Cigala Restaurant

Visiting London on business and was looking for an alternative to pub food. Came here with a colleague and was very impressed by the flavors - we had the braised shrimp and chorizo tapas and the seafood paella. The paella was excellent, though the socaratt could have been a bit more crusty. The tapas were very nicely done. Our waitress recommended the ice cream whiskey sponge desert which was a very nice ending. Finally, I'm now a fan of Pancharan (Patxaran) based cocktails!

Lovely ambience, great service and excellent food. Definitely recommend

RESTAURANT - Cigala - Spanish - Bloomsbury​
 
Date of Visit: 15.11.17
Time: 3.30pm
 
Review: 
 
I have never tried Spanish cuisine so I was looking forward to my visit to Cigala. T​he idea of having authentic Spanish food and tapas​ sounded​ perfect.​ I​ love food, so being able to try multiple dishes is like heaven to me.

​I ​arrived by cab and since Cigala is in Bloomsbury it was only a short trip from my Regent Street​ office.
​M​y friend joined me arriving via public transport. The restaurant is located near to Holborn and Russell Square tube stations so it is an easy place to get to.​
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The entrance to Cigala ​can be found on the corner of Lamb's Conduit S​treet and Rugby Street. The area ​has a delightful village feel. Lamb's Conduit Street is partially pedestrianised with fascinating shops and cafes.​
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​Cigala is popular with the legal profession, media and many celebrities have made it their haunt. It is about conviviality and not really about​ fine dining. ​My review will reflect this in that I don't expect the same criteria. 
 
The main dining area on street level has a large floor area and open kitchen and a lot of covers. There is also outside space with tables and chairs where huge pans of paella are served during the summer months. There are space heaters so no one gets cold.
 
Inside the lighting is not too bright or dim but just right and I​ noted an AC unit by the kitchen,​ so for those who may want to visit during the summer period you get the best of both worlds I​ would say. 
 
Another feature I noted which you don't see much of are the number of coat hooks dotted around which makes​ life a little easier. 

​Cigala also has a private room downstairs which is at the moment being re​decorated and should be completed​ by the time you read this in time for the festive season and those office Christmas parties. 
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But the main purpose of the review is the food, so take a look further down to see what we had and our thoughts. I ​visited with a friend who is a Pesca​tarian. As I don't eat much fish.​ I​ thought it would be a good idea to take someone along who does. 
 
Location: 54 Lamb's Conduit St, London WC1N 3LW, UK
 
Parking: I arrived by cab and my friend via tube but noticed there was some parking outside.
I understand that you can get parked relatively easily in the vicinity after 6pm.​
 
Decor & Lighting:
​Stripped down because chef proprietor Jake Hodges believes the food should do the talking​.
Cigala offers basic comforts and pleasant lighting.
 
Ambience & Acoustics: 
The location is quiet and there's no background music. As we attended​ during the setup time I​ cannot really comment on the noise levels during a normal lunch or dinner setting. 
 
We had the following: 
 
Food: 
 
Croquetas de setas (Mushroom Croquettes) - We both felt the croquettes were a bit mushy though the batter is light. You do get three pieces however. I​ recently had cod croquettes in a private members club in Piccadilly so maybe I was​ a bit spoilt due to that. 
 
Pinchito de pollo (Grilled marinated chicken kebab)- The chicken was moist and very well-seasoned and s​erved with a fresh salad. The ​dish was ​cooked well and very well marinated. I would definitely have had two of these easily as you are served just one skewer. 
 
Chorizo al la brasa (Homemade Chorizo with fried breadcrumb base) - Two small sausage shaped Chorizo had a strong meaty and spicy flavour but I was happy with this as the base of breadcrumbs really comple​mented the heavier meaty and spicy taste very well and I would recommend this along with the Chicken kebab. 
 
Gambas al ajillo (Prawns in olive oil and garlic) - My friend had this dish which arrived in​ a lot of oil and ​the flavour of garlic was overpowering which did not appeal to her.​
 
Sardinas a la plancha (Grilled Sardines with Garlic and Parsley) - Another dish my friend had and she mentioned it was nicely cooked and tender, but very salty.
 
Patatas bravas (Deep fried potatoes with spicy tomato sauce) -  The potatoes themselves were cooked well with a crispy and crunchy outside and soft centre. With a nice tomato sauce, the only thing ​I ​would say is to include more sauce and less salt. 

Dessert:
 
Tarta de Santiago (Almond Tarte with Ice Cream)-  The texture was a little confusing as it tasted like a dense and dry muffin. It was served with a custard rather than the advertised ice cream. It was not too rich but had a hard crust which made it slightly difficult to cut. 
 
