April 30th 2012: Dinner at Toro, Boston

Today after work, my friends who were in town wanted to go to Toro, a tapas place along Washington Street in Boston.

Unlike the last time where we were told that our wait time would be at least 2 hours long, we decided to come early, so we were able to get places by the window while we waited for a table. Everyone got a drink, so I decided to get one too, going with the red sangria, which was actually really good and not too sweet.

It was at least an hour before we finally got a table to sit at, although that time quickly passed with fun conversation. With regard to the food, we decided to try all the interesting stuff as always. Our first tapas dish was the Jamon Bianco, consisting of house cured lardo with kimchee pears. When we initially saw it, we thought there wasn't anything substantial on the plate as it was as white as the lard itself, but it was definitely sinfully tasty.

The Datiles Con Jamon, which were Medjool dates filled with Marcona almonds and Cabrales blue cheese, wrapped in Jamon Serrano ham, came next. We realized the serving was really small, so we decided to get 2 more servings to staisfy everyone. I must say, I'm typically not a fan of dates, but these little bites definitely did the trick.

Following this, the tapas dishes came along in quick succession, all really delicious, especially the Corazon, which is smoked buffalo heart with romesco, which was simply scrumptious, while the Asado de Huesos consisting of roasted bone marrow with radish citrus salad and oxtail marmalade was another interesting addition to our dinner. Pictures of the dishes follow.

Tripe, Pork Belly and Lamb Stew
with White Beans

Mejillones Escabeche
(Warm marinated mussels, fennel, garlic toast)

Corazon

Suquet De Mariscos
(Catalan Stew of sea Urchin, lobster, crab,
swordfish, sunchokes and romesco)

Asado de Huesos

Finally we decided to try half portions of the Valencia Paella, which is filled with seafood, and the Chorizo and Snail Paella. Both rice dishes were exceptionally good, need I say more. Now I know why this place is always so crowded.

Valencia Paella

Chorizo and Snail Paella

With that, another night of having fun with my friends ended. I am going to have to take a short break from the fun before I run out of steam.