El Colmado
“If you like tapas, El Colmado in the Gotham West Market is a new-found heaven.”
“Chef Seamus Mullen who also owns Tertulia offers tapas y vino at this counter style seating spot inside the market.”
“We kicked it off with that followed by pan con tomate, octopus, gambas, and the arroz negro.”
El Colmado
Take-out: Yes
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Bike Parking: Yes
Good for Groups: Yes
Happy Hour: Yes
Has TV: Yes
Waiter Service: Yes
Price range.
$$ Price range $11-30
8 reviews
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Went to this place in Gotham West Market and was NOT happy.
First, the waiters were pretty rude and dismissive when we only ordered deviled eggs and a bowl of nuts to snack on — this was one stop of many and we weren't trying to eat a whole meal, which apparently makes us a giant waste of time. I should add that the bar was not even close to full.
The deviled eggs, which looked delicious from their place on the counter, were truly one of the most disgusting things I or my sister have ever eaten. We both eagerly took a bite, then both spit it out and turned a bit green. We are not picky eaters, they were just horrifically terrible; I felt like we were being pranked. When I asked the waiter what was in them, he was like "Why didn't you read the menu?" I assured him I did read the menu, but it simply said "deviled eggs" — it made no mention of the fact that they had smoked shells (WTF?) and were mixed with very fatty fish (again, WTF, why would you do that to a poor deviled egg, and then why would you sit it out at room temperature for hours?) Eventually, the waiter conceded that perhaps the menu should specify that these were "smoky, fishy eggs" (his words), and took them off our bill. The only star is for him taking them of the bill – the rest of the experience was just icky and bad.
I would avoid this place and check out one of the many other delicious, lovely, more reasonably priced places in Gotham market.
Unfortunately they no longer have the black rice with uni 🙁 I also got there Saturday night to find that they ran out of anchovies for their anchovies toast. I got the seafood rice, which was just okay. The rice was overcooked (not al dente) and could have been more flavorful.
The best part of the whole experience was Asha, who helped me make my selections and was an absolute delight to talk with as a fellow foodie. I'll plan to come back to Gotham city market and here to try out other items — I think I need to sit and have an entire tapas experience rather than just picking one dish.
After taking in a movie, we decided that we really wanted ice cream from Ample Hills – but we also hadn't really eaten much of anything else, and we figured that it'd be smart to eat a proper meal before diving into ice cream. So we took a look around Gotham West and ended up deciding to park ourselves at El Colmado's counter. I think the waiters scan the bar and figure out who just sat down, as we didn't have to say anything before someone was there with a food and drink menu. All of our food was served pretty quickly, and the wine menu was pretty solid – I had an excellent red from Mallorca that had a smoky, spicy aftertaste that worked really well against some of the more flavorful plates.
While there is a brunch-specific menu on the weekends, we ended up only doing the daily paella special off that menu and selecting everything else off the regular menu or the chalkboard specials. First up was an octopus / chorizo croquette that was excellent flavor-wise, with the chorizo really lending a nice spiciness. Unfortunately, I think it was overcooked a little, as the outside was definitely fried a bit long and was a bit firmer than most other croquettes I have had. The same was true of the lamb meatballs that came next – cooked a little long – but the flavor was still amazing on them, especially with the spice of the mojo picon and the yogurt offsetting the heat. The toast it was served with (which was crisped and drizzled generously with olive oil) was a perfect complement as well, making the whole plate my favorite of the meal. The tortilla was very well-prepared as well; served at room temperature, it had the right amount of potato, making it a firm, substantial plate without being too heavy. The mushroom toast, served with a sunny side up quail egg was great too, with the sauteed mushrooms really popping with the egg adding a bit of creamy goodness to each bite. Last, but not least, was the paella. To be honest, this was a bit more disappointing, largely due to the fact that there wasn't much served with the dish itself (no meat or seafood; the rice was cooked in seafood broth, but it was not very strongly flavored), and the crispiness on the bottom wasn't done enough. I did like the eggs on top (it was a brunch dish, after all), but this was more of the one off-note on the meal, relative to everything else.
Some things could have been executed better, but overall I enjoyed my experience here quite a bit. There are plenty of other items I'd like to try out sometime, and the casual backdrop of the rest of the market makes it a nice spot to have a casual meal (although they will give you the check once you are done, with the implied expectation that you cannot sit there for as long as you please).
Stopped by here to eat at the counter with our pup and baby.
It was fine. Ordered the lamb meatballs and potatoes and a pitcher of sangria.
The lamb had a nice kick to them and the potatoes with the aioli sauce were also good.
Definitely the best in Gotham west. In the summer they open the outdoor seatings as well. Imagine a the summer night breeze, chatting with your bestie with nice wine and yum tapas… life can't be better.
Grilled octopus is the best!
The space was really cool, inside of a wanna-be food market.
Had I seen the bar that opens out onto the street I would have sat there, but the interior one was good.
Service at the bar was great.
I got these things and really liked them:
Octopus croquettes
Serrano ham
some tomato bread that goes with the ham
fried bruselas
the cheapest brandy they had ($7)
A little spendy for what you get.
El Colmado is probably the fanciest offering in the upscale Gotham West Food Court, offering quite small but quite refined tapas at some priemum prices. It would get a bit painful to have an entire meal worth of food here, but as a place for a snack and a glass of wine after work (or before eating somewhere else) it's a very good option.
No one is going to give this place an award for innovation, as standbys like patatas bravas, croqueta de jamon and fried calamari dominate the menu. There's a deft hand in the small kitchen, so the fried bites come out perfectly crisp and ready to be placed in the mouth. There's a really nice wine list, although I opted to pair my snack with the beer available elsewhere in the complex.
Having this place as part of a larger food court negates the weakness of showing up just for a snack. El Colmado can stick the tapas it does well, and there's no need to stretch into dishes that might be less successful. Quite well done.
Had a great time here. Here's what we got:
– Sangria – thumbs up! Fruity and exactly what you would want during a summer day.
– Happy hour oysters + cava – nice deal, and they are good enough for the price!
– Albondigas – these were absolutely lovely, get these! Plus they are a most fun word to say!
– Mixed meats – these were great and fun, but not that exciting.
This is a fun place because you can sit at the bar and watch them make the food. Love it!