Bar Carrera

As any of my regular readers (if I have any?) may have figured out, I have been not eating out that much lately.  (Hey, Cathy might even be proud!  Was that too corny?…)  Anyway, life changes, time marches on, etc. and so forth, so with some major upcoming changes in my life, well, a lot’s going on and it’s made me pretty anti-social, uninterested in going out, more interested in staring at the walls of my Manhattan apartment… or absorb myself in mindless Wii game after mindless Wii game.  I’m digressing. 

It was a welcome change, therefore, last Friday when a friend suggested walking around the Village and perhaps catching a movie.  I admit I was more than bleh about the idea, but knowing that it was in my best interest or I’d spend yet another Friday night moping around and eating tons of stuff I shouldn’t even keep in my freezer, I got off my ass and headed over.  The funny thing here is that I got confused and we wound up walking over to 2nd Avenue, a bit further northeast than I normally venture (I hang out at St. Mark’s, but rarely go above 8th and 2nd…) which was an excellent mistake; lo & behold, I noticed Bar Carrera, a Spanish wine bar, to start the night off right. 

I’d first been to Bar Carrera a few months prior, when a girlfriend and I were starting off a drunken weekend alcohol crawl.  We’d wandered in, and though we were full from dinner, we’d sat down at the end of the bar to enjoy a few drinks.  Neither of us had really liked the strawberry sangria, finding the nutmeg to be a bit much, but we’d greedily watched as the diners around us ate pinxtos tapas, a specific type of tapas from the Basque region.  A year earlier, she and I had gone to Spain with a few other girlfriends, and we were eyeing the legs of jamon serrano– which we’d eaten every morning in Spain- eagerly as the server sliced pieces off to feed people. 

Before I go on, though, I must say, I have been stupid, stupid, stupid for never really walking along 2nd Avenue above 8th and below 14th.  There are a ton of places there that are worth going to.  I’ve BEEN there, I just rarely wander around up there.  For example, Pangea and Momofuku Ssam Bar are both less than a block away from Bar Carrera, and right next to Carrera is its sister wine bar, Bar Veloce – an Italian wine bar (which is probably next on my list). 

I should also mention that the above picture was taken from the very last seats of the bar; there is no kitchen.  Bar Veloce and Bar Carrera are both long, narrow spaces with a simple, long bar and a food preparation area behind the bar, but no actual kitchen… which doesn’t affect the quality of the menu at all, in my opinion.  There’s a deep fryer, an electric range, a microwave, and a toaster oven. 

And now, without further ado, I present… the food!

Patatas bravas – deep fried little nuggets of potatoes, sprinkled with a heavy hand of salt and freshly ground black pepper, giving it a nice little kick.  The real beauty of this dish had to be the paprika aoili served alongside- I really liked this sauce and spread it liberally on a few other items as well.  Yum.  $3.50

Plate of jamon serrano.  I wasn’t disappointed by the quantity but rather how thickly sliced it was; I much prefer it very thinly sliced and then heated gently… but so, so good.  This plate cost $9 and Fresh Direct charges $22.99 a lb., so I felt it was a decent value. 

baguette – fairly standard, but truly authentic bread (at least, it looks exactly like what they served in Spain).  olive oil accompanying.  $1.50

tiger shrimp & chorizo – the sausage was nowhere near as spicy as the description led me to believe it would be, but overall the flavors melded nicely.  I really liked the veggie on top but wasn’t sure what it was.  I also didn’t think this dish was worth the $8 price tag.

mixed cheese & meat platter – I really didn’t like two of the three cheeses; way too goaty for me.  However, more serrano ham!  A yummy natural “fruit roll up” type of spread (above the cheese), and I discovered I like green olives alright (I hate black olives).  Yumm!  This came with another piece of bread, which I spread generously with the leftover paprika aoili and ate with meat + cheese.  So good.  $13.50

Hands down, my favorite dish of the night… smoked salmon on top of mascarpone spread on a mini brioche, topped with caviar and drizzled with honey.  Buttery soft, sweet and salty at the same time, just absolutely delicious. 

Yvo says: Our total bill came out to $96, which included 5 glasses of wine (the bartender was very helpful since we weren’t too familiar with the Basque region of wines).  Not too bad, I wasn’t stuffed at the end but I also wasn’t hungry to begin with.  It was exactly right for a nice light meal; perfect for a first date, for those of you so inclined.  The food was yummy, and the free pinball in the back is a fun way to kill time while you’re waiting for your food.
highly recommended