Example Menu Sandinista

Head chef Shane Adams talks us through the menu on offer at the Nicaraguan-themed tapas bar.

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Example Menu: Sandinista

“This is not a typical place to come and eat. Many different people come here to eat and they all eat in different ways. A lot of people will come to the bar order a few little snacks – some marinated olives (£2.95) and anchovies (£3.95), they take 30 seconds to come through, it’s a quick bite and pint and then they’re off again. Meal wise people generally come in here for tapas, which is three or four dishes each.

“The biggest sellers are salt and pepper squid with lemon aioli (£3.50), followed with a little mini chorizo salad with a soft poached egg on top (£6.95), it’s a nice, sort of twist on Spanish food.

“Then we’ve got the larger specials, when people might come in and have a jerk chicken starter (£3.95), then a meze (£8.95-£10.95), then maybe half an hour then a main course like a fajita (£7.95-£10.95) or paella (£7.95), which we always make fresh.

“There’s also always late nighters coming in around 10pm for a plate of nachos (£3.50-£4.50) or something.

“Although the menu is based on tapas, it’s not really Spanish. We’ve taken a lot of lead on our name – the bar’s named after a group of Nicaraguan guerrillas, and we’ve taken influence from South America as well as Spain. It’s a fusion of Mediterranean – not particularly Spanish – and South American food served up so that the people of Leeds will enjoy it. We use a lot of chillies, smoked chillies in particular. One we use that not many people in Leeds use is a chipotle, which is a really smoky, really hot chilli, it’s beautiful, we use it in our chilli.

“My own personal choices from the menu would be salt and pepper squid, jerk chicken and a chicken fajita. They’re fresh, tasty. The jerk chicken is from my own background, being Caribbean, it’s a toned-down version, but it’s still very nice. The squid, well, I love seafood – we have fresh baby squid that we deep-fry for two minutes in a light flour and salt and pepper. Then the fajita is a good looking dish. When you bring it downstairs it smokes, and you put it down on the table with a nice spread for you and you can tuck in, fold your tortillas and munch away to your heart’s content.

“To drink with it, I’d go for a jug of sangria – or maybe half a jug depending on how I’m feeling. I also quite like the Sagres that we have on tap here too. It’s a Portuguese beer, I’ve got quite a sweet tooth, and it’s on the sweeter side of beers – which I like.”

Posted on Wednesday 1st September 2010
TG

Sandinista

5 Cross Belgrave Street, Leeds, LS2 8JP

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