Small Bites

I know it doesn’t look like much, but the shrimp in garlic sauce at Meson Los Espanoles in White Plains is really rich, garlicky and good.

Here are a couple shrimps:

I went to the  restaurant as part of the tapas story I’m doing for InTown. It’s one of those old-school Spanish places… not the new breed of modern small plates restauants that are popping up everywhere.

The scene was a little incongrous: there are floral-and-lace tablecloths, and formal service (instead of bringing a bunch of tapas at once, we got a paced meal, and waiters in tuxedos swapped our flatware and plates for every course). But the music was the Gispy Kings?

They gave us a little amuse of an egg dish with some salad.

Then we had the shrimp, which I loved. The chorizo —

— had a very similar sauce. I liked the sauce quite a bit, but the sausage was merely OK.

This scallops dish was much more like an appetizer than a tapa:

The scallops were prepared well but the dish could use some editing. The salad is a bit of mess, and what’s with that pale pink tomato at 5 o’clock?

I really enjoyed the tortilla espanola:

It came with a roasted red pepper sauce that really spiced things up.

I didn’t feel truly comfortable at the restaurant, and that may have had more to do with the setting than the food. The owners should decide: small plates or entrees? Gipsy Kings or floral tablecloths? Date place, or geared towad groups sharing tapas? Whatever they do, I just hope they keep that shrimp on the menu.

135 E. Post Road, White Plains. 914-428-8445. mesonlosespanoles.net.

Photo Caption: mesonlos02.JPG