter), a beautiful wooden bar area and eye-catching black & white flooring which I must say has a bit of a Spanish feel to it.

Downstairs in the Pinxtos bar…

To me Pintxos are kinda like mini tapas.  It’s the brainchild of the Spanish, specifically the Northern part of Spain, where they enjoy these delicious bites as early evening treats after a long, hard day at work.  I was lucky enough to hit the Pintxos bar scene in San Sebastián (the foodie capital of Northern Spain) back in 2013 and ended up having some of the best food of my life, all served as tiny little bites of culinary pleasure.

So with that in mind, my expectations were high… very very high…

Now Pinxtos are typically washed down with an ice-cold beer, so my friend Werner & I decided we’d stick to that tradition:

Cheers!

This gave us a chance to have a look at the menu & then pop over to the bar to see what was on display:

Love the pricing. That’s exactly what Pinxtos are all about. This way you can try a couple of little snacks without breaking the bank (or completely ruining your dinner).

The “on sliced baguette”, “bowl”, “skewers”, and “warm” items you can simply pick up at the bar as they’re specially prepared for the pinxtos service (and refreshed throughout) and are therefore ready & waiting for you to snap them up.

I’m not too big on cold seafood dishes & lots of bread-based things, but my friend really Werner enjoyed those. The calamari cone on the other hand was definitely more my vibe… #delicious

I also enjoyed their skewer options – particularly the ones with the stuffed peppadews. Their ham & cheese croquettes are nice & creamy on the inside & the prosciutto on mini olive loaf was good – although (and I know this is sacrilege as you don’t question the pinxtos choices a pinxtos bar makes) but a touch of cheese or mayo would have made that even tastier. The only thing neither of us enjoyed was their hake croquettes – was too fishy tasting. Which is ironic, I know, because hake is fish, but I’m hoping you understand what I mean.

The two “to order” dishes (as the name suggests) need to be ordered from a waiter & require a little bit of a wait, but trust me, it’s worth it as these two items ended up being my absolute favourites:

Wild mushrooms & egg yolk – R32

Beef shin & mash – R38

These felt more true to the bars that really stood out for me during my San Sebastián visit & therefore took me right back to all those great travel memories.  * insert tears of food happiness here *

All ‘n all, this was a really cool experience & I’ll definitely be back (particularly for those mushrooms & the beef shin).  I’m therefore going to give the Sotano Pinxtos bar a score of on my Miss K Kiss-o-Meter scale.

As an added bonus:  They have a DJ on Fridays and Saturdays as well as on event nights like First Thursday.

So the next time you’re heading out of work & need to unwind, or you’re roaming the city over the weekend and in need of a tasty late afternoon/early evening snack, do give the Sotano Pinxtos bar a try.

You’ll find them at:  199 Bree Street, Cape Town
And for inquiries or reservations you can contact them on: 021 422 0567 or breestreet@sotano.co.za

xxx

** I was invited by Sotano’s PR company & therefore this meal was on them. **