| Address | 7271 Woodmont Ave., Bethesda, MD 20814 |
|---|---|
| Phone | (301) 913-0003 |
| Fax | (301) 913-9137 |
I went with a large group. The food was good, but came out sporatically so it was confusing with our large group. And with everyone ordering for themselves and then sharing, it turned out to be quite an expensive meal. Next time I won't go with such a large group.
Came here with my family (we're a bunch of foodies) for a special occasion. I love tapas, especially at Jaleo, because the meal is part dinner and part entertainment. Jaleo's selection is great -- don't miss the endive and goat cheese salad or the cod fritters.
This is a fun place to go with friends.
Must have is a white Sangrilla not on the menu but they wil bring it if you ask for it, champagne and strawberrys. Try stopping at one glass or pitcher.
The octopus with ink is great.
Order about 3 tapas per person and save room for dessert. Two per person if not too hungry. Share with your friends.
The desserts are sinful and should be banned, they make other restaurants serve Entenmanns Apple pie and call it a day.
If you are lucky there might be a flamenco dance on the night you are there.
The prices are on the higher side for Tapas but then the service is fast and efficient, plus knowledgable wait staff make you forget. We spend $46 per person including tax and tip, not to bad considering we get the better of two pitchers of the White sangrilla.
Jaleo's tapas make for a fun brunch and the white sangria is dangerously delicious!
Overpriced. Very loud. Mediocre bar. Very overpriced drinks. Limited protein for vegetarians. Food quality erratic, especially texture (overcooked). Scallops decent but not great.
I'm just a sucker for tapas. This latest trip we ordered what we always order, the chorizo over mashed potatoes, and a new dish, this time the stuffed quail. What a lovely little snack. Nice service at the bar, and serves food till midnight, which is the wee hours for Bethesda.
The lamb chops were done in a barbecue sauce that I found too sweet for them; special frisse salad with tuna and anchovies was excellent. Service was intrusive yet unhelpful--I was asked repeatedly if I was doing all right, yet I had to beg for refills of tea.
There is stuff on the menu I ordered that made me sick but that was my fault. This is not a place to be adventurous unless you have very worldly food experiences. Some of the tapas are quite exotic. Stick with what you know and you'll be fine.
The thing to note about Jaleo is that when it's not crowded (i.e. during your typical dinner time) the restaurant is a pure joy. The wait is short, your order doesn't feel rushed and you can have time to enjoy your tapas. The restaurant itself is fun with the decor being bright but not garish with festive but not overpowering music.
For those of you who've never had tapas before (I'm guessing those who are new to the DC area or have been hiding since the trend of tapas seems to be spreading) then you should know what you're getting yourself into. Tapas are small dishes (think about the serving size of an appetizer) and normally people who go to Jaleo order 2-3/person and share the dishes. Although there are "main" dishes you can eat there, the reason to go is for the tapas. The tapas selection are divided up into three types (hot, cold, and seasonal) with options for everyone from vegans to carnivores. Drinks are okay, but if you're in the mood for sangria I'd recomment the red over the white as the latter is a bit too sweet (even if you normally like white wine you still might find it too overpowering).
Overall it was a great experience, and I'd definitely recommend it.
Call me old fashioned, too stodgy, or maybe I'm just too damn American, but I like my appetizers at the beginning of the meal and a MEAL for my entree. I've been to the downtown Jaleo prior to shows at the Shakespeare and always left feeling hungry. And even though Jaleo as a social setting certainly works to feed your eyes, it ignores the taste buds.
This time we went for lunch to the Bethesda location and as I marveled at the decor of the newer of the two sister restaurants, our table received some small bowls of olives, cornichons, and pickled onions. Again, visually stimulating, but I think restaurants have embraced olives (and olive oil) a little too readily and earnestly.
The "hook" of Jaleo is tapas, tiny little plates of appetite stimulants supposedly nibbled while sipping wine, but it's not lunch. I was happy to see the back of the menu had some sandwiches to choose from, but my sandwich of fried chicken stuffed with cheese and ham tasted incredibly bland despite the red pepper mayo. Both my coworker and I tried to wake it up with a squeeze of lemon. Another lunchmate's gazpacho came to the table looking the color and consistency of Campbell's cream of tomato with none of the chunky fresh veggie goodness of the gazpacho I'm used to seeing. Other tapas ordered that got resounding reviews of "it's ok" included: conch fritters, sauteed spinach with apples, and a Spanish version of mushroom risotto.
Since it was a birthday, we splurged for the chocolate hazelnut mousse which came as a respectably-sized tower of cake interspersed with layers of mousse and cream. Shared amongst five women it was inhaled.
And as we left, the birthday girl apologized profusely for the bill.
Most of the time, eating tapas in Spain doesn’t involve a menu and waitstaff. There are no cloth napkins nor an extensive wine list. In a few places, there may be a menu on the wall behind the bar, if the tapas are made to order. Most of the time they aren’t. Tapas are for snacks, things to eat with a glass of wine or a beer. You can easily make a meal of them but that’s not their design, and most people don’t. Tapas, along with pinchos (even smaller snacks) are usually made in large batches and set out on the bar, or on a counter. Point to what you want and they’ll scoop up an appetizer-sized portion for you. Finish it, and move on.
