Cesar Tapas

We had dinner there Sunday July 16. The first thing we noticed with the restaurant perhaps 30% filled,was that it was extremely noisy. When we looked at the menu, which specializes in Spanish Tapas, we had a difficult time deciphering what was being served. We recently returned from Barcelona and never had a problem with the menus in Spain. The only entree offered was a Paella which at $36 was fairly pricey. We ordered stuffed lamb belly which was good, but not great. The waitress who was very attentive recommended bread pudding for dessert. It was priced at $7.75 and it was quite good. It's doubtful we will return.

The food and drink here is phenomenal. My friend and I prefer to make our way through many small dishes rather than ordering a full main + sides. Cesar is THE place to do that. We began with the Lettuce Gems, which need a better PR agent because the name doesn't do them justice. Baby hearts of palm with an excellent dressing and hidden chunks of a blue cheese - we knew we were in the right place. After cruising through the fried potatoes (the staff swapped out the first serving for one with the aioli on the side) and roasted Brussels sprouts, we thought we were doing ok. Then the portobello mushroom/roasted red pepper/cheese montadito (baguette toast pieces) and the quince paste on manchego cheese slices arrived and we realized we had moved from the B team to the A team. The last two dishes were extraordinary. We came unintentionally during Restaurant Week, so we sat at the bar as no reservations were available. The bartender is busy, so occasionally we needed to search for him to make a request, but never for too long. We will so come back here.