Tiny Urban Kitchen

Exploring Food from Boston to Hong Kong and Beyond

  • About
    • About Me
    • Tiny Urban Kitchen’s Favorite Equipment
    • Press
  • Recipes
    • Recipe Index
    • Asian
      • Chinese
      • Taiwanese
      • Thai
      • Malaysian
      • Japanese
      • Korean
    • Appetizers
    • Soups
    • Salad
    • Pasta
    • Noodles
    • Rice
    • Vegetarian
    • Meat
    • Sweets
      • Baking
      • Ice cream
      • Cookies
    • Misc
    • Kawaii (Cute)
  • Travel / Restaurants
    • United States
      • Boston
        • Jen’s Picks
        • Boston
          • Allston
          • Back Bay
          • Brighton
          • North End
          • South End
        • Cambridge
          • Kendall Square
          • Inman Square
          • Central Square
          • Harvard Square
          • Porter Square
          • North Cambridge
        • Somerville
          • Davis Square
          • Union Square
        • Greater Boston
          • Brookline
          • Arlington
          • Belmont
          • Watertown
          • Newton
          • Lexington
          • Concord
          • Burlington
          • Natick
        • Cape Cod, Martha’s Vineyard, Berkshires
      • Vermont
      • Maine
      • New York
      • Washington DC
      • Philadelphia
      • Orlando
      • Chicago
      • Las Vegas
      • California
        • Los Angeles
        • San Francisco
        • Napa
        • Sonoma
      • Seattle
      • Hawaii
    • Canada
      • Montreal
      • Canadian Rockies
      • Toronto
    • Argentina
    • Europe
      • United Kingdom
        • London
        • Oxford
      • Italy
        • Rome
        • Piedmont
      • France
        • Paris
        • Bordeaux
      • Spain
        • Madrid
        • Barcelona
        • Catalonia / San Sebastian / Girona
      • Germany
      • Belgium
        • Brussels
      • Switzerland
      • Greece
      • Finland
      • Norway
      • Denmark
    • Japan
      • Japan Guide
      • Tokyo
      • Osaka
      • Kyoto
    • China (Mainland)
      • Beijing
      • Chengdu
      • Shanghai
      • Shaanxi
      • Shenzhen
      • Xiamen
      • Yunnan
    • Singapore
    • Hong Kong
    • Malaysia
    • Taiwan
    • Thailand
    • Australia/New Zealand
  • Michelin
    • Formerly had a star
    • Michelin Recommended
    • 1 Star
    • 2 Stars
    • 3 Stars
  • Jen’s Eating Guides!
    • Boston Restaurants
    • Boston Dishes
    • Tokyo
    • Hong Kong
    • Las Vegas
    • Napa / Sonoma
    • Taiwan (night markets)
    • Taiwanese (casual eats)
    • Street Foods of Bangkok (Part I)
    • Street Foods of Bangkok (Part II)
    • Kitchen Equipment
  • Trip Reports
    • All trip reports
    • Around the World Trip Report
    • New England
    • New York
    • Washington DC
    • Las Vegas
    • California
    • Canada
    • Europe
    • Florida
    • Japan
    • China

Toro Boston (South End)

November 19, 2014 by Jennifer Che 5 Comments

_DSC9236
It is very, very unusual for a Boston restaurant to consider opening up a second location in New York. I mean, it’s New York (!) – one of the most competitive restaurant markets in the country. Yet Toro, a collaboration between James Beard award winners chefs Ken Oringer and Jamie Bissonnette, has been thriving in New York. The original Boston location is as busy as ever, commanding hour long waits on any given night.

In fact, the wait time was precisely the reason why it took me so long to finally get myself out to the South End to try this place. Bryan and I really don’t like the uncertainty associated with long waits, which is why it sometimes takes us forever to try really popular restaurants. But eventually, we did find a way.

