Review La Catalana - San Jose

We keep on coming back to this lovely restaurant. This time around we had the pancetta fideua and it was beyond delicious! We shared one between two people and it was the right ammount. We visited on a Friday evening so we got to listen to love music and enjoy the casual-romantic atmosphere. We also ordered a house white wine which complemented the meal. For dessert we had the chocolate cake which was ok at best. The cookies on top were delicious, but the cake itself wasn't to my liking. A waste of calories if you ask me. We will definitely return. The staff is also great

Wonderful little gem at the corner of a strip mall. The food and wine tasted delicious and authentic. Everything we sampled was scrumptious. Lovely live music on Saturday evenings. The ambience was lovely and romantic. Our waitress was super sweet and patient. Even the bathroom was spotless and tastefully decorated! Almost feels like we were in Spain again. We came here for a birthday celebration and the singer sang us the happy birthday song, and our dessert was on the house. So sweet! This place was beyond my expectations and we would love to come back again.

I'm always a little skeptical about vegetarian options at Spanish restaurants. I was pleasantly surprised with La Catalana's options. The service was great, and our server was helpful with determining our options. My partner and I had a nice salad, a good tortilla, a hearty garbanzo dish and excellent patatas bravas! They also have a good selection of Spanish wine. In addition to a glass of tempranillo, we had a glass of Manzanilla Sherry, which really brought back memories of our trip to Andalusia.

Favorites: Sangria, Boouerones (Anchovies), Patatas Bravas, Paella. It is a Spanish tapas restaurant. Great wine selection and the best Sangria that I had in the SF Bay area.

I have been in search for a good Spanish place in the South Bay. Nestled in the shadow of the monolithic tech flagship building on first street; The exterior is quiet and assuming on a weekday evening. Inside is a real warm environment with a welcoming staff. Tapas to start followed by their paella. Great flavors and texture, it’s the best I have had in years.

Really good paella! Probably best one I had in the Bay Area so far! Would recommend the seafood one and the negra (black ink) 🥘🦑 Tapas are great too! Although I would have expected larger sizes. Good croquetas with iberico, and pulpo (octopus) 🐙 Patatas bravas were ok, a little too thin a small in portion. Really friendly staff and great atmosphere! Got lucky to end up there during a Saturday night with live jazz music! 🎷 Recommended! 😋

Small mom/pop restaurant with live music on Saturdays. The place is on the smaller scale but elegantly decorated. The hostess was really sweet, elegant dressed and she accommodated us quickly. It was full, the entire time we were there. Had the gambas, and mushrooms for a tapas and the black rice for dinner. The waiter was attentive and checked on us frequently and provided an excellent service. The rice was delicious. Definitely would come back.

Awesome Spanish restaurant, jumpstarted our trip to SJO on a positive with the help of our server Rodrigo who took care of bringing to our table his choice of tapas and our paella. Definitely a highly recommended place. Delicious food and good choices of Spanish wine. Excellent service!

Nice little spot for tapas and many variations of paella. Our group tried many of the standards, boquerones, patatas brava, croquettes, gambas, Iberico ham, etc. We also had the squid ink paella which was quite striking in appearance. The socarrat from the bottom of the pan was spot on.

Missing our Spain travel in 2019, searched Google for a Spanish tapas/wine restaurant in the Bay Area and this one popped up, so off we went and it didn't disappoint. Granted, they missed a couple of items we ordered, which makes me think that they will have fulfillment issues with large crowds. Tapas quality is a definite 4/5. Spanish wine selection is good, albeit with the typical Silicon Valley margins rather than the wine is cheaper than water pricing in Spain. Ah..... wishing I'm in Valencia, but in times of pandemic, this is good enough to bring me back to Barcelona. Wish they have sangria by the jug in addition to singles.

