Casa Naranjo, Shrewsbury
Rating: *** Tapas of slow-cooked pork cheek has our food critic dreaming of days spent in Spain, but how did the rest of the meal fare?
It's been a while since I ate tapas in Spain. But the memories remain as fresh as morning dew.
We'd travelled through Gascony, in south west France, one of the world's finest culinary destinations, where we'd enjoyed a week of feasting. Fresh oysters, foie gras, the finest cheeses, patisserie and extravagantly ripe fruit and vegetables had been washed down with decadently delicious wines.
And then we crossed the Spanish border.
We'd expected the quality to dip. After all, nobody does food as well as the French, do they? But we'd been pleasantly surprised. Our tour of Basque country took us into a number of towns where we ate pintxos, or, tapas. Traditional bars, many of them off the beaten track, featured groaning tables filled with small platers, some containing a simple, bite-sized creation.
The range of tastes burned into my gastronomic memory. Peppers the size of baseballs were as sweet as sugar candy; the heat from paprika-infused chorizo exploded on the tongue like fireworks in autumn; fish courses were as salty and fresh as a fisherman's stories of the ones that got away.
The variety of herbs sent my senses into overdrive. Aromatic, perfumed, floral and fragrant; we ate basil, rosemary, oregano, sage, parsley, marjoram, fennel, thyme and dill. Our pintxos tour of the Basque country was as dizzying as riding a carousel, as exciting as Christmas morning, as tasty as Froch's right hook. Hot and cold, sweet and salty, savoury and acid, crunchy and soft: the range of pintxos was a smorgasbord of flavour and texture. They were sheer delight.
Those memories flooded back when my friend and I visited Casa Naranjo, in Shrewsbury's Barracks Passage. Like the pintxos bars from my memory, it was almost impossible to find.
Tucked away in a small cobbled alleyway, just off Wyle Cop, the owners clearly ignored their estate agent's advice when told the benefits of a streetside frontage. The restaurant wasn't even at street level. When we entered through the main doors, we ascended to a first floor room and settled ourselves into the terracotta room. The colours spoke of southern Europe, where the land is dusty and hot.
The dining room was informal. It was dressed with simple chairs and tables. Walls were decorated with artworks that were also reminiscent of Spain. When the owners of Casa Naranjo were styling their Spanish-style eating house, authenticity was clearly at the top of their priority list. They did a great job; the restaurant was as Spanish as Jamon Iberico de Bellota.
Authenticity extended far beyond the decor. Casa Naranjo is a family affair, run by Spanish family and friends. We were greeted with a warm and welcoming 'hola' as we were shown to our table and the Spanish waiter made us feel comfortable and at ease.
Though it was still early evening, Casa Naranjo was already starting to fill. The restaurant has been open for a couple of years in Shrewsbury and has won over many of the town's residents. Groups of friends, businessmen doing deals over an early-evening meal and other habitués were already ensconced.
It's easy to understand Casa Naranjo's popularity. After all, it offers deliciously appetising nuggets of flavour for a couple of quid. Like coffeehouses, tapas bars give people the opportunity to meet and socialise while enjoying great food and drink for a fraction of restaurant prices. Given the choice of a pint of Carling and a packet of ready salted, or Gambas a la gabardine with a glass of rioja; the people of Shrewsbury increasingly opt for the one that's harder to pronounce.
The Casa Naranjo menu started with a quick history lesson. Its menu explained how tapas were born back in the day when small slices of bread were placed on top of glasses of wine or sherry to keep out the flies. Eventually, some bright spark added grilled vegetables, cheese and olive oil to the bread. And, hey presto, tapas were born.
My friend and I had plenty of time in which to peruse the menu while enjoying a basket of bread and bowl of olives. The bread wasn't up to much: I recognised it instantly as being from a local supermarket. It had been cut from a loaf with an absurd name, like Tiger, or Zebra, and underwhelmed. I've still no idea why all restaurants don't make their own bread. It's really not difficult: flour, yeast, salt, water and maybe a little olive oil. You don't have to be Paul Hollywood to make a loaf. The olives were a little salty, the result, presumably, of having been stored in brine.
Happily, the tapas were better than the appetisers. We chose six in total, which we intended to share. They were delivered soon after and our table groaned beneath the weight of calandracas, albondigas, carrillera de Iberico, patatas mixtas, champinones al ajillo and gabardine prawns.
That selection comprised potatoes served with a hot peppery tomato-based sauced and a creamy, garlic-infused compliment. The fire from the salsa de pimientos was tempered by the milder accompaniment.
The gabardine prawns were served in a golden brown batter that was crisp and light. When I bit through the batter, small puffs of steam escaped from within. The prawns were delicious.
The albondigas were a winner. The small pork and beef meatballs had been seasoned skilfully and were coated in an appetising and piquant tomato sauce. A mushroom dish was pleasant, though lacked any wow factor.
The star dish, however, was the Carrillera de Iberico. It comprised a slow-cooked cheek of pork served in a red wine sauce. It was utterly, utterly brilliant. While other dishes had flattered only to deceive, or provided enjoyable sustenance rather than gastronomic flair; the Carrillera de Iberico was stunning.
Eating my first mouthful was heavenly. It didn't look much – brown meat slathered in purple sauce – but the taste was sensational.
Cheek of pork is a fatty cut but in the right hands and slow cooked, it is thrilling. The fat renders through the meat, filling it with unctuous taste and desirous texture. The red wine reduction had been reduced so that it was sweet and sticky, the perfect accompaniment to the pork. It was a dish of beauty.
If the Daz woman had appeared and asked me to trade in my one plate of Carrillera de Iberic for my five other plates I'd have said no. If she'd asked me to trade it for the keys to her Hispano-Suiza 1924 H6B ultra-luxurious automobile, I'd have told her where to stick the keys. If she'd offered to take it away in exchange for an all-expenses paid dinner for two at El Celler de Can Roca, in Girona, I'd have.... no, actually, if she'd have offered that, I'd have passed the Carrillera de Iberic to her and dashed off home to get my passport.
We lingered awhile to enjoy dessert. My partner opted for a Spanish-style crème caramel. It's texture was disappointing, like a flaccid Angel Delight, and she was non-plussed. I went for the tarta Santiago, an almond cake which, remarkably, was rated the 23rd most popular dish at the 1986 Baked Goods competition in Warsaw. How about that. It ought to have won awards more recently. The combination of ground almonds, eggs and sugar, masked by powdered sugar, provided a perfect end to our enjoyable evening.
In recent years, Spain has been leading the pack when it comes to the best of global gastronomy. This year's Top 100 Restaurant List features two Spanish restaurants in the first four.
Casa Naranjo doesn't bear comparison with such lofty emporia, of course; it's far more reminiscent of the backstreets of San Sebastian than the more-esteemed precincts of Girona. But that is meant as high praise. Great flavours, simple presentation and a fantastically convivial atmosphere come with the modest ticket price. Service was a treat: the Spanish waiter and waitress were friendly, informal and charming throughout.
It's popular and well-established on the Shrewsbury dining scene – and if the chef could offer more dishes like the stunning Carrillera de Iberic, I'd dine there every week.
Andy Richardson
Address:
Casa Naranjo, Barracks Passage, Shrewsbury, SY1 1XA
Tel: 01743 588 165
