Tapas 24 Captures Three Fat Stars From Lesley Chesterman

Lesley Chesterman ventures to Old Montreal for her latest (behind the paywall) review: "Modelled after the restaurant of the same name in Barcelona, Tapas 24 is owned by a bevy of partners, chief among them the renowned Spanish chef Carles Abellan of the original Tapas24. The Montreal contingent includes Jorge Da Silva of the Mtl Cuisine group and Québécois radio and TV personality Sébastien Benoit."

The meal starts off on an apprehensive note: "To be perfectly honest, several people told me Tapas 24 was a big disappointment. Though the restaurant opened in early July 2014, I can't recall reading many reviews save for the usual tidal wave of glowing blogger reports following the opening party."

The "crackling ambiance" wins Chesterman over, happily, and the cocktail and wine lists show a lot of promise. Then the parade of tapas commences: "We ordered a dozen dishes and I loved them all. My evening wasn't perfect (more on that later), but food-wise, big, big ups." Hits include croquettes, garlic shrimp, a ceviche plate and an Iberian croque-monsieur. As for desserts, they "maintained the high level of cooking and innovation."

Tapas 24 has one conspicuous weakness, however: "This restaurant really needs waiters who are better at selling the food here than the nice but pretty clueless waiters who served our table. Rarely have I seen such an interesting menu downsold by the floor staff. Our wait between the first and second course also clocked in at almost 40 minutes, meaning we just sat there draining our wine (which we poured ourselves) while waiting. Not good."

This aside, Tapas 24 earns three stars from Chesterman and a hearty "Bravo!"