Bar San Juan, Chorlton

Turning up at a popular tapas restaurant that doesn't take bookings at 8pm on a Saturday night probably isn't the quickest way to get your dinner...

Luckily the atmosphere inside San Juan is buzzing; authentically Spanish (a little crazy and crowded), taking you a world away from the icy winter wind merely on the other side of the door.

Whilst we waited (they'd quoted us an hour and a half, we were seated within the hour which was ideal), we had two pints of Spanish beer to 'limber up' in time for the feast.

Our little round table quickly became stacked with dishes and plates; from memory I think we ordered:

• Olives (so buttery, d-lish)
• Toasted bread with (the most incredible) olive oil and herbs

• Whitebait - crisp n' crunchy for the win (really really salty - goes well with the beer)
• Lamb parcels with a sweet 'jus' for dipping 
• Meatballs in tomato sauce 

• Patatas bravas with a spicy tomato sauce
• Quails egg perched on top of ciabatta with a chorizo paste. Yep... Heaven.

The other great thing is how reasonably priced everything is - dishes are about £3-4 each on average.
We also got a top notch bottle of Tempranillo for £13.95,

It's messy food. So would be a funny first date territory. And you might have to share a table with another couple, but it all adds to the fun (and food envy).

I didn't take my big cam, so these are all taken on my phone, and as you can guess it was pretty dark in there, so sorry if some of the pictures are a bit blurred. It doesn't do the food justice really, which essentially means you have to visit now.

Well worth it, I cannot wait to go again...