Tegan and I had decided to take a wander around the Monument Christmas market. It was offering lots of different foods; noodles, bratwursts, paella, ostrich and kangaroo burgers, hog roasts and sweet French treats. My nose was overwhelmed by the incredible smells wafting from each stall. However, nothing took our fancy and we weren’t too fond of the idea of having to eat our food in the freezing cold. As we were on Grey Street we decided to try Las Iguanas. It’s a Latin inspired bar that hasn’t been open particularly long. It’s really funky inside, especially the bar area.
We started off with a glass of their ‘Caribbean Rum Punch’ (Havana Club Especial, Havana Club 7, crème d’abricot, lime and pineapple juices, sugar, almond syrup and angostura bitters). It was SO good! I’m a massive fan of rum punch! We decided to accompany our punch with some tapas. They do an offer of 3 tapas dishes for £13.50. We ordered Lamb Empanada, which consisted of two crispy pasties filled with slow-braised lamb rubbed in smoky chilli and came served with spicy cranberry salsa. We also ordered Pato Taquito, which consisted of shreds of roast duck and caramelised onion rolled in a flour tortilla and came served with a sticky chilli jam. We were torn on what to choose as our third dish but decided on the Coconut Chicken, which consisted of crispy chicken, sweetly sealed in coconut and chilli crumb and came served with a sweet mango peri-peri. All three dishes were delicious. Tegan’s favourite was the lamb, the cranberry salsa was amazing, it had a nice little tang to it. I really liked the coconut chicken, the mango peri-peri had a little kick to it and the coconut wasn’t too strong. The portion size was larger than what I would usually expect for tapas. They would be ideal dishes to accompany a cheeky cocktail in the bar one afternoon or evening.
For main, Tegan chose The Extraordinary Xinxim from under the Brazil heading on the menu. It consisted of lime chicken in a crayfish and peanut sauce and came served with rice, fine green beans, toasted coconut farofa and sweet plantains. I had a taste of it and it was scrumptious. I was tempted to order it myself but I wasn’t sure how well chicken, crayfish and peanut sauce would go together, but it really worked. The sauce was creamy but light and the chicken was so succulent. I’d never tasted plantains before but I liked them and they complemented the dish extremely well. I chose the chicken fajitas. Not very original I know, but I hadn’t had fajitas in ages and I just really fancied them. The chicken had been blended with coriander, lime, paprika, cumin, onions and peppers. It came served with chunky guacamole, soured cream, jalapeños, home-made salsa, cheese and soft wheat tortillas. The fajita mix came served in a sizzling hot pan and I was pleased to see there was plenty of chicken. The accompaniments came served in little bowls on a board which I liked. The guacamole and salsa were really tasty. My one criticism was that the tortillas were too small.
We ordered cocktails to accompany our mains. We both ordered a ‘Cool Cuban’ (Havana Club Especial rum, Sauvignon Blanc, mint, elderflower, apple and lemon juices and topped with soda). It was very drinkable. It came served in a wine glass over crushed ice and was finished off with a sprig of mint and a slice of apple.
I was really impressed with Las Iguanas. The food was great and so was the service. I shall definitely be returning there soon for another ‘Cool Cuban’ and some more tapas.
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