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Nou Manolín
Calle Villegas 3 Cuisines: SpanishAbout
This is the kind of discovery locals will tell you about if they like you. The place is fabled locally for its array of some 50 tapas served daily, everything from shrimp in garlic sauce to batter-fried fresh anchovies. When he established it in 1972, the founder of this restaurant named it after an almost-forgotten neighborhood bar (El Manolín), which his grandfather had maintained before the Spanish Civil War. Nou Manolín's street level contains a busy bar area, but diners usually gravitate to the upstairs dining room, where tiled walls and uniformed waiters contribute to the ambience of an elegant tasca. Menu items focus mainly on paellas, but include many kinds of fish cooked in a salt crust, several kinds of stew, fresh shellfish, and a wide selection of Iberian wines. An unusual rice dish is arroz con kokotxas, which is made with fresh cod "cheeks" -- that is, the arrowhead-shaped flesh of the lower jaw. It has a gelatinous texture. The rice is also studded with such fresh vegetables as sweet red peppers, artichokes, cauliflowers, and green beans.
