Mark Baratelli
Crustless Pizza Eater
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Santiago's Bodega (802 Virginia Drive | Website) opened recently in the Ivanhoe Village business district, so I visited it with a friend.
I am not a fan of the 80s brick covering on the front porch. In fact, the whole front porch is dated to me. It looks like my neighbor's back porch from 1984 where I played Barbies. Fun, but not pretty. However, it does hold a good amount of people. This will be a great spot for outdoor dining come Fall.
I wasn't going to drink, but when my friend ordered a Sangria, I ordered a glass of wine.
My friend and I have some dietary restrictions: he's a vegetarian and I am doing the low-carb thing. Also, we're not that experienced with eating tapas style. So, when we placed our orders and the server walked away, we realized two out of the three items he ordered were all-carb and the one thing I ordered one of the two vegetables he doesn't eat: brussel sprouts. Oops.
But we both had alcohol. Oops.
The brussel sprouts were black in some places, but I liked them. The portion is small, since it's tapas. But, at $9 a pop, the portion should be bigger, in my opinion. The $10-12 sides at The Capital Grille are bigger than what you get here. And you have to dodge tourist traffic for that. My friend told the server he didn't eat brussel sprouts, but she came to rescue, recounting a story of a bruseel sprout-hater being turned around in his ways by their sprouts. He ate two and did not complain. But he only ate two. Thank God. I was hungry.
My friend at the Patatas bravas ($7) and enjoyed them, but by the looks of them, I thought they could be fresh from the freezer. They didn't look special. Potatoes on a plate.
Puff pastry ($7): stuffed with chopped portobellos, onions, and fresh thyme with béarnaise sauce
Saganaki ($12): haloumi cheese sprinkled with oregano and flambéed with brandy, served with pita bread
Chocolate Cake: flourless with wild flower honey and fresh berries
Crustless Pizza Eater
Facebook | Instagram | Twitter
Santiago's Bodega (802 Virginia Drive | Website) opened recently in the Ivanhoe Village business district, so I visited it with a friend.
I am not a fan of the 80s brick covering on the front porch. In fact, the whole front porch is dated to me. It looks like my neighbor's back porch from 1984 where I played Barbies. Fun, but not pretty. However, it does hold a good amount of people. This will be a great spot for outdoor dining come Fall.
I wasn't going to drink, but when my friend ordered a Sangria, I ordered a glass of wine.
My friend and I have some dietary restrictions: he's a vegetarian and I am doing the low-carb thing. Also, we're not that experienced with eating tapas style. So, when we placed our orders and the server walked away, we realized two out of the three items he ordered were all-carb and the one thing I ordered one of the two vegetables he doesn't eat: brussel sprouts. Oops.
But we both had alcohol. Oops.
The brussel sprouts were black in some places, but I liked them. The portion is small, since it's tapas. But, at $9 a pop, the portion should be bigger, in my opinion. The $10-12 sides at The Capital Grille are bigger than what you get here. And you have to dodge tourist traffic for that. My friend told the server he didn't eat brussel sprouts, but she came to rescue, recounting a story of a bruseel sprout-hater being turned around in his ways by their sprouts. He ate two and did not complain. But he only ate two. Thank God. I was hungry.
My friend at the Patatas bravas ($7) and enjoyed them, but by the looks of them, I thought they could be fresh from the freezer. They didn't look special. Potatoes on a plate.
The puff pastry ($7) was tasty, according to my friend. As the plate was placed in front of him, he said "I smell onions." Sure enough, there were onions. Nothing gets by this guy. The pastry looked cute and perfect.
The Saganaki ($12) is baked cheese with lemon juice. I loved this so much I cut my bites into tiny mouse-sized portions so it would last. This was like eating a giant thick slice of great cheese pizza, minus the crust. I used to eat crustless pizza when I worked on the cruise ship. People made fun of, but I had abs. I will say that even though I did not eat the whole thing, I felt full when I left. Watch that Saganaki.
The chocolate cake was inhaled by my friend. He said it was fluffier than the flourless cakes he'd had in the past, but he liked it. I breathed in the whiffs of cocoa.
Bottom line, the food is good, but pricey. If you're cheap like me, do appetizers and wine here, then go for dinner somewhere else. But if you're rolling in cash like the me of my dreams, have at it at Santiago's Bodega.
Roasted brussel sprouts ($9): pan roasted, toasted pine nuts, aged balsamic, parmesan
Patatas bravas ($7): pan-fried potatoes in a spicy tomato sauce