Bryan decided that he wanted to visit Toro on his birthday. It was an extended weekend of eating at all sorts of places that are hard to get into (e.g., we went to Neptune Oyster for lunch).  We would show up right at 5:15pm, which is about fifteen minutes before opening. The bar is open all day, so you can enter the restaurant, put your name down, grab a drink and then wait for a table. Our waiting time was capped to 15 minutes, and we were seated right at 5:30pm.

_DSC9254
Toro calls itself a “Barcelona style” tapas bar. Having never been to Spain before (I’m working on that one!), I can’t exactly comment on its authenticity. I will say that the food at Toro definitely reminds me of other well-regarded Spanish tapas restaurants I’ve visited in the U.S., such as Jaleo in Washington D.C. and in Las Vegas, Julian Serrano in Vegas, and Michelin starred Casa Mono in New York. The menu is divided into four sections: Pinchos (small snacks), Tapas Frias (cold dishes), which includes Jamones y Charcuteria (ham and charcuterie), Tapas Calientes (hot dishes), and “For Two“, which include larger dishes like paellas and a salt crusted sea bass.

_DSC9237
We ordered two dishes from the Pinchos section. One was a Ventresca ($5), a piece of toast topped with Spanish tuna belly, tomato tapenade and celery leaves. It was a solid dish, served with a boldly flavored pepper spread and fragrant Spanish extra virgin olive oil.
_DSC9242
We also were drawn to the Uni Bocadillo ($8), a pressed sandwich with fresh uni, miso butter, and pickled mustard seeds. The sandwich was rich and flavorful, with a nice crispy bread exterior and a warm, soft filling. I sort of wished for less bread and more filling, but all in all it had a really nice flavor.
_DSC9238
From the Tapas Frias (cold dishes) section, we ordered a couple more dishes. The first one was the Escabeche de Coliflor ($8), spiced marinated cauliflower tossed with lime, fresno chiles, cilantro and red onion. I loved the pickled caulifower florets, whose bright flavors complemented the fresh cilantro and spicy chilies really well. It was refreshing.
_DSC9245
We also ordered the Jamon Blanco ($11), toast topped with La Quercia lardo, marinated Jonah crab, black garlic, crispy shallots and avocado. All the ingredients were super fresh and they went together really, really well (how can you go wrong with crab, avocado, and aromatics?).
_DSC9239
From the Tapas Calientes (hot dishes) section, we order a Remolachas a la Plancha ($13), roasted baby beets tossed with chili lime vinaigrette, mint, Thai basil and fried shallots. This dish was also very good, full of fragrant flavors that reminded me of Thailand.
_DSC9247
We also ordered the Maíz Asado con Alioli y Queso Cotija ($8), a signature dish that consists of a Mexican style grilled corn slathered generously with alioli, lime, espelette pepper and aged cheese. The resultant cob is extremely messy to eat but oh-so-tasty and most certainly worth the effort (though at the end of the day, I still prefer my own Taiwanese grilled corn more).
_DSC9244
Our final course came from the “For Two” section. We settled on a half portion of Paella Valenciana ($38 whole/ $20), which was a paella (made with Calasparra rice) filled with shrimp, mussels, clams, Spanish pork sausage, and chicken. The flavors were excellent, and I loved how the rice crusted onto the bottom of the pan to form a crispy bottom that’s so fun to eat.
_DSC9253
The server tempted us with Churros con Chocolat – how could we say no? It was Bryan’s birthday, and frankly, Bryan loves churros.

_DSC9255 _DSC9252

Happy Birthday!
We had a really enjoyable meal. The service was excellent, the vibe was cozy but comfortable, and the food was all very good. In all honesty, I still think Spanish tapas at some of the other places I’ve tried in New York and Las Vegas are better than Toro. However, Toro is definitely very good and probably the best Spanish tapas restaurant in the city. Definitely worth a visit!
_DSC9234

Toro Boston
1704 Washington Street
Boston, MA 02118
Toro on Urbanspoon

Filed Under: Boston, Cuisine, South End, Spanish Tagged With: Spanish, Tapas

« Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice (Maxwell Food Centre, Singapore)
Tim Ho Wan (Singapore) »

Recent Posts

  • La Dame de Pic – Paris France June 27, 2022
  • Pertinence Paris France June 25, 2022
  • Napa Valley Trip Report June 10, 2022
  • 36 Hour Stopover in London May 29, 2022
  • A Day Trip to Antwerp, Belgium May 28, 2022
  • Arbor Hong Kong May 25, 2022
  • Mono Hong Kong May 23, 2022
  • Summer Palace Iconic Wine Lunch – Hong Kong April 29, 2022

Latest Chinese recipes!

