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Friday night, the boy and I were seeing a show at Johnny Brenda's, and we decided that, rather than the usual food downstairs, we'd branch out and explore the neighborhood. A little bit of internet searching led him to Isla Ibiza, about five blocks down Girard from our final destination for the evening.
We'd made reservations, but apparently didn't need them, as the restaurant was almost completely empty. Pity, too, because, as I would find out, this was to be a great meal.
After evaluating our menu choices and deciding against beef, my gentleman friend and I chose to order a pitcher of white sangria to accompany our meal. It was excellent: neither too sweet nor too strong-tasting, but still strong enough that we could feel its effects by the time the bread basket (fresh-baked date bread with sweet, homemade almond-date butter!) arrived at our table. After the bread arrived, we placed our order: the scallop tapas and Zarzuela entree off the menu for me, and a special asado tapas dish and the Pollo Vasco entree for him.
My scallops were perfectly cooked in a chorizo butter that, in addition to complimenting the scallops, made for excellent dipping for the rest of the bread in the bread basket. My companion's asado was absolutely delicious, although it had too many onions for my taste. My Zarzuela, a combination of seafood