Spanish tapas @ Movida Aqui, Melbourne

It seems to me from our recent trip to Australia, that small plated tapas-style eating is in vogue in Melbourne, be it Japanese, Greek or Spanish (this post). Movida is one of Melbourne CBD's most popular restaurants, proven by how difficult it is to secure a table even when booking a few weeks in advance. The newer Movida Aqui is also popular, but it is also larger so it was easier to make reservations. Our third day in Melbourne saw poor hubby mostly bedridden from a nasty stomach bug, but he recovered enough to still honour our Monday night booking at Movida Aqui.

The view towards the kitchen upon entering the entrance to Movida:

The restaurant is sleek and spacious with a quirky design: the bar decorated with colourful milk crates and the walls covered with vintage posters. Movida Aqui seems great for both large groups and intimate company. The service we received was friendly yet professional, and our waitress was helpful with recommendations and allergy-related requests. The menu was not terribly long but it was nicely varied to allow for some quality sampling.

Sangria, in a large glass!

The complimentary bread basket and olive oil. The 3.5-year-old would've finished the whole basket if we'd let him:

Sardina - imported Spanish artisan 'Cuca' sardine with tomato on toast. Full of flavour and texture:

Bocadillo de Calamares - calamari sandwich with Basque guindilla and mayonnaise. Simple but delicious:

Empanadilla - braised beef brisket in sherry pastries. I loved the thick crunchy pastry! The beef was very tender too:

Gambas a la Sidra - prawns cooked in terracotta with garlic and cider. Also very yummy, and the prawn broth was so good with the bread:

Espinacas - sauteed spinach and chickpeas. The obligatory vegetable dish which turned out to be very good. My son wasn't convinced though:

A shot of the kitchen as I was making my way back to the table from the ladies' room:

The food was very tasty and of good quality. My only complaint would be the small serving size (I'm not sure if the glutton in me will get used to the idea of tapas and 'small plates' eating anytime soon). If not for hubby recovering from his tummy bug, we would have ordered many more dishes which would no doubt have put a much bigger dent on our credit card bill.

Movida Aqui
Level 1
500 Bourke Street
Melbourne VIC 3000
Australia
(entrance also accessible via stairs from Little William St)
Tel. +61 3 9663 3038