ONE of the most amazing culinary collaborations Manchester has witnessed came in May when superstar Quique Dacosta, who holds three Michelin stars for his ‘Quique Dacosta' restaurant in Denia and one Michelin star at ‘El Poblet' in Valencia joined Nacho Manzano (just the three stars) at Iberica Spinningfields, for whom he is group exec chef, to cook an exceptional dinner.
Dacosta’s cherry gazpacho (above) on the standard menu is a legacy of that night, just one of 14 new dishes augmenting the new summer menu we tasted recently. It is hugely enjoyable. With formidable fresh contenders for top tapas spot a short paseo away – El Gato Negro and Tapeo – you can’t rest on your laurels.
Instead of the gazpacho, chilled soup refreshment came in the form of a salmorejo with apple granita (£4.50). Thicker than its tomato-based rival, the standard gazpacho, it was a keen palate cleanser after plates of of sweetly fatted Iberico ham, probably the best in the city (a trio of hams costs £14), acorn-fed Lomito pork loin (£6.25) and air-cured beef (£4.50).
More meat was to follow, a delicate dressed cooked beef dish, £6.50), and, more exciting a chunk of Angus black label Pichana, the prized rump cap beloved of churrasquerias. With onion and El Bierzo peppers, it was a fabulous £12 worth.
In the piscine corner, fresh hake with hollandaise (£7) was pure summer, while garlic prawns (£9.50) accompanied unusually by a kind of angel-hair pasta also worked well. I’d prefer, though, my ham croquettes (£6) crisper and spring onion tempura (£4) less greasy. Minor quibbles and the Spanish mastery of rice in all its forms was exemplified by a caramelised rice pud that was pure heaven.
Our first glass of wine was a highly unusual, gold medal-winning white called Vina Riquelas, GUAL, Tacoronte-Acentejo from Tenerife. Bright buttercup yellow in the glass it was riper and richer than its floral scent had suggested (£9 a glass, £42.50 a bottle).
For reds we again looked regional leftfield (the Iberica list is full of surprises).
Palacio de Canedo Mencía from El Bierzo (£32.50), made with the carbonic maceration method, had oodles of strawberry and liquorice with a refreshing acidity; in contrast,
a Sers Gran Reserva. Cabernet Sauvignon, 2008 (£14 a glass, £65 a bottle) from Somontano was highly perfumed and all smooth black fruit and certain meatiness in the mouth. Quite lovely. Many of the wines are available in 375ml porrons, which is good for mixing and matching and I always admire the depth of wine knowledge across the staff.
The new tapas impress but note long-standing Iberica favourites such as asparagus toast, fried chorizo lollipops and paella will remain on the menu throughout the season and the restaurant will continue to offer an express lunch menu for £12, featuring a dish of the day plus one of an edited selection of tapas.
Iberica, 14-15 The Avenue, Spinningfields, M3 3HF. 0161 358 1350.