Arroz con leche (Rice Pudding) - My friend had this dish and her thoughts were that the rice was over cooked or perhaps due to the temperature of the dish (cold) it tasted very hard. However I understand this is how it is served in Spain.
 
Bill / Cost: In this case we were invited by the restaurant owners to come along and enjoy a meal on them and they covered the bill. Typically, however without alcohol we would have had to pay around £30 per head with soft drinks but they also have an express lu

The best paella I have ever had. I try to stop in London whenever transiting through, and definitely plan to return here.
The price is not cheap, but given the quality, it is worth the occasional return visit.
If you are a paella enthusiast, do not miss it!

In a calm street in Bloomsbury lies this quite modest looking tapas restaurant, friendly service and good atmosphere, and not to mention the delicious tapas dishes, would go there again!
If you're hungry you've come to the right place..

The location and look of Cigala is a winner; it wears a quiet, discerning garb in the middle of Lambs Conduit Street, a rather secluded part of Bloomsbury, although the interiors are very unassuming. The waiter was welcoming, but a tad sarcastic

The cured black foot ham, the serrano ham with manchego and the oak smoked beef, all excellent picks for starter meats.

We went on to order the Berenjenas alpujarenas which are aubergines stuffed with goats cheese, mint, cumin, red onion and chilli. Not bad, but I think the spices suppressed the goats cheese, so I'd say a tad easy on the spicing. The mushroom croquettas and the padron peppers, both excellent. The lamb meatballs (Albondigas de cordero) in tomato sauce were good (3 pieces). The large grilled calamari came with with mojo verde and guindilla peppers. The 'Higado a la jerezana' or the pan-fried chicken livers with softened onions and pedro ximenez was one of my favourites. The caramelised onions were delicious and went very well with the strong taste of the livers. The grilled homemade chorizo with fried breadcrumbs, peppers and cumin was excellent (although they would've been just fine without the taste of cumin).

The tarta de Fruta - almond and fruit tart with crème anglaise, and Tarta de Naranja for dessert. Worth a try.

I'd definitely come back here for another go. Priced reasonably, with very satisfactory service.

Good tapas and wine selection. A bit pricey though. We went on a quiet weeknight so were well taken care of and the service and food was very good but not somewhere we could eat at often given the prices. I would go back though.

Arrived at the quiet street of Holborn to find this gem of the area. ( I say gem because it is not hidden location-wise, but Cigala deserves a lot of people on a Saturday especially. )
It has a calming atmosphere, an inviting place for a lot of occasions I would say, from cosy family dinners or smart-casual date.

The food gave us a really pleasant surprise compared to how the restaurant presented itself both on the exterior and the interior setting. All the dishes we ordered were very well seasoned and presentable, particularly the shrimps tapas with a fantastic aroma of fresh herbs and the chorizo on a bed of breadcrumbs. The paella was phenomenal - the portion was massive with a lot of fresh seafood on it and we wish we could finish it! ( It's definitely for at least two people as recommended on the menu, but with all the tapas it is almost impossible to finish). Overall ingredients are really selected at their finest and marinated perfectly.

Waitresses were not particularly helpful, which took one star off the chart - it took them a while to notice the bottles were empty and they seemed to be in a rush to take our unfinished food off the table.

Will definitely be going again. Excellent, even over compensating, service (we ended up with 2 extra tapas and 1 extra pudding), all tapas dishes from the £16pp amazing value weekend menu were so flavoursome and authentic reminding us all of much loved family holidays to Spain. Standouts were the tortilla, salt cod, vermut de Rioja with a wedge of orange to squeeze in for £3.75, and the homemade honeycomb ice cream that came with the walnut cake pudding. For a 3 courser, we left content - that rare feeling from the perfect amount of very good quality food.

Very simple and I would even say boring interior. But God, the food here is excellent.
Like most good places I've had lunch at - I found this randomly.
I was in West London with a friend. We don't know the area that well and we were starving! Glad we came in.
Spanish cuisine of good quality is hard to find in London. This place beats all my expectations.

We ordered a portion of ''Paella de pollo'' which is rice with chicken and veggies.
It came in a huge serving and even both of us couldn't finish it even though it was delicious. The products are fresh and tasty. The service is friendly and polite.

Would definitely come back if I find myself in West London again.

Nice place on quiet street just a short walk from our rental property. Good tapas, well spiced and nice portions. The service, as mentioned in other reviews, needs some help. Showed up for dinner at 6pm and greeted with a frown when the dining room was empty. Took awhile to get order taken and then waited ages for the check. All of the service was with a frown. I think, in the defense of the server, he was the only one working the entire place till the manager stepped in. It was a good meal overall and a nice place, so I would still give 4 stars. Hoping the serving staff get some help.