Andanza

What’s the vibe?

From its racing green interiors, bare floorboards and hand-carved oak counter, you might think this used to be a classic Bermondsey boozer; in fact, it used to be a bookie until owner Danny Kwiatkowski saw its potential and fitted it out as a tapas bar. Now it subtly filters its Spanish vibe through the likes of framed vintage prints – look out for the pig dressed as a matador – while above one wall a TV plays 80s Spanish game shows on a loop next to a pair of ceramic cherubs, adding a welcome touch of kitsch. These were possibly salvaged from the same church as the ecclesiastical wooden doors which line the walls on the way to the loo.

A small kitchen, pass and bar face onto the clutch of high tables and stools; there aren’t many, but when the restaurant’s full, the atmosphere is buzzy and vibrant. Blackboards chalk up a series of daily specials – there will usually be a tortilla and croqueta of the day, as well as a rotating list of sherries, wines and vermouths.

Octopus with potatoes

Steak tartare

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What to eat?

Polish head chef, Paulina Irzyk, runs the kitchen with a light and artful touch; she started her career in London at Basque restaurant Lurra, in Marylebone, before going on to work at its sister restaurant Donostia. Her menu ticks off all the Spanish and Basque classics you’d expect, from patatas bravas to gildas and manchego cheese, but Irzyk allows herself to play with ingredients and flavours elsewhere, particularly when it comes to the pintxos. These are more than ample for two – don’t miss the ‘fish and chips’, which consists of flaky battered haddock, chipped potatoes, pil pil, vinegar sauce and pea purée, or the yuzu-brined fried chicken with Thai basil aioli and hot honey, both served on hunks of bread.

If you’re feeling suitably indulgent, order the pintxo with foie gras cooked in a sweet sherry reduction. Bigger plates include the likes of seabream with garlic and chilli, black rice with mixed seafood, and the ‘dairy cow steak toast’ - tender txuleton beef on grilled sourdough. Order a few pequenos, too, particularly the fine green beans in romesco sauce or the pan con tomate. Do not leave without having consumed a massive slab of their baked-on-site burnt Basque cheesecake.

Yuzu-brined fried chicken pintxo

Txuleta steak toast

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What to drink?

There’s a pretty wide-ranging list of sherries, vermouth, and cerveza, while the wines are all exclusively from Spain. Order a glass of txacoli sparkling wine for the pleasure of watching it being poured from a great height, or a cocktail. The Negroni Andanza features Golfo vermouth, Innat gin and Campari, while the Kalimotxo is that endearingly baffling Spanish favourite, red wine with Coca-Cola. Now, hold us closer, tiny Andanza....