That said, I’ve never seen a tapas restaurant in the U.S. that wasn’t designed for dining, not snacking. They take themselves seriously as a restaurant, and expect you to behave accordingly. Jaleo is no exception. As with any American tapas place, the waiter or waitress will ask you if you’ve been there before, and if you say no, they’ll launch into an explanation of the whole concept: Tapas are small dishes. We recommend three per person. Here are the tapas specials tonight (each costing at least seven dollars) and here’s the featured wine (at least thirty). If you already know what tapas are, stop them.
In general, appetizers are the worst value on a restaurant menu. You don’t get as much bang for the buck as you do with entrées. Eating tapas is essentially a meal made of appetizers. Choose carefully.
Jaleo has two locations, one downtown at 480 Seventh Street, a few blocks south of Chinatown, and one on Woodmont Avenue, in Bethesda’s crowded restaurant row. Both take advantage of their corner location to show you the street scene. In Bethesda you can eat on the sidewalk, and the large windows are thrown open in warm weather; the seemingly spacious dining room is an alternative to the somewhat cramped-feeling downtown location. Parking is a problem at both locations but you’re an intelligent person; you’ll figure something out.
Their seafood-based tapas were quite good, but the others we ordered were just average. Squid marinated in their own ink, served with a small side of rice, were tender and delicious, the thickened sauce conveying the ink flavor very well. Bacalao, a very canonical dish of salted cod in a tomato, pepper, and onion sauce, was not quite tender enough, but still rather enjoyable. A Moorish-inspired chickpea and spinach salad with heavy shades of cumin was likable enough, but won’t inspire passion. Likewise the mushrooms cooked in parsley and garlic, another tapas staple for any place and my favorite snack when I was in Spain, went down well here but wasn’t anything special, though the sauce made a good dip for the excellent bread that is served. On another occasion, we limited ourselves to the olive and cheese selection, innocent enough but perked up by the addition of small pickled pearl onions.
The biggest disappointment was the tortilla, which refers to a slow-cooked egg and potato pie, similar to an Italian frittata. In Spain, large tortillas of different flavors sit on counters in front of you, waiting to be sliced and served. They are usually topped by some sauce, or perhaps with mayonnaise and cheese, or shredded lettuce. Jaleo’s tortilla was a quarter slice from a very small round, with no sauce or additional flavor at all. Not worth $4.25.
There are larger entrees on the menu that few seem to order, although the table next to us seemed to be eating what looked like ribs. There is grilled chicken, duck leg comfit, and a seafood dish, each costing $16 to $17. As is usual with tapas places, a few types of paella are on the menu. They cost $30-$40 but feed 2-4 people. The first choice is strange, a “traditional paella of lobster and chicken”. Traditional paella in Spain may include snails and rabbit, but never lobster; it’s a silly idea and I wouldn’t order it. Be prepared to wait for your paella; they take time.
The wine selection as well left us feeling as if we paid too much for too little. A bottle of Logroño Crianza, which in La Rioja region is a step above the common “tinto” table red, and a good safe choice at any bar, tasted weak-bodied and not up to its task. After that letdown, we switched to a reasonably-priced cava sparkling wine, of which Jaleo has a handful. Spain makes delicious sparkling wines and they’re often a bargain.
Service was thorough and prompt, though one irritating practice that happened at both locations was that our server (and the others) kept pouring the wine for us, refilling our glasses every time they went by, thus encouraging us to drink faster than we would have. Though some may consider this a service, we found it intrusive.
The tapas selections average five or six dollars, with some of the higher end meat and seafood choices moving into the seven or eight dollars range. A satisfying meal takes at least three and perhaps four choices per person. You won't be stuffed; ask for more bread if you need it, perhaps even a refill of the tiny olive dish that comes standard. The fun part about a tapas meal is the wide variety you can have, and that’s worth something. They are many vegetarian choices. Consider treating this restaurant as the Spanish do: getting one or two tapas, a glass of wine, and then move on to someplace else for a real dinner.
I have been to both the DC and Bethesda Jaleo resturaunts before and never been impressed--this time was differnet. The endive salad was excellent as were the mussels. Perfect for large groups, or , as in this case meeting up with an old friend.
This was our first visit to Jaleo. Suffice it to say we will be going back.
The food was oustanding, with a nice variety of traditional tapas and daring newcomers.
Despite dropping in on a busy Saturday night with a large party, we were seated in good time and enjoyed good service.
Jaleo is a tapas restaurant and bar. Tapas means "small plates" but at an affordable price. With most dishes ranging in price from $5.95 to $7.95, you can order 2-3 tapas without breaking the bank. The variety is from cold to hot tapas, vegans to serious meat eaters. The complimenary bread and olives are a great compliment to the meal. Even if you aren't in the mood for dinner, the bar offers a great happy hour. A definite must for any occasion...or no occasion at all.
