It’s been a long day… correction… it has been a long week. It’s time for a drink… maybe a few… and dinner with friends. Yeah, this is what I needed and Mi Luna Tapas Restaurant and Bar in Rice Village is where I am going to get it.
From my booth along the far wall and across from the bar, I take a quiet survey of the bustling Spanish restaurant. My party hadn’t arrived yet so I’m alone with my thoughts and my first thought was, this is a good spot to grab a nice panorama. So out whips the phone. Pano app launched. Snap. Snap. Snap. Snap. Snap. Boom Mi Luna Panorama. Not bad… still need that drink.
I’m in a Spanish restaurant, wine it is. Need something light, something refreshing. A jittery, energetic waiter with a thick Spanish accent walks up — this guy is this restaurant personified — and I order an Italian bottle of pinot grigio and 3 additional glasses for my still missing dinner party. Normally, on a busy night, I wouldn’t have been seated without my entire party, but it’s Thursday and it’s still early, so I get my table.
Twenty minutes and one glass of pinot later…
The place starts to fill up and my party finally arrives… they shuffle into the booth with me. We look over Mi Luna’s expansive menu of tapas — small plates of cold or hot appetizer-sized, Spanish inspired dishes. The idea is to order several plates and share, creating a completely social, dining experience. Four diners + three tapas each = twelve portions of deliciousness! And add a pitcher of mojitos to wash it all down with.
For my three tapas I ordered three hot plates: beef empanadas, croquetas de patatas (potato croquettes), and pollo relleno (stuffed chicken breast). The small plates are served quickly, generally showing up to the table one after another and sometimes two or three at a time. Each plate is visually stunning, with colorful sauces artfully painted over each item. The empanadas show up first and disappear just as quickly. Served with a savory mushroom sauce, these beef filled pastries are one of Mi Luna’s signature tapas.
My next two dishes arrived together. The potato croquettes turned out to be my favorite dish of the night. Fried to a perfect crisp with a fluffy potato filling, the contrast in textures make for a tasty combination that I definitely wished I had much more of. The stuffed chicken breast was delicious as well, managing to stay moist through the searing and roasting process. However, I was not completely impressed with the vegetables that served as the stuffing and the amount of sauce painted over the plate was a little overkill.
Overall, the food turned out to be not only delicious but surprisingly filling as well. We actually ended up ordering a second round — albeit a much smaller amount — of food because Mi Luna does not allow you to simply linger at one of their tables while having additional drinks after your meal. If you’re looking for live Latin music, Mi Luna welcomes a band on Friday nights to. Also, when you’re ordering all of these small plates fast and furious style, it’s easy to overlook the fact that at 6-7 dollars a plate, it all adds up to quite the hefty tab! Then again, good food in a hip, cool environment with great company… there’s no price for that.
Have you dined at Mi Luna? What is your favorite tapas restaurant? Let us know!
[Mi Luna — 2441 University Blvd — Sun – Wed: 11am to 10pm, Thur – Sat: 11am to 2am]
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