How Oloroso Celebrates Modern-Day Tapas, in Six Dishes

1. Boquerones

“We source boquerones from Julius Silvert because they’re generally larger and plumper and have the least fishy flavor,” says Peabody. “I don’t like anchovies, but I will eat a plate of boquerones.”

Oloroso’s version of the traditional Spanish snack is served simply with salsa verde, guindilla peppers, and olives. The traditional gilda garnishes are made from scratch. Salsa verde begins with a parsley oil that is pureed, fried in olive oil, then strained to achieve an intensely herby flavor. The guindilla peppers add acidity and heat to help cut through the fatty fish. Peabody says nearly everyone orders the boquerones as a starter, along with some housemade sourdough bread to soak up all the flavors on the plate. “They basically sell themselves,” he says.

2. Buñuelos de Bacalao

These salted cod and potato fritters first debuted on Oloroso’s menu in 2020. The recipe started with chef Wentz making mashed potatoes and folding salted cod into them. Peabody then tweaked that idea to spotlight the cod more and make it into a lighter, airy, doughnut-style fritter.

“We make a churro base and fold in potatoes and cod,” says Peabody, who uses Idaho potatoes (the starch content is perfect for this dish, he notes) and cod from Samuels Seafood that gets salted and poached in milk in-house to control the fish’s salt content. Each order has three salt cod fritters, dolloped with citrus aioli to finish. Pro tip: Diners can also add single pieces to an order, a great option for larger groups to share.

3. Gambas al Ajillo

This “spicy shrimp scampi” dish is Wentz’s take on the original Spanish dish made with garlic, oil, chile, and shrimp. Oloroso’s version adds lots of garlic, shallots, and chile flakes, and gives the shrimp a hard sear on the grill.

“It has to be very fragrant and aromatic,” says Peabody. A sauce made from white wine and butter gets poured in with the shrimp, then chickpeas, sliced cherry peppers, and migas (Spanish croutons torn from Oloroso’s day-old sourdough) are tossed in to soak up the sauce. The result is like a shrimp stew that’s perfect to eat on a cold-weather day.

4. Charred Octopus

This octopus dish is full of surprises. At first glance, you might see tentacles resembling charred purple carrots on the plate. That deep hue comes from poaching Regalis’ Spanish octopus for over an hour in sangria (red wine, orange juice, and pomegranate juice) and giving them a hard char inside the wood grill.

“We’re converting people, one octopus tentacle at a time,” Peabody jokes, as he finds some guests enjoy the octopus texture despite their initial hesitancy.

Previously, the octopus was accompanied by a “potato hummus” that played on skordalia, a Greek garlic-and-potato dip that eats like a lighter version of mashed potatoes and gets brightened up with lemon. In its current form, however, Moorish influences show up in the form of a chickpeas hummus made with cumin, coriander, fennel relish, and black olive tapenade, plus some silent heat from Mombasa chile (an African cayenne pepper).

5. Bistec a la Parrilla

“Essentially, this dish was inspired by sizzling fajitas,” says Peabody, who wanted to mimic the classic Mexican showstopper in a very straightforward Spanish way with roasted peppers, green onions, shishitos, and red onions.

A five-ounce New York strip steak is grilled and tossed with a steak sauce of salsa verde, Calabrian chiles, more olive oil, and lemon juice. A romesco sauce of roasted red peppers and almonds is smeared on the plate before the steak gets thinly sliced, piled high, and served with charred bell peppers, red onions, scallions, chunks of shishitos, and covered in paprika.

“Strip is the perfect cut of meat — not too lean, not too fatty; it’s my favorite steak to eat,” says Peabody. For him, this bistec is a sleeper hit.

6.   Paella Oloroso

“Texture is everything” for Peabody and Wentz, and paellas are the star entree to showcase plump rice and the highly coveted crispy socarrat on the bottom. At Oloroso, each paella (shellfish, vegetarian, and chicken) is made with Calasparra rice, prized by Peabody for its consistency in quality, taste, value, and absorbency. The rice is cooked in nearly 10-minute intervals: Seven minutes on high heat, seven minutes on medium heat, and then cooked slowly on low heat before the rice is covered to steam like a tagine. The seafood paella comes with shrimp, mussels, clams, chicken, chorizo, tomato-shellfish broth, and saffron.

“I think that we do a phenomenal job making paella here, based on the Spaniards who come in and talk about how great the socarrat was,” adds Peabody.

Better yet? Single-portion paellas are also available upon request, so everyone can enjoy this classic Spanish dish.

Oloroso is open for dinner Tuesdays through Sundays and offers both indoor and outdoor dining (weather permitting).