Review and Gallery: Samar

• I visited Samar last night and we sat at the bar. The place was really busy!!! The waiter immediately brought the menus and some bread.He told us that he'd continue to bring bread throughout the meal to go with the three types of dip. We ordered a bottle of wine and 6 of the tapas. After about 15 minutes, four of the tapas came. We'd asked for more bread a couple of times but no one brought any. The tapas were almost no food at all. I know what tapas are but there was almost nothing to the mussels and three other items on the Spanish listing. We asked the chef for more bread and he said he'd take care of it. We ate the tapas and enjoyed the wine. But no bread. Meanwhile, as we watched the kitchen staff, the chef coughed a few times into his hands and continued to place his hands into the dishes to prepare them. All the kitchen people used one cloth to clean their hands. After 30 more minutes, we finally got more bread but not our other two tapas selections. We just gave up on them and asked for our check. The place is a real disappointment.

• One of my current favorites, Samar makes me giddy. I never wish to see the word brulee used again unless it is prefaced with the words 'foie' and 'gras'. I could subsist on the <i>crispy jamon serrano</i> for the rest of my days. Also, on my last visit, the guys at the bar concocted a dish off the menu that included your okra slices bundled and treated with a chickpea flour and served with a spoonful of their lemon aioli. <b>Obrigado muito, Sr. Pyles</b>

• My joint's called El Bulli, not El Buli.

TotalComments: 3