Want to know where you can grab three tapas dishes and a drink whilst enjoying a sea view, for only £20?

Ad 🍽️ Escala Tapas Bar & Restaurant, 12 The Beach, Clevedon

It had been far too long since my last visit to Escala… But I’d had my eye on their three tapas and a drink deal for a while (you may have noticed I love an offer), so I absolutely had to say yes when they invited me to visit!

We had some items that were included in the offer (highlighted with an *) and some that weren’t:

Cod Croquettes: Lime Mayo, Bravas Sauce*

Bravas: Crispy Potatoes, Smoked Aioli, Bravas Sauce*

Mejillones: Cornish Mussels, Chorizo, Cream Leek, Cider*

Tortilla Del Dia: Spanish Tortilla Of The Day*

Gambas Al Pil Pil: Whole Atlantic Prawns In Chilli & Garlic OiL

Lomo De Cerdo: Pork Loin Steak, Pickled Cabbage, Fennel, Romesco

Cupula: Chocolate Dome, Rocky Road, Salted Caramel Sauce

Being a croquette fanatic clearly I was going to order a portion, but Escala make it a difficult choice with three varieties on offer. I’d usually go chorizo, and the mushroom were tempting, but my lovely dining partner Deb persuaded me to go fish. I’m glad she did because it was probably our favourite dish! The lime/bravas combo was an absolute delight and I could easily have wolfed down another plateful. I’m glad we didn’t though as I needed plenty of room for what followed…

My other go to when ordering tapas is tortilla! At most places it’s a fairly standard potato, onion and egg concoction but flavours at Escala change regularly, and when we visited it was mushroom and truffle. I sometimes find truffle overpowering, but this was perfectly balanced and really enjoyable.

Arriving next (dishes come out as they are ready) were the mussels. Cider and chorizo isn’t a revolutionary accompaniment but it is trusted, the creamed leeks were a welcome addition and the whole dish was executed incredibly well, so we mopped up as much as we could with the bread we quickly ordered (no idea why we didn’t order in the first place!).

The Patatas Bravas probably wasn’t needed because of the tortilla and the bread, but it’s a tapas staple and so had to be tested for research purposes, right!? These weren’t super crispy but the bravas sauce and aioli were spot on, and they were plentiful, so I was very happy (and probably polished off two thirds of them, sorry Deb!! 🤦🏼‍♀️)

Gambas Pil Pil at Escala are served whole, so you’ll need to be au fait with how to deshell a prawn. I’ll put my hands up and say it’s not my favourite thing to do (is it anyone’s?) but I love the end result so I’m willing to get my hands dirty. Literally. Pleased to say these were absolutely worth the mess (and the supplied lemon wet wipes were much appreciated/very effective). Sadly these aren’t included on the lunch menu, and neither was the last dish to arrive, the pork loin steak. I’m not the biggest pork fan usually but this was a special recently added to the menu so wanted to give it a go and it was pretty decent. For dessert, we of course had the chocolate dome with the caramel sauce; which is always a crowd pleaser!

Drinks wise, there is a vast array and if there is anything in particular you take a fancy to they can be purchased just up the road at Vintage & Vine, a bar and bottle shop that is a sister business. Included in the lunch offer you’ll find a number of soft drinks and a house wine of each variety plus a beer or cider, so there should be something to suit all tastes. The offer is available from Tuesday to Friday, 12pm to 4pm.

In terms of the decor – I was really impressed! I’m a big tile fan (I’m still crying I missed out on going to the tile museum when we were in Lisbon 😅) and the ones they’ve used are gorgeous, as was the colour palette throughout.

Sat in the conservatory we were able to take full advantage of the beautiful blue skies, sunshine and sea views, and when the weather gets warmer the large outdoor terrace would be a great option too. When I eventually shifted myself to have a look at the interior restaurant, I realised it was far lighter than I’d assumed. With the clever use of murals, more tiles (yay), soft furnishings, ambient lighting and cleverly displayed products it was a warm, inviting area and a great alternative area to dine in should the conservatory be full.

Owners Alex and Dom Lamy clearly have an eye for the finer details, and this is echoed elsewhere with finishing touches such as the beautiful crockery and the menus made by local leather supplier Nelson & Forge. Similarly in terms of the food suppliers, authentic Spanish produce is sourced from Mevalco and seafood comes from Conscious Food Co.

Escala has gone up another notch since my last visit, and certainly gives the Bristol tapas restaurants a run for their money. It’s also piqued my curiosity as to what comes next from Dom and Alex… On Feb 14th their original premises Puro will reopen having been closed for the last eight months. Opening night is already fully booked though, so that may have to wait!

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Thank you for reading!

Lizzie xxx