Only a couple of weeks since opening, Ole Spanish tapas restaurant at Southbank seems to have already made quite a name for itself. With great tasty food, smiley friendly service and a beautiful outlook, it’s no surprise that tongues around town are madly wagging already.
Ole’s opening week couldn’t be timelier – smack bang in the middle of Brisbane Festival 2011 where the crowds around Southbank are at a peak, on top of the fact it’s also school holidays. Pretty smart!
MM and his siblings decided there was no better way to spend a sunny spring Saturday than over a few cool beers and progressive tasty tapas, so off to Ole we went.
The waiter had me picked before I even took a seat – with a quick exchange of knowing glances he promptly bought me a glass of the Ole red sangria, while the boys went with the authentic Spanish beer Estrella, uncannily pronounced ‘a-stray-ya’…
We decided to select a heap of items from both the Tapas and Racione (slightly more substantial than tapas) menus – there were plenty to choose from, all sounding equally as delightful as each other, making the decision somewhat tricky.
The chilli and garlic prawns were exceptional – not too hot, and not too garlicky – just right.
The chorizo and squid with cherry tomatoes – I love it when the chorizo is elegantly sliced like this and the squid was cooked to perfection, although the little creature’s suckers kept sticking to my tongue….eek!
The jamon was melt-in-your-mouth delicious, although the portion was tiny compared to the price – watch out for this one, it really was the only one I was a little taken back with on price and portion.
The ‘patatas’ were thick and chunky and drizzled on top was a tasty, mildly spicy sauce.
Also around the table was chicken skewers with fragrant safron rice;
Battered chickpea balls with spicy dipping sauce
Chorizo and beef meatballs
A little too wrapped up in my sangrias and the conversation, my attention to detail on the menu item names and prices fell mostly by the way side. I guess all you really need to know is that the prices are fairly standard as far as tapas goes – you know, kind of pricey at first glance for small morsels (anywhere from $8 – $16), but worth it for the flavour sensations, relaxing atmosphere, friendly staff and authentic tapas experience.
- Ole Restaurant, Shop B12 Little Stanley St, Southbank +61 7 3846 1201
