Toro--15th street and 11th avenue

Toro is the new hot spot for tapas in the city!  The interior is really grand and stretches down half the block.  There are huge chandeliers hanging down from the ceiling and a long, marble bar with wines and drinks stacked up on the wall.  And, the place is crowded!  People moving, drinking, talking and eating everywhere.  This place is new, and it's already doing extremely well.  Since Toro was so crowded, we sat down at the bar to eat.  We started by getting drinks at the bar, and I ordered a special non-alchoholic drink.  The bartender mixed me a orange seltzer concoction with smoke added at the end.  It was very tangy but sweet.  We ended up ordering seven different tapas, all which were astoundingly good.  First we had the raw tuna ceviche with cucumbers.  The tuna tasted very fresh, crunchy cucumbers were a good texture.  It was dressed in a light, spicy dressing.  Then we had the monkfish cheek, which is the cheek of a monkfish. (duh)  It was pretty tender but also a bit chewy, and there was a nice flakiness.  It was also a big piece, so the fish must be a pretty decent size.  After that, we ordered the grilled octopus, which was probably the best of the night.  I've never had a more tender octopus in my life, and it was extremely spicy and smoky-- my mouth was on fire!  We also had a crispy pork belly, a really tender red shrimp with head, legs and all; and sweet and salty razor clams.  Delicious meal.

I rate Toro 5 pineapples.  Need to come back to taste the rest of the menu!

-till next time, tdg