170 West 4th Street
(646) 415-7924
My boyfriend Jason, some friends, and I set out for Ostia the other night, but the promised hour-long wait for a table and our growling tummies prompted us to look elsewhere. Jason remembered this restaurant's name from the earlier research into tapas places equidistant to Inwood (my neighborhood) and Park Slope (the friends'), and as fate would have it, it was just around the corner.
And, oh boy, am I glad we found it. The dining room was a teeny tiny little den of candlelit coziness, and the waitstaff was among the friendliest, most knowledgeable, and most enthusiastic I have ever encountered. The woman serving us used wonderful jargon ("fruit-forward," etc) and gesticulated with gusto as she described the wines on offer. Presumably from Spain, she endeavored to teach us the correct pronunciations of the dishes and explained in detail how they were prepared. It's hard not to get really excited about what you're about to eat and drink when your waitress is clearly excited for you. And as it turned out, the wine and the food we ordered deserved every ounce of everyone's enthusiasm.
We ordered a rabbit paella special, Chorizo Con Alubias (chorizo with white beans), Patatas Bravas, Piquillos Con Morcilla (red Spanish peppers stuffed with morcilla, saffron rice, & manchego cheese), Croquetas De Jamon (serrano ham and cheese croquettes), Brochetas De Res (marinated beef chunks on skewers), Serrano Y Idiazabal ("Black Label" serrano ham and smoked cheese on bread). Among our selections, there wasn't one dish I couldn't have eaten obscene amounts of. But the beauty of tapas is that obscene amounts aren't really available to you. And so you walk out feeling satisfied, a little tipsy, and hopeful that your waitress will one day score her own Food Network show because she deserves it and would be way less annoying than Giada.
Read more about Las Ramblas:
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New York Times
Time Out New York
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