Englewood, NJ: Pinxto y Tapas

Pinxto y Tapas
47 North Dean Street (be/ Palisades Ave & Park Pl)
Englewood, NJ

Tips:  A surprising hot spot on a Friday night when I tried to get a table for two in the dining room (without a reservation), but was told that they were all reserved.  Fortunately they had some available table tops in the bar area, a darker, but still great ambience. 

Self described as serving authentic Spanish cuisine from the Basque & Galician Regions of Spain, where they pronounce the "tx" to have a "ch" sound, hence "pincho."  Pinxto y Tapas offers a range of tapas, entrees, including paella and arroz con pollo, and full bar, with several beers on tap, three different kinds of sangria (red, white, and blush), and wines by the bottle. 

Every meal, lunch and dinner, always includes crusty bread to dip in a soup that has kale, sausage, and potato.  Tables, particularly in the bar area, are relatively small, which is why they bring out the tapas on a three tier carrier.  Paella, as at all restaurants that make paella right, require at least 30 minutes in preparation.  Be sure to check to see if they offer their special paella, which I ordered and apparently is more authentic than the paella on the menu.  Will explain more about the differences below.

Sardinas del Cantabrico a la Plancha 

Calamar a la Plancha 

Food: I of course started with a glass of red sangria; it's a sin not to have a glass or pitcher of sangria at a Spanish restaurant.  It had a good balance of flavors and was not overwhelmingly sweet with sugar.  You could clearly taste a good red wine in this mix.

After the soup, we started with three different kinds of tapas.  The "Sardinas del Cantabrico a la Plancha," "Calamar a la Plancha," and "Mejillones Vinagreta."  The sardines were not what we expected - they were actual fresh sardines, grilled to soft perfection on top of a crusty piece of baguette.  For those who cringe at looking at an entire fish with the head attached, I would recommend passing on this tapa, however if you like me, enjoy a good fish, it's one I would recommend trying at least once.  The fish is grilled so well, that it literally is soft and can come right off the bone if pulled correctly.  The calamari was also grilled very well - charred, yet soft and fresh.  Basically the healthy and more flavorful version of fried calamari - they didn't need anything else but a spritz of lemon.  The mussels were probably my most favorite.  They were extremely fresh topped with tomatoes, onions, and a vinagrette that I thought would be more acidic than it really was. 

Mejillones Vinagreta 

Paella

For the main entree, we ordered the special paella of the night, which apparently was described as more traditional than the usual paella that most Spanish-American restaurants offer on their menus.  The largest difference I found was that the more authentic paella didn't have lobster, but had fish, which caused the flavor to be saltier, and their shrimp were actually prawns.  It also was cooked in a container that didn't create burnt bits of rice like the usual paella.  Definitely a good amount of food, and like the tapas, the seafood was cooked perfectly.

Final Thoughts: I'm eager to continue my journey in trying other Spanish tapas in America, as I don't believe this is one of the best, nor do I believe it to be any where close to being the worst.  The ambience is nice, separating the main dining area from the darker bar area, and I could absolutely see myself dropping in again for a glass of sangria with a tapa or two.

Happy Eating Bergen County!