How much time gets wasted when you’re dining with a large group of people and it takes FOREVER to get the orders sorted? I know I have been stuck at gatherings with pangs of hunger, waiting for everyone to sort out their meal choices, so it’s not a bad idea when restaurants take the guesswork out of dining out by offering a set menu for everyone to enjoy.
Olé Restaurant has several fiesta menus, each offering a selection of tapas and mains from their regular menu. It not only takes the guesswork out of ordering, it also lets diners get straight to the fun bits of a get-together with friends and family.
I was invited to join in a little fiesta at Olé Restaurant with several other food bloggers and I must say the invitation (a potted chilli plant) set the tone of casual festivities for the evening. And to be honest, so did the jugs of sangria.
Evening’s menu and a door gift fan
Gorgeous painted detail on the fan
Luke Stringer got up to explain the menu and hinted that while they were reducing the quantity per serve due to the variety of dishes we were partaking in, we were definitely not going to leave hungry.
Olives to start was a gentle ease into the meal, but things got hot and heavy quickly. My favorite dishes of the meal were the Brochetas de Pollo - the grilled chicken is juicy and bursting with flavour, the Gambas con Jamón – prawns wrapped in jamón, need I say more? And the Bolitas de Garbanzo, because I do love my chickpea fritters.
Blond Kalamata, Mount Zero, Victoria
Green Mixed olives and Pulpo con Chorizo (grilled octopus, chorizo, fresh lime, parsley and tomato)
Ensalada de Tomate y Manchego (tomato, rocket, walnuts and manchego)
Queso Frito (fried manchego w/ tomato jam)
Bolitas de Garbanzo (chickpea fritters w/ hot chilli sauce)
Calamares y Chanquetes (crisp calamari and whitebait w/ aioli)
Patatas Bravas (crisped spiced potatoes)
Croqueta de Jamón (jamón serrano fritters)
Gambas con Jamón (local prawns wrapped in jamón, fried w/ garlic)
Albondigas (beef and chorizo meat balls)
Brochetas de Pollo (grilled chicken, capsicum and onion skewers w/ saffron pilaf)
Mejillas de Carne (beef cheeks braised in pedro ximénez, green pea and radish salad)
The Fiesta menus start at AUD$38 per person, all the way up to AUD$53.50 per person. Olé can tailor a menu according to dietary requirements, including gluten free and vegetarian.
And this Valentine’s Day, Olé have put together two La Fiesta De San Valentin options.
Disclaimer: I dined as an invited guest at Olé Restaurant.
NEW: Having a fiesta at @olerestaurant with their fiesta menu http://t.co/Yi7xIu1P
RT @melissa_loh: NEW: Having a fiesta at @olerestaurant with their fiesta menu http://t.co/Yi7xIu1P