CHICA: CHIC SPANISH TAPAS SPOT ON ONE OF TORONTO’S BUSIEST STREETS
The Cost -$27 per person
The Atmosphere – Chica definitely went for that upscale, chic, trendy vibe and they pulled it off. The restaurant features high ceilings, a dark interior, and a lively crowd that can get quite loud. It’s a great place for a date, though maybe not a first date, and an excellent place to go before heading out to an event or a party. Just like you would find in Spain, Chica also serves food late into the evening, so it is a great option if you want a later dinner. You can go to Chica dressed casually most people will be wearing fashionable dinner and going out attire. Reservations are accepted and you should make them if planning to go on a weekend evening.
Opened in 2022, Chica brings a trendy, upscale Spanish tapas-style restaurant to Toronto’s King’s West neighborhood. Chef Ted Corrado’s menu features classic dishes that are elevated using higher-end ingredients and cooking methods than you might otherwise find in your neighborhood Barcelona tapas bar. To go with the food, Chica presents a nice cocktail menu that includes infused liquors like its pepper-infused tequila, unique ingredients like salted honey and brown butter coconut milk, and a Spanish flare that comes through in its use of sherry in some drinks.
The Order – Tartar de Carne, Vieiras Crudas, Croquetas de Jamón Con Trufas, Patatas Bravas, Setas Fritas and Maiz y Sobrasada.
The Fantastic – One item that you are sure to find in every tapas bar in Spain is croquetas, but you sure aren’t going to find croquetas as good as Chica’s Croquetas de Jamón con Trufas in many places. The manchego cheese that fills the croquetas is delicious and is done in a way that makes it feel fluffy and light. When you add in the black truffle flavor and the excellently done jamón, this dish is a winner. Though the dish only contains three croquettes, the $14 CAD presents a good value as just one of these fried bites will give you a whole lot of joy and satisfaction.
The Great – The second best dish of the evening was the Vieiras Crudas, a small, raw scallops plate that combines the mollusks with melon and serrano pepper. It is a very light and fresh way to start off the meal and belongs right at the beginning of it. The dish was not sweet despite the melon and not spicy despite the serrano pepper – it combines the flavors of the ingredients well and does well to ensure that the scallops are not overpowered. This tapa does come with a heftier price tag at $24 CAD but is a nice raw seafood option on a menu that features a lot of heavier plates.
The Maiz y Sobrasada sounds relatively simple based on its name which means corn and sobrasada, a Spanish pork sausage from Spain’s Balearic Islands, but there was nothing simple about it. The corn kernels were smoked and came with a corn foam and scallion oil with pieces of the sobrasada mixed in. Over the corn was a piece of corn tortilla that was nothing to write home about. The corn foam and smoky flavor of the corn kernels really combined well and had great flavor with a mild kick. This tapa feels more like a side dish than a standalone plate but it was really nicely done and was a dish I’d gladly order again.
The Good – The remaining three dishes that were ordered all received our Good rating, meaning that they were enjoyable but not dishes that we would run to order again. There was a lot of hype around Chica’s Patatas Bravas on the internet but the dish, which was presented in a shape and form that resembles crispy rice at a Japanese restaurant, did not end up tasting better than the patatas bravas that you would get at a local Spanish bar. While the use of duck fat, parsley, black garlic, and a quail egg certainly makes the dish interesting, the final product just wasn’t where it needed to be and the other dishes that we have already spoken about shone a lot brighter than this one.
The Tartar de Carne, or beef tartare, was another classic dish that was done in an elevated way. A mix of raw meat combined with almonds, paprika, and charred onion aioli, the flavor of the tartar was nice but unfortunately, a lot of the taste of the meat was lost because of the amount of aioli. In addition, the tartar was served with four large pieces of thick sourdough bread which on their own were good, but when used as a vessel to eat the tartare were not, as the strongly flavored bread took away even more from the taste of the meat. If you want more of a mayo-y raw meat salad with solid bread, this dish will definitely do the trick but if you are looking for a dish with great meat flavor, Chica’s tartar de carne is not the right choice.
It is common to find a mushroom dish on a Spanish menu but not so common to find a chicken fried mushroom dish on a Spanish menu. Chica’s Setas Fritas are chicken fried oyster mushrooms with a burnt scallion crema and a lime wedge served on the side. The mushrooms come out looking like chunks of deep-fried chicken and you really taste all of the fried breading when you bite into them. The fried breading is tasty but it really takes over the dish and you don’t really get much of the mushrooms or the crema, which by description sounds amazing. It is an easy dish to share but it would be so much better if there was less breading and more of the crema flavor.
The Verdict – While I was underwhelmed by the dishes that received our Good rating, Chica does a really nice job with the tapas they serve that do hit the mark. Vegetarians are going to have a tough time with this menu but if you can eat the Croquetas de Jamon Con Trufas, you should definitely order them – it is a dish not to be missed if you head to this chic King’s West restaurant for dinner. Chica’s isn’t a restaurant I’d run to reserve a spot at months in advance but if you are craving Spanish food or want to dine at a restaurant that is more of a scene, it is a solid option.