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FeedSmall Plates, Big Flavor
Wilmington’s only true tapas restaurant delivers delicious food and potential to spare.
(page 4 of 5)
Orillas’ wine list mines Spain, but it only states the name and price. There’s no provenance, nor a description, and I wouldn’t count on your server to know. When I asked for a caipirinha, she checked with the bartender and then told me it was unavailable. “That’s mostly a Mediterranean drink,” she said. Actually, it’s Brazilian. Yet if the bartender did believe it was Mediterranean, shouldn’t it be on a Spanish restaurant’s menu?
Philly tapas restaurants quite smartly know that the beverage offerings are as important as the food. At Orillas, I tasted the worst mojito I’ve had. Served in a goblet brimming with ice, the drink was mostly mint and what tasted like club soda. There was no discernable rum or lime flavor.
I hope the cocktail menu picks up soon, because Orillas really does have a tasty concept that many area diners will support. There are at least 10 dishes I’d like to try. The larger plates, including grilled churrasco steak with yucca fries, are tempting. But until I make my way through the menu, the call of the tapas is too strong of a siren song.
So will diners come back? I will—for the empanadas, for the ceviche, for the meats and cheeses, and for the dishes that, like Orillas, are packed with potential.
Page 5: Viva La Casa Pasta