Comments

  1. Ryan says

    November 19, 2014 at 3:54 pm

    Greetings:

    I have to be honest, I don’t think you did yourself any favors with the dishes you ordered… Sadly, it was some of the most boring stuff on the menu. I have been to the same places in NYC and Las Vegas and have to disagree 100% Always interesting how people think different…. God Bless

    Log in to Reply
  2. Charlie says

    November 20, 2014 at 11:44 am

    How would you compare Toro with Barcelona Wine Bar in Washington Square? I have only been to Toro once because the wait is usually so long but I’ve been to Barcelona multiple times and really enjoyed it a lot.

    Log in to Reply
    • Jennifer Che says

      November 20, 2014 at 5:42 pm

      I’ve never been to Barcelona Wine Bar so I can’t comment on the comparison. Thanks for telling me about that restaurant, though. I didn’t even know about it!

      Log in to Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Jen's Top Restaurants in Boston says:
    July 8, 2015 at 1:32 am

    […] Boston, head to James Beard award winning chefs Jamie Bissonette’s and Ken Oringer’s Toro in Boston’s South End. This place does not take reservations and always has a long wait, so […]

    Log in to Reply
  2. Little Donkey Cambridge - Tiny Urban Kitchen says:
    August 16, 2016 at 9:54 pm

    […] year. Chefs Ken Oringer and Jamie Bissonnette, both James Beard Award winning chefs with several successful restaurants under their belts, have joined together to open their first restaurant in Cambridge. […]

    Log in to Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Welcome to Tiny Urban Kitchen!

JenChe

Hi, my name's Jen and welcome to my cooking, eating, and travel site! I am a Boston to Hong Kong transplant, born and raised in Ohio with parents from Taiwan. Feel free to head on over to the About page if you want to learn more about me, or just explore away, maybe starting with the Recipe Index or one of the travel pages! I hope you enjoy this site!
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Flickr
  • Google+
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Archives

Categories

Awards

Saveur
PFB

BostonGlobe

Most Recent Posts

chocolate

La Dame de Pic – Paris France

en croute

Pertinence Paris France

Napa Valley Trip Report

36 Hour Stopover in London

A Day Trip to Antwerp, Belgium

Arbor Hong Kong

Arbor Hong Kong

Mono HK

Mono Hong Kong

Summer Palace Hong Kong Iconic Wine Lunch

Summer Palace Iconic Wine Lunch – Hong Kong

Lucciola The Hari Wan Chai

Lucciola – Italian food at The Hari Hotel in Wan Chai

beef quesadilla

Studio City by Cali-Mex Causeway Bay Hong Kong

France!

Restaurant Le George Paris
Yam'Tcha Paris
David Toutain Paris
Divellec Paris
Breizh Cafe Paris

Kawaii! (Cute)

Norway!

logo
Food Advertisements by

Chinese Recipes

Okra with Chicken
logo
Food Advertisements by

Shop & Support us!

Spain!

Girona Spain
Amelia San Sebastian

Japan!

Bulgari Il Ristorante Luca Fantin
Sukiyaki Imafuku Tokyo
Sushi Ishimaya Tokyo
Disney Sea Tokyo
Tempura Fukamachi Tokyo
Shinjuku Gyoen

Cambridge restaurants

logo
Food Advertisements by
Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2022 · Foodie Pro Theme by Shay Bocks · Built on the Genesis Framework · Powered by WordPress