Foodess' review of Aqua Nueva

Not just reviewers stirred my interest, but I have a penchant for western Med style food, so Aqua Nueva was on my list of must try’s. Saturday a.m. I read the intro. on this website which got my mouth watering, so with optimism I requested a reservation for the same evening. My luck was in, so hoped it would last. I wish I could say ‘it did’, but instead we found the experience weighted towards style rather than substance. As everyone else has mentioned the extravagant setting, I need not repeat. An army of pretty females to greet and wait upon us were pleasant and efficient enough. One of the few male waiters evidently found both product knowledge and manners a challenge, but fortunately tended our table once only. I enjoyed the lobster starter, but thought it needed another taste dimension such as a squeeze of lemon, however that could be me being picky. The Iberico ham and tomato bread was as good as we’d enjoyed in Barcelona. Oxtail was very good but desperately needed a jus or more than the teaspoon of pumpkin puree that was supposed to be the main accompaniment, a decent portion of which would have emphasised great partnering.
Both being somewhat uninspired by the food, we decided to quit at this point and settled the reasonably priced bill feeling that the venue fascinates more than the food.