El Pote Espanol Since 1977 by Enrique Torres and Jose Larino Winter 2017 Our Coverage Sponsored by Fresh Origins
Our friend Enrique and Peachy, and the extraordinarily delicious Paella Marinera
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El Pote was most recently featured in 2014, and it took us far too long to return!
El Pote was first featured in 2012:
All restaurants in Manhattan are not the same.
Some are just superior.
Winning in cuisine since 1977, El Pote by our friends Enrique Torres and Jose Larino, Executive Chef, is by far the best Spanish restaurant in Manhattan today. Enrique and Jose are both from Galacia, and they met in New York and ever since, everyone's stomach has been living happily ever after. We love discovering established venues that care about every last detail and are committed to excellence like El Pote. Many new, trendy restaurants that we discover and feature maybe once, if that, do not possess the taste levels and attention to detail that Enrique does. Enrique cares about all of his guests immensely and we were sincerely happy to see him again.
After deep contemplation of their quality menu that boasts depth, we decided to focus on their hot soups as we visited on a chilly day. El Pote has one of the best if not the best soup selections in Manhattan for all cuisines so you should think about going there today as it feels like less than freezing out, temperature wise.
Seafood soup is truly extraordinary and has broth that you will delve into the depths of for every last drop flavored by the phenomenal seafood of lobster, salmon, shrimp, and cod. It is exquisitely delicious on a cold day. Peachy was far too excited and burnt her mouth, and this is justified by the quality of the soup. However in retrospect if you can control yourself, we suggest a bit of patience to let it cool for a minute.
See how hot and steamy!
Cooled a bit.
We asked Enrique if the Seafood Soup or the Garlic Soup was better. He told us we should try both. We think you should try both too because they are extraordinary. Especially if you are run down or battling a cold, this Garlic Soup is the perfect remedy. We are very big garlic enthusiasts and this genius concoction of garlic, bread, absolutely delicious egg drops and olive oil consume will wow you terrifically. We'd eat it for breakfast if it were here right now, it is that fantastic.
Shrimp in garlic sauce is one of our favorites across the board and in the days when Culinary King Rufino Lopez's Solera was open, we talked about them all the time and published on them about every five minutes (when there is new Rufino news, you will be the first to know as he is our Black Irish cousin). Once we even brought Barbie in to try them. Today, Enrique's are our favorite and they dance in a lovely fragrant sauce in all their innate succulence.
The green salad at El Pote is exactly as you'd want it to be and boasts especially fresh vegetables this time of year. They listened and put the dressing on the side for Ms. Pretty Picky. Romaine, tomatoes, and cucumber are all cut well just for you.
You can have every confidence in the entrees at El Pote, which are further evidence of the longevity of this venue. Some new venues try too hard with ridiculous small plates, but when we want to have dinner, this is what we are talking about:
Meet the crowing glory Paella Marinera! Every bite is simply a triumph of Spain in America and you cannot have a more authentic Spanish paella. Spanish rice, lobster and seafood all are ready to have a party on your palate and note for these Fridays in Lent, this is what you should be eating! It absolutely tastes as great as it looks, and remember, we never edit the pictures. Here's the Paella Marinera runway:
Enrique reminded Peachy that he also does Paella Negra quite well:
All we have to say is that you have not really lived until you have had Enrique's squid ink rice, also available with seafood. Everything at El Pote is classically elegant, right down to our carnivorous entree of Ossobuco de Cerdo! (PORK!)
Aerial view:
It's hard to say whether this or the paella was our favorite; it depends on the mood you're in and what you could go for but they are equally excellent. Opening notes of the Ossobuco de Cerdo sensational smell will envelop your senses and entice you to delve in to the uber-tender realms of the exquisite pork. The rice and potato chips are perfect accompaniments to this dish which boasts elements of sophistication that could be lost on those that mistakenly hold trendy in high esteem.
We love El Pote and if you love authentic Spanish food, you will too.
El Pote continues to be Highly Recommended and we are excited to see what they do this spring!