I think I have finally found the best place for paella in the Bay Area. Ever since my visit to Valencia, the birthplace of paella, where I was impressed by Casa Roberto, I have been trying to find somewhere in the Bay Area to satisfy my craving for paella from time to time. I had heard good things about Teleferic Barcelona, but in my opinion, while their tapas are great, their paella is just wrong (and runny). Finally, I checked out La Catalana, and from the moment I took the first bite of the paella (and the socarrat), I knew this was it. This is probably the closest you can get to authentic paella in the Bay Area compared to what you can get in Spain. I don't know what it is exactly, but there is something that separates good seafood paella from the others. Even in Valencia, we visited a couple of famous places for seafood paella and were disappointed. Then Casa Roberto made me realize what was missing - the taste of the seafood. Maybe the brain juice of the shrimp, liquid from clams, or something else. But a good paella has this unique seafood taste I am craving for, and La Catalana's Arroz Pelado has it, as well as the socarrat. Other dishes are also great. Pulpo is done right, soft inside, crispy outside. Xai is a surprise. I've never had a lamb slider before, but this is good (and filling, which is the main reason we didn't manage to finish the paella :P). The sangria is a bit interesting. I think I tasted strawberry jam, probably homemade, but still unexpected. It's a bit heavier/sweeter than I like, but still a good drink. The desserts are great. No complaints about the churros, caramel pudding, and pistachio ice cream. Especially the caramel pudding. Especially since it's on the house. :D Not only is the food great, but the service is also excellent. Josh was our waiter, and he did all he could to make our special occasion even more special. His work convinced me that La Catalana deserves five stars, even though I have only visited once. Keep it up! My now-favorite Spanish restaurant in the Bay.

Not until we parked car and reached to the restaurant did we realized we came here six years ago once, and the ambience was completely different, now cozy vibrate European style decor immediately inviting you just to sit down relax and ready to try everything they could offer. And, apparently, they didn't disappoint. Every dish we tried was flavorful and delicious. We came around 5pm and the place quickly filled up. Did I mention the superb staff and their service?! Already recommend to my friends and we'll definitely come back for others on the menu.

Great option in NSJ for a nice dinner. It could get pretty busy on certain days so making reservations ahead of time is a good call. All the tapas options are great and good to nibble on with drinks! They do have red and white sangrias, they're pretty sweet so might not be for everyone. Paella is a must - it's big so good to share with 2+ people! 🥘

Highly recommend to celebrate an special occasion such as birthdays, graduations, for sure, they take care of you. They have live music on weekends, beautiful atmosphere, great service and delicious food. We had a few tapas including chorizo al tinto. Paella - Arroz Mar was our main course and creme brulee for dessert. The red sangria was delicious and refreshing. I will be coming back to La Catalana.

Great place for tapas. Ambiance is great, it is a small restaurant but they make it work quite well. We had a girls night out here on Sat night, they said over the phone they don't take reservations however when I got there they had some tables reserved.. wth?! That's my reason for not giving it 5 stars. The food is super yummy, reasonably priced. Servers are friendly and helpful. Last order for paella is at 915pm. Live music added to the good atmosphere.

This 5+ star rating is for the heavenly food, beautiful ambiance, and the caring owners..it is everything! You can feel good supporting this business..they take pride in their business and love what they do and it definitely shows. Hearing the young lady tell us all the details was priceless for me. We could not dine in, but we loaded up an a hand full of delicious snacks that traveled well and we devoured every morsel of brilliantly seasoned and prepared food! I highly recommend this place, and we look forward to bringing friends and really getting the full experience! Thank you to the owners for the lovely personal touches you add for your customers!

A great Spanish restaurant, offering tasty Spanish food. Not stingy on the amount. Great service. Probably my favorite Spanish restaurant in the South Bay. A bit on the pricey side. Great for a diner date.

The starters and the main course are excellent, deliciously Spanish (Catalan style) but the desserts sucked big time! Awesome ambience, stylish setting, and great dining milieu. Must visit eatery this, however, another downside will be the cost. It's expensive mainly due to the fact that their portions are small and is usually served in small plates (tapas) so you'd end up ordering a lot of them until you are full. Bon appetit otherwise!