Bar Padron
Bar Padron is a new, independent Spanish Tapas restaurant on Regent Street, Cheltenham (one of the town’s most exciting/understated restaurant regions).
Since it’s introduction, Bar Padron has replenished the street’s Mediterranean vibe, which has been missing since the departure of La Tasca in 2014 and even then, the vibe was lacklustre.
We couldn’t wait to get down there after recently visiting Barcelona, Madrid and Lanzarote, leaving our taste buds primed!
Softly open since May, Bar Padron decided to pull out the paella pans and throw a proper launch party to mark the official opening! Consequently, we were invited by Laura-Jane, Founder of Ivy PR, along with more local bloggers @honeybourneline and @luciennesimpson, the Mayor and even Alex Chalk, to mark the occasion!
Inside the restaurant
On arrival, we met the owner, Matt, who’s a well-travelled guy with a family background of restaurant ownership. He saw a gap in Cheltenham’s restaurant scene for Spanish Tapas and had been waiting a while for the perfect venue. Therefore, when the opportunity arose, he chose a prime location right next door to the Everyman Theatre.
Bar Padron is spread over two floors with plenty of seating and an alfresco dining area (a fairly rare feature of Cheltenham restaurants).
On the ground floor you’ll find Bar Padron’s stunning Spanish Bull mural (see image above), painted straight onto the wall by a former staff member.
The funky neon signage in the entrance corridor is possibly inspired by Neon Jamon, an awesome Spanish Tapas Restaurant in Liverpool. We were there last year and spied a very similar neon sign in their restaurant.
Up on the first floor of the restaurant, we took a photo of this particular wall because we loved the way the richly coloured blue walls shone the colour of the Mediterranean sea when the sun hit them.
On the menu
Matt and his Chef R.C Diaz Sanchez from Malaga, put together a special taster menu for the evening. They allowed us to sample a good variety, but they weren’t giving away all their specialities, with the idea of leaving us wanting more!
*Please note the prices on the menu are per portion and not always reflective of the portion size you’ll see in our pictures below.
Portions of salty slices of almonds and plump, mildly tasting Olives, went perfectly with our glasses of Cava.
£3 / £2.70
Even if you’ve not heard of a Boquerón before, you’ll certainly be able to guess what one is – that’s right folks, it’s an anchovy. These Boquerón fillets were bathed in oil with garlic and parsley and massively moreish to say the least.
£4.50 per portion.
Fresh and crunchy wedges of lettuce topped with tuna flakes, crispy garlic and drizzled in a quality olive oil (you could really taste it). We found them a bit messy to eat with our hands, but tasty none the less.
Off menu.
Next, we were served three types of Manchego cheese, all with differing flavourful crusts – truffle, rosemary and a vintage. It’s a stunning cheese with a sweet and slightly nutty flavour and supple texture. Served drizzled with chestnut honey which was perfectly complimentary.
£9 per portion.
A classic on any tapas menu, Bar Padron’s 36 month cured, high grade Jamon was carved at the bar and topped with more almonds, rosemary for aroma and a dash of olive oil.
£12 per portion.
Another absolute classic, the croqueta. These savoury bites had a crunchy shell and were filled with a molten, béchamel style sauce and hints of ham. £2.20 each.
A Spanish omelette/tortilla made with potatoes, onion, eggs. Humble ingredients, but it’s a tasty thing! Bar Padron’s is traditional in style, but they can come with red pepper or chorizo cooked in and e felt it could have done with a Bar Padron twist or something to excite us a bit more. That’s personal preference though. £5 per tortilla.
To compare, here’s our pics of authentic paella from 3 Spanish regions:
Near the end of the night, they revealed their authentic Spanish finale – a whopping great pan of seafood paella with prawns, langoustines and mussels, that served going on 25+ people at the event. Served in the restaurant on weekends and special events.
Drinks selection
As the evening was a special occasion, this called for Cava! The drink selection had been curated by Indigo Wine, importers of unique and artisanal wine from around the world. This gave us a lot of faith in the selection on offer.
Behind the bar you’ll find a super choice of beers, wines, gins and Vermouth all originating from Spain. Not only can you taste Spain, but you can drink it too, but then it wouldn’t be right with one and not the other would it?
Thoughts to end
Another good, independent restaurant has joined the ‘Cheltenham Elite’ on Regent Street. We agreed with Matt the council should look to make more of the street with an expanded pedestrian area, improved aesthetics, ability for more outside seating, an annual street party and a micro community like Bath Road, Montpellier or The Suffolks, Cheltenham.
Contact details and opening hours
Online booking is available but don’t be fooled by the choice of timings on the online booking form, as they’re definitely not open 24hrs a day. We’re also quite surprised they don’t have a phone number yet, but perhaps that will come in due course.
Bar Padron
Regent Street
Cheltenham
GL50 1HG
@barpadron
Sun 12:00 – 18:00
Wed – Thu 18:00 – 23:00
Fri – Sat 12:00 – 01:00
