The second coming of La Bodega greets generations
La Bodega lived large for 43 years on Howe Street and saw a lot of action, although excesses of wine and Spanish tapas might have erased some people’s memories of them.
Restaurants, with their high mortality rate, don’t survive for decades without something special going on and often it’s the people factor. And Paco Rivas and Jose Rivas (not related) were at the centre of La Bodego until it closed in July, 2014. “He was always there, working split shifts during my whole childhood,” says Paul Rivas, son of Paco. “He was a great host. There were definitely wild times. It was open late when a lot of restaurants in the city weren’t.”
Paco died last December of a neurological disease akin to Parkinson, says Paul. They had a celebration of life for his father the week before I spoke to him. Paco was of two minds about his children continuing the legacy. “He was thrilled but worried about the time we’d have to spend and how hard it is to make money.”
But the restaurant lives on as Bodega on Main, in a 107-year-old building, in another part of town, run by Paul and sister Natalie. It opened over a year ago with some of the original DNA (some of the food, some key staff, some iconic fixtures from the old place) but there have also been updates.
“We kept a lot of the original core on the menu but tweaked it, sourcing better products like higher-end hams which weren’t available for a long time and we’re trying to focus on adding vegetarian dishes,” says Paul. Maritza Orellana came from the old location to lead the kitchen and Hector Medina carries on as general manager.
The restaurant strikes welcoming chords and is crowded with regulars going back a generation as well as with a new generation of tapas seekers. “People who used to come during the ’70s still come. They’ve seen me grow up and they’re always teasing me. ‘Remember when you broke that case of beer and your dad got so mad?’ they’d say. Of course I remember things like that but I’m surprised they do,” says Paul.
The room is brighter and more cheerful than the old place but they kept the sculpted wooden Chateau Madrid sign, the bar stools that Paco made with a friend and the wrought iron light fixtures.
On the menu, I see that 15 per cent on food sales are donated to Rethink Breast Cancer every Monday. We ordered wine (it’s all Spanish) and the pours are quite generous.
The patatas bravas ($6) are still a strong suit and are nostalgically described as ‘Dad’s famous twice fried potatoes’. “They were always a big seller,” says Paul.
I liked the meatballs with tomato sauce and grated Manchego ($10) which were really loose and light and a blend of pork, veal and beef; there’s some diced chorizo thrown into the sauce for some bite.
Grilled chorizo with mustard ($9) were sliced with grill marks. Simple but tasty.
I also like the smoked sea salt cured sardines with fig jam on toast ($10). They’re local sardines and cured by the folks at Finest at Sea. “I’ve always made it for myself and I love it,” says Paul. And sautéed prawns with garlic, chilies and sherry ($8) were cooked just right although I think it’d be nice to have some bread to mop up the tasty olive oil.
The menu stays true to traditional Spanish tapas and you’ll find the potato omelette with aioli ($7) and paella ($28, large enough for two); there’s a traditional version as well as one made with squid ink coloured rice (black) and soon, a vegetarian version as well.
Approach carefully, the piquillo peppers stuffed with goat cheese, dates and Marcona almonds (the peppers are difficult to source here). “In Spain, they’re really popular,” says Paul, “but it’s like Russian roulette. Some of them can be killer hot and it’s a bit of a joke in Spain. The other day, I had two that were killer.” They do arrive with a verbal warning.
A charcuterie section includes the luxurious Iberico de Bellota ham for $19 a serving, which at that, is at cost.
Soon, there will be a bar area downstairs. “People can come in for some cold tapas, charcuterie, cheese, and have a glass of wine down there,” says Paul. “It’ll have a real Madrid feel.” It should be completed in four months and in a way, might feel more like tapas bar in Spain than the sit-down restaurant upstairs.