Last Updated on April 23, 2026
Top Tapas at El Pirata in Mayfair
4.0 out of 5.0 starsLondon dining has been hugely influenced by Spanish ‘tapas’ style eating. If the Soho restaurant renaissance was kick-started in 2009 by Polpo, Russell Norman’s ‘bacaro’ serving Venetian small plates, it was in no small part influenced by the success of the Hart brothers’ contemporary tapas restaurant Barrafina in 2007.
Less visible in the media but just as important was prize-winning El Pirata, serving up classic tapas dishes since 1994 in the intimate environs of Mayfair’s Down St, just off the Hyde Park end of Piccadilly.
The room is dark and buzzy with wooden tables and beams set off by white walls covered with prints of Spanish art. There’s a basement for when things get busy as well as a few outdoor tables which become very popular in the summer.
The menu is clearly laid out with the 60-plus dishes divided into eight sections; Salads, Light Bites, Fish and Seafood, Vegetarian, Iberian Ham and Cheese, Meat, Paella (for two) and Desserts. They also offer a seven-dish Introduction to Tapas sharing menu at a very reasonable £65. We hit a bottle of reasonably priced Muriel Rioja Blanco 2024 from the Basque Country in Northern Spain, whilst planning our ordering strategy; primarily made from the Viura grape but with a hint of white Tempranillo, it’s a fresh-tasting wine with apple and pear notes and a well-balanced acidity.
We tried four dishes from the Light Bites menu. Boquerones en vinagre (fresh anchovies in vinegar) were prettily presented, sprinkled with parsley dust and deliciously tangy.
Pimientos de Padrón (Padron peppers) were delivered hot from the pan; they were full of attitude, salty and piquant.
Croquetas de jamón Ibérico (Ibérico ham croquettes) were perfect. With a light, crisp batter, the richness of a spiced bechamel sauce and the sweetness of the ham coalescing to create a series of seductive mouthfuls. Gambas al Pil-Pil (prawn in a Pil-Pil sauce) is a classic tapas. Brought straight to the table from the oven in an earthenware dish, the meaty prawns were doused in oil and flavoured by thin slivers of garlic, smoked paprika and red chilli. It’s the sort of rustic seafood dish I love.
From the Fish and Seafood menu, we chose a plate of Pulpo al Pirate, thin slices of octopus mixed up with waxy cubes of potato and sprinkled with paprika to perk the dish up. Full of flavour it is the sort of unshowy but tasty dish that characterises El Pirata.
From the Vegetarian dishes, Alcachofas a la plancha (grilled artichoke hearts & alioli) were halved and then caramelised. They were sweet and tender with lots of flavour further lifted by the garlic mayo.
I’m a bit of a tortilla fascist. Sometimes I make my own, following Nieves Barragan’s recipe to the letter. It involves flipping the tortilla about 30 times and the end product has to have a runny eggy centre that oozes when cut. I can report that El Pirata’s Tortilla Española delivers on all fronts. I might give up making them, it’s much easier to get someone else to do it!
From the Meat menu we ordered Solomillo de cordero con puré de apionabo (lamb fillet with celeriac purée). The lamb was very tender with a lovely flavour and was set-off by the creaminess of the purée.
However much I eat, here’s always room for dessert. The El Pirata Cream Catalana was really a Catalan creme brûlée. Light and eggy and with the crunch of the burnt sugared topping, it was infused with orange, lemon, cinnamon and vanilla flavours. I could have eaten two!
With service that is very friendly, El Pirata is an old-school type of place that exists outside of the transient fashions that dominate the restaurant scene. It did sharing plates before they were a thing and it serves food that is for eating and not for instagramming. For authentic top-notch tapas at a reasonable price it should be your first port of call if you are in the West End.
El Pirata
5 – 6 Down St, London W1J 7AQ
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