La Taverna del Clinic is a medium sized place with a modern feel and decorations consisting mostly of wine, liquor and champagne bottles. There is a long counter opposite a series of tightly packed tables.  Nice personalized linens and clothes set a more formal tone. It is a good sized menu with plates to share or small portions and a tasting menu. With a 10:00 pm reservation we thought it might be winding down but it serves the late crowd with the tables and bar filling up soon after we arrived. Our server was friendly and helpful and spoke good English.  We didn’t want a lot but did want to sample some of their best items.  

 

 

Not long after being seated they brought an amuse bouche of liquid olive, not a novel concept, but it was a good rendition.

 

For our first snack we tried 50 grams of their Reserve-quality acorn-fed Iberian ham raised free range in the Sierra de Gredos.  It was good, not exceptional.  It did satisfy that craving for some of that great Spanish ham.

 

Our next course was one they are known for, La Taverna bravas, which are stuffed potatoes.  They came 6 to an order and were a shell of potato stuffed with a seasoned creamy filling.  I would have liked them better if the exterior shell had been crispy, as it looked like it would be but was not. The taste was fine but again not exceptional.

 

We followed with Vacuum glazed El Prat artichokes with La Ría de Muros cockles.  The cockles were a nice twist on a flavor combination. Their delicacy blended well with the artichokes to make a nice dish.

 

Our last appetizer was the open-face sandwich of fresh pan-seared foie gras with port sauce. It was a nice size piece of foie gras and properly cooked on a crispy slice of bread. All was covered in a sweet sauce and dotted with a few greens for a winning combination.  It just needed a touch of salt, which the waiter happily brought to us.

 

We each had one of cannelloni of roast duck with boletus for a main dish. This is a heavy dish and I think we probably could have split one. The roll is filled with shredded duck and set in a plate of creamy sauce and then covered in grated cheese.  It was very savory, tasty and a real filler.

 

I barely had room for their homemade torrija fried bread with La Cerdanya frozen yoghurt, but I’m really glad I did.  This luscious piece of bread had been soaked in custard, fried and crusted with sugar. The yoghurt is served on top of a pile of crunchy chocolate crumbs. The whole thing was divine.  Extra yums and I wish I’d just gotten several pieces of it for my meal!