Try to Tapas This!

Miki Shimada always cooks brilliant food and serves it in the warmest and most comfortable of environments. So we expected no less than the sheer perfection we enjoyed at a recent tapas-themed dinner hosted by Miki-san. As adept at Catalan delicacies as her native Japanese cuisine, Ms. Shimada wowed Cafe Drake with platter after platter of Spanish small dishes. Sweet and tart sangria kicked things off, glasses loaded with spiced wine and chunks of apples, pears, kiwi and more, and while delicious was not about to take back seat to the food: garlicky fried potatoes with tender morsels of thick octopus came swimming in an orange pool of paprika-spiked olive oil; more good oil sat in saucers for the dipping of toasted cigar-shaped baguettes seasoned with seeds and herbs; tender/crisp spinach was tossed with toasted pine nuts; shirred eggs nestled atop tomatoes and spicy sausages, hot from the oven, and tender chunks of beef filet were sauteed simply and drizzled with finely shredded radishes. Thanks once again Miki for inspiring us to greater heights at Cafe Drake!