Nestled along King Street in Manchester, El Gato Negro finds itself sitting in a ravishing three-storey building that oozes class and elegance with its exposed brick, charcuterie bar and open kitchen. Leather stools sit below the bar and copper, industrial-style lighting hangs above. It’s not my style, typically, with my style being more gritty, full of character and culture-style joints. It is one I can get on board with when in the city centre, though. Good, sophisticated interior design is not something to be scoffed at, after all. It’s a handsome restaurant, both externally and internally and provides a good ambience to dine in. We visited on a Saturday evening in the midst of an Easter bank holiday so the atmosphere was exuberant with the bustle of fellow punters enjoying the longed-for sunshine in Manchester.I visited with my girlfriend and we ordered dishes that span across meat, fish, cheese and vegetables to give us a well-rounded experience and a sample of the range the menu has. Whilst the food didn’t blow me away quite like other tapas places I’ve (recently) visited did, it was a satisfying eat, one I’d recommend to friends but with telling them to go into it with an expectation that it might not top the list of their favourite tapas bars.  

We started off with the monkfish, cooked well but missing the thin layer of crisp that I tend to enjoy from it. It was accompanied by a rocket pesto that transported me to an overly floral garden exclusively built up of pink flowers. I’m not entirely sure if it was a good thing still, either. The dill and lemon puree and potatoes that sat with the cut of fish were beautiful, offering a lovely side piece to the main event. 

From there, we tried the tortilla which is freshly cooked to order. I’m always sceptical of whether or not a menu is telling the truth when it states it’s made to order or if it’s another piece of marketing spiel to dress the dish up, just like triple-cooked chips. Either way, this tortilla seemed to be fresh and was a delicious attempt, one that got a little vocal reaction from the other half, too. The aioli on the top was a superb accompaniment to the tortilla, offering an ideal partner. 

In a bid to not end on a low, I’ll discuss the disappointment of the evening before talking you through the showstopper. Patatas bravas is something I feel strongly about, despite it being such a simple concept of potatoes and tomato-based sauce. This attempt was below par something that I’d expect a chef of my culinary skills to conjure up in a home kitchen. Overdone potatoes, a very simple sauce with not enough smokiness to it and aioli that were just simple. It wasn’t inedible. It didn’t remain consistent with the rest of the meal, creating a sharp fluctuation in quality. 

The two meat dishes we ordered really did steal the show. I'm not sure if that's my biased meat-eating mind working overtime or if the two of them were just that good. The chorizo we had was tender, packed with flavour and cooked in a wonderful oil to keep it moist. Following the initial round of dishes we ordered, we then decided (smartly) that we had a little more room left and ordered the chargrilled beef fillet skewers that came on a bed of mojo rojo. The char on the meat was impeccable and it had the tenderness to match. I can’t recall a time I’ve had mojo rojo but I found myself coating the beef in it, not because the beef wasn’t good, but because the sauce was splendid and the combination of the flavours between the two was exquisite. 

I’d return to this restaurant, for sure. But I’d not rush back. It doesn’t top my list of tapas joints in the city and before I return here for a second stint, I’ve got plenty more to visit.