El Rincon Espanol - Ajain

We went looking for a former tapas place in this neighborhood. Good but not great would be our review. Highly recommend the jamon and the mixed paella. Reasonable wine choice. There was music which we largely ignored by sitting near the front window. The owner/manager seemed to be fluent only in Spanish. He became friendlier as time passed.

Great tapas, beer an wine selection. Friendly staff in a warm, comfortable space. Our tapas sardines, anchovies, squid, chicken, vegetables) was very, very good. If we lived in the neighborhood we'd be regulars.

We got our usual meatballs, patatas bravas, croquettes and they were delicious. Ideal portion sizes, leaving enough room for dessert! Nice wine too, and our waiter was lovely, even though I confused him by speaking French and Spanish! Reminded me of my time living in Spain.

We dined at El Rincon after purchasing a Groupon deal and as I write this, I am reminding myself that I really should do a websearch BEFORE I buy restaurant deals! We booked successfully with the online reservations system and the owner was really good about letting us change our reservation due to a clash with another dining engagment. The paella when we received it (was cooked to order) was nothing special certainly enough for two people but I detest overcooked seafood (langoustine was mushy, calamari was chewy), so we really should have stuck to the first instinct to order the Valenciano option. While it was quite tasty it was not crunchy on the bottom and it was certainly NOT valenciano (bomb) rice I think they used arborio (round) rice so it was more like risotto in consisentency. We felt under pressure to order a tapas the prices were ridiculously high (E7 E9) per serve, so we resisted and ordered one dish only to share. The wine list was disgracefully high. The cheapest bottle was about E25 and this for an ordinary little restaurant. We perserved with M 'sieur for a house wine and were pointed to a tiny little square on the carte du vin which denoted House Wine at E10 per 500ml! The listed price for the paella on the menu was a staggering E40 for 2 How anyone would state that paella offered here was pure spanish, has never been to Valencia and eaten the proper the proper dish. I have to mention the entertainment . Just to give the whole place some added spanish feel the owner had the large screen turned to (and turned to the whole restaurant) a live bull fight. Yes folks sit right here waiting for you dinner and you too can watch a large wild eyed bovine being tormented to death right before your eyes picadors jabbing the slavering beast in his **** shoulders, terrified horses with their eyes bandaged being charged and gored by the bull in his rage... oh yes... step right up... the bull unable to go any further but tiny tired circles, camera cuts to the matador with his steel eyes and insolent stare as he carefully aims his sword... and thank god... the owner changes the channel.

The first time I ate here, I carried out an order of paella, which was good for two dinners, and was possibly the best paella I have ever eaten. The next time, I ate in the restaurant itself, a plate of pork fillet with fries, salad, and grilled egg plant. I washed it down with a nice half bottle of Rioja. The decor feels like Spain. They have Spanish television on a big screen. To my surprise, there was live entertainment the night I ate there, a incredibly accompished guitarist who sang Spanish songs. It was a pleasant evening of good Spanish food, wine, and music.