the tapas style, spanish inspired food here is great. not to mention the hefty and creative drinks menu and the cocktail menu, which is something to make a trip for alone. i've never been upstairs but the ambience downstairs is quite lovely and pretty cosy. recommended for a date venue.
we were a large group and ordered the set menu, which offered a fantastic variety. the first out were the fresh oysters. for the non-oyster fans, the chopped broccoli, almond and goats curd toast with housemade morcilla (blood sausage), was the replacement. i don't mind fresh oysters but someone heard me wrong, and i ended up being glad to get a piece of the toast instead. it may have been my favourite dish of the night! the flavours just came together so spectacularly, while the bread was toasted to perfection, crispy on the outside with a degree of fluffiness on the inside. the greens, nuts, and subtle but tasty goats cheese culminated beautifully, and i don't recall tasting anything like a blood sausage on there, but i think it contributed a slight savoury touch. this was followed by the charcuterie, (which i believe was jamon) and also the leek and machego cheese croquettes. the jamon was excellent, you could taste the quality in the texture of the meat. it had substance despite being so thinly sliced. the croquettes were very nice, the filling had spark and was tasty. the wild mushroom and oloroso soup with crispy jamon came in a very small serve, not much bigger than a shot. it was a nice intermission for the palate, being smooth and creamy, with great flavour. i would have preferred it just like this, as the crunch of the jamon was a bit out ofplacein the midst of the smoothness. next we're the marinated lamb ribs with sumac yoghurt. these were succulent and flavourful, the yoghurt adding a pleasant and subtle tangy note. last of the starters was the charcoal grilled corn with dried maize. i found this to be quite delightful, as the corn was pretty nicely charred, but had a host of other flavours, with the crunchy and slightly salty maize, and the tasty mayo like sauce, which had been infused with something good.
i enjoyed only one of the mains, and this could be because i was getting full already, but i still maintain that the pedro ximenez braised pork jowl was too dry for me. on the outside it was bathing in this delectable looking sauce which gave the impression of succulent meat. perhaps this increased the shock at the dryness. the cauliflower was puréed and easily lost in the thick sauce. the other main was the star--being charcoal grilled moreton bay bugs with spicy harissa and jamon migas. the flesh and taste was great, although i wasn't getting much charred bbq flavour from it. the harissa and migas added a bit more character to the taste too. salad was served with these two mains-- it was pickled red cabbage with golden raisins. pretty good combo with the pork.
dessert was quite a pleasant affair but not mind-blowing. the chocolate croquettes were a bit of a disappointment for me. hazelnuts were heaped on too copiously, and combined with the crispy coating of the croquette, left the palate too dry, for there was not much of a melt-in-your-mouth chocolate filling to soak it in. the custard lacked any character really, but did help somewhat with the dryness. the churros with chocolate was simple but pretty good. churros were fluffy inside, crispy outside and the chocolate made for good dipping. the highlight was definitely the turron parfait. the texture was nice and creamy, balanced by the crumbly bits and the nougat. the strawberries and the delicious filling of palo cortado (rare kind of sherry) poached cherries added fruity excitement. quite a delight for sweet-tooths.
and those cocktails? very good! the amaretto sour was yum--i'm not usually a fan but this one was nice and smooth and the almond liquor wasn't overpowering so you could taste all the goodness underneath. my 'pirate's special' was pretty nice too. lots of strong flavours in there, but these were balanced nicely with some fruitiness from the lime and raspberry.
bomba is a great venue for many reasons and it's obviously quite versatile--there's so many things going for it.