Ortega

Blue azulejo tiles, wine-coloured walls & bullfighting motifs lend this buzzy tapas bar some swaggering decorative olé! Laid out on two floors above Leadenhall Market, Ortega eschews culinary ambition for an easy-going assortment of greatest hits from the tapas inventory: albondigas in a rich tomato sauce, deep-fried calamares, serrano ham with olives & bread and the like. Vegetarians have plenty to cheer about when it comes to classics such as patatas bravas, red peppers stuffed with rice & manchego, or Monte Enebro cheese on toast with orange-blossom honey, & there are platters & paellas to share. Desserts tend to wander off-piste with detours for cheesecake & Mövenpick ice creams, but authenticity returns in the shape of churros with warm chocolate sauce for dipping. Spain leads the way on the short, affordable wine list.