Bocado's tapas are tasteful treasures.

Byline: Christine R. Thompson

The perfect name for a tapas restaurant is "bocado." It means "mouthful." Imagine one excellent mouthful after another as the sample-size dishes are brought to the table.

Bocado offers excellent food and top-notch service in a modern, comfortable setting. The low, beige, deep-cushioned chairs feature red bolsters at just the right height for lower back support. The line drawings on the wall are simple yet sophisticated.

We'll get to the food in a minute. What I want to tell you about first is our waiter, Jeff Crumble. From the moment he came to introduce himself and the menu, we were impressed by his friendly manner and knowledge of the food and wine. He seemed to enjoy his job as he explained the tapas tradition, offering many small plates to be sampled and shared among diners. Throughout the evening he was attentive to details - pacing the courses and cleaning crumbs from the table when needed. His customer service made the evening enjoyable.

The tapas menu offers several sections from which you can order a la carte as well as a section labeled the "Bocado Experience," a prix fixe menu with options for two to eight diners. $75 for two includes two selections from charcuteria y queso (meat and cheese), five tapas (an extensive selection of hot and cold appetizers), one from the platos para dos, entrees for two, and one dessert. This structured approach offers a way to sample many items from the menu.

While we looked over the menu, we munched on a few grissini served with a garlicky roasted red pepper hummus with a slightly rough texture, not over-pureed as so many of the commercial varieties are. On Crumble's recommendation we started with the fried goat cheese and smoked duck breast from the meat and cheese section. The cheese, rolled in fresh breadcrumbs, was crisp golden on the outside, soft and melting inside. Drizzled with a bit of honey, it was mild, tangy and sweet at the same time. I liked it especially for the contrast of textures and flavors. The very thin slices of duck breast, accented by balsamic syrup, were tender and quite smoky.

We ordered two cold tapas that came to the table at the same time. First, a salad of field greens with chick peas, onions and roasted peppers, topped with shavings of Manchego cheese and lightly coated with a Caesar vinaigrette. We liked the salad so much that we made a similar one for family and friends for Easter. The second was seared raw tuna with a chili avocado sauce on top and a dab of lemon basil cream on the side. It was garnished with crisscross sweet potato chips. Like the other dishes, it was beautifully presented and delicious.

From the hot appetizer selections, we chose grilled asparagus wrapped in a bit of Serrano ham and served with a roasted garlic aioli. The full-flavored, salty ham and the aioli were the perfect accents to this spring vegetable. Piquillo rellenos is a roasted pepper stuffed with garbanzos, goat cheese and tasso and sauced with a grilled onion cream.

I saved the best for last. My favorite dish at Bocado was the sauteed littlenecks and chorizo, served in a tomato-saffron broth that was rich and satisfying. I could easily make a meal out of two orders of this dish along with a salad and crusty bread for dipping.

By the time the entree arrived, we were almost too full to eat it. The grilled lamb leg, seasoned with rosemary and garlic, was served with an artichoke, sun-dried tomato and ripe olive salsa. The sliced lamb, exactly medium rare as ordered, arrived with a mound of roasted baby potatoes on the side. There was nothing unusual about this traditional preparation, but it was executed very well. I took home at least half of this dish in order to leave room for dessert.

Bocado offers an extensive selection of Spanish wines and, in a practice I've seen at a few restaurants in the last few years, a selection of "wine flights," a sampler of three wines (2-ounce pours) to try side by side. The rioja-new-to-old-world-flight ($11.50) included three rioja wines: a young 2005 Cortijo III Tinto that was light and fruity, a 2000 Faustino V Riserva, with more body and complexity than the first, and a 1996 Fautino I Gran Riserva, with an aged smoothness and deeper spice undertone.

The menu for two lists churros with chocolate sauce, but I was more interested in the flan, and Jeff willingly handled the substitution. The menu describes it as a pomegranate orange custard with fresh fruit. I didn't taste the pomegranate, but the orange flavor was bright and sweet. The texture was more like a very light cheesecake than a custard. In spite of my quibble about the texture, it was a delicious way to end our feast at Bocado.

The total for our evening at Bocado came to $94.50, including the meal itself (seven tapas selections, an entree for two, and dessert) as well as wine and coffee. It was definitely worth the money.

On the night we visited, Michael DesRosiers, one of the owners of Niche Hospitality Group, circulated through the dining room, talking to patrons and checking to see if everyone had what they needed. Stopping at our table, he mentioned that Bocado had been open a little more than a year. He was clearly and rightfully proud of the food and service.

Christine E. Thompson, a former chef and caterer, is the associate dean of the School of Arts & Sciences at Johnson & Wales University in Providence.

Bocado Tapas Wine Bar

82 Winter St., Worcester

www.bocadotapasbar.com

* * * *

Phone: [phone]

Hours: 4:30 to 10 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays, 4:30 to 11 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 4:30 to 9 p.m. Sundays

Reservations: Strongly suggested

Parking: Valet available plus street and lot parking

Credit Cards: MasterCard, Visa, American Express, Discover

Prices: Expensive, tapas $4-$10, entrees $24 to $32

Pluses: Many excellent tapas; Best dish: clams with chorizo

Minuses: Texture of the flan

About the Stars

Perfection: * * * *

Very Good: * * *

Good: * *

Below Par: *

Serious Flaws: No stars

Etc. restaurant reviews are the opinions of reviewers based upon at least one visit to the restaurant. The reviewer is accompanied by at least one companion. Recommendations from readers about restaurants they would like to have reviewed are welcome.