Member Article

La Casita takes on Boston Spa

Spanish tapas bar, La Casita, which launched in Ilkley last year, is set to open a second venue in Boston Spa at the beginning of August.

Work is already underway to completely overhaul the 1,000 square foot, two storey high street site which was previously occupied by the Fish House restaurant. Celebrating many of the premises’ original architectural features, the central Boston Spa venue is being renovated in a sympathetically Spanish style to feature a charcuterie bar serving drinks and light tapas plates as well as a 30 cover tapas restaurant. During warmer months, a 20 cover secluded outside courtyard will all also provide additional drinking and dining space.

La Casita’s co-owners, Simon Miller, Oliver Renton and Ben Riley, who are all local to the area, were keen to build on the strong reception La Casita received in its first year in Ilkley by opening a sister site: “The success of La Casita Ilkley surpassed our expectations so we felt the time was right to consider expansion,” said Simon.

“The site at Boston Spa fit our criteria not only in terms of location and demographic but the building lends itself perfectly to the Spanish ‘little house’ look and feel that La Casita is inspired by.”

The La Casita concept A central feature of La Casita Boston Spa will be its first floor bar which will serve a range of Spanish craft beers and wines from around the world, alongside cavas, sherries and sangria. Each drink has been chosen to pair perfectly with specially-imported hams, charcuterie and cheeses, sourced from the Badajoz region of south west Spain, which are available as drinks accompaniments or to enjoy alongside larger tapas dishes.

In the restaurant, La Casita will offer an extensive mix of classic and modern tapas plates including star dishes such as poached salt cod with spiced lentils, soft shell crab with saffron and garlic, chorizo cooked in red wine and roasted padrón peppers.

Oliver added: “We want La Casita to be a relaxed local bar where the very best hispanic food and drink is celebrated. We’re very lucky to be moving in to this incredibly characterful building and we can’t wait to welcome customers for summertime drinks and tapas.”

Culinary kudos The La Casita kitchen will run under the direction of Simon who brings with him a track record at some of Yorkshire and London’s top restaurants, including head chef positions at the Fleece in Otley and Piazza by Anthony in Leeds. Simon was also a chef at Ilkley’s Michelin-starred The Box Tree from 2009 to 2011, a position preceded by chef de partie roles at Marco, Marco Pierre White’s restaurant in London, and the Noem Arch Design Hotel in the Czech Republic. Simon’s talent was also noted when he became a quarter finalist on BBC2’s MasterChef: the Professionals in 2012.

Upon launching, La Casita Boston Spa will be open for drinks and tapas seven days a week, both at lunch time and in the evenings. In addition, its courtyard and inside dining areas will all available to hire for private functions.

For further information and to follow the latest news, follow La Casita Boston Spa on Twitter @LC_BostonSpa. While a dedicated website is under construction, customers can visit www.lacasitailkley.co.uk to view current menus and to make contact with the team.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Katy Barraclough .