Viva Madrid

Two years after it was said, we’re still stung by one of the most devastatingly accurate conclusions voiced by a member of our dining group – spoken immediately after walking out of Viva Madrid in Claremont: “Do you remember how excited we were when we walked in here while reading the menu?”

We love authentic Spanish tapas – enough that we have traveled the world to immerse ourselves in it, opened our own restaurant around the concept, and visited pretty much all of the places serving it in and near Orange County (and beyond). When we go out for Spanish food, our goal is not to prove someone isn’t doing it right, but rather to find a place good enough and close enough to revisit frequently ourselves. Driving to Las Vegas typically isn’t an option.

Of the 19 small plates we ordered at Viva Madrid, five were good, and the rest ranged from okay to unpleasant. A few, including the supposed fish croquetas and chorizo-stuffed squid – perhaps the worst fate a cephalopod has ever suffered – were incredibly bad. Before you ask why we would have kept ordering 14 more tapas after the first five, we put in the entire savory order at once, hungry after an hour-long drive to Claremont, then the dishes just kept coming.

The best things about the experience were the dining room, which felt like being transported to an old tapas bar in Barcelona, Seville, or perhaps even Madrid, as well as the service, which was friendly throughout. Our photos show:

• Bland Patatas Bravas
• Nearly inedible Chorizo-stuffed Squid
• “Pintxo Moruno,” seriously dried out chicken poked with skewers
• Garlic Lamb Chops, actually good, but plain
• Manchego and Membrillo