Candela restaurant wilton manors fl7/1/2023 ![]() The dish is served from a piping-hot paella pan, blackened rice scraped from the steel and onto your plate. The recipe calls for Spanish Calasparra rice, a pearl-shaped variety that won't stick and allows for the complete absorption of the savory calamari-, clam-, mussel-, and shrimp-based broth. Vega is most proud of his paella, prepared in the style of Valencia. The rustic, red-walled hideaway is accented with handmade wooden wine racks Vega's family china and art made with the corks of emptied wine bottles are evidence of the gastronomic merriment that's taken place over the years. A medium-grain rice from Murcia, Spain Mahon, a soft cow's-milk cheese from the island of Minorca smoky pimenton, a type of Spanish paprika and olive oil from Jaen, a city in the south of Spain. What makes Candela so endearing is Vega's knowledge of his painstakingly sourced ingredients. This is the type of experience you'll get from chef-owner Armando Vega and his wife Yudaris, a Cuban-born couple that dishes out authentic Latin and Mediterranean cuisine. You may be familiar with a restaurant where the chef knows your name and delivers your dish as if you were family. Just one block south of Oakland Park Boulevard and over a canal that hems the northern edge of the Island City, you'll find one of the area's best-kept secrets. But at Candela Restaurant in Wilton Manors, you can get an idea of what it's all about. Otherwise I would suggest going elsewhere.In South Florida, where the recent small-plate obsession has tainted our palates (and pockets) with pricey, upmarket concept foods, we have no understanding of the Spanish art of celebrating food and drink. If you can stand the owner’s yelling, poor service, lousy food, lack of taste, a cheep 3 oz wine pour, or a $25 corkage charge, then this is your restaurant. The snapper tasted frozen, lacked flavor, the edges looked freezer burnt and had a plastic taste the grouper looked more like a soup than a fish dish with a sauce. Dinner was unremarkable – the 2 Moroccan Chicken dishes were spicy but were overcooked, tough and stringy. We did have to send the initial bread back due to be very head and cold – the owner did tell us he ran out of his bread and had to go to Publix (a grocery store) and buy French bread – the second batch was just as bad – cold and very oily. What a way to interrupt our dinner – all we saw him do is go by and yell at his staff…I mean YELL. Throughout the meal we counted he came by our table (always holding his own glass of wine) 17 times. The owner/chef coming to the table and yelling across the restaurant at his staff – more water, more bread etc. The appetizers’ (tapas) were ordered- they were not the best, but just ok tasting. We wanted to order more, but due to the small amount – we did not. The wine came out (the average glass was $10) with a 3 ounce pour – Yes 3 ounces. We ordered wine – wanted to bring our own due to their limited wine list – but they charge a $25 corking charge. After being seated the server came over before we even had menus and asked us what we wanted to order for food (kind of rushed). The reservation was for a party of 4 at 7:30pm, it took them 10 minutes to find the reservation (they filed it under the first name not that last name) and kept say you do not have a reservation (was made under Open Table with a confirmation). This was our second time at Candela and will be my last. Again, do not let the outside of the restaurant discourage you! Great find and they have it together! Par excellent! We felt as if we were in a small restaurant in Barcelona. I am a local and will tell all my friends about this hidden gem. We washed it down with Cuban style café con Leche. ![]() BTW.everyone who said the bread was good, spot on! Very European like crispy and yummy! We finished our meal with desert which included flan and almond cake. The serving is generous! With black beans, rice and plantains. Prepared like a stew with rasins, and green olives, slightly spiced with paprika and red bell peppers. I had the ropa vieja which was really good. ![]() My husband had the oxtail which melted in your mouth! It was a dinner special. ![]() The ham melted in the mouth and croquettes crunchy and rich cheese. Excellent wine selection! We had a Spanish 100% cabernet.the best! Great price too. He gave us a brief explanation of the food and his background. Ignore the negative comments! Excellent service, greeted by the owner/chef. I have to say this restaurant is very good. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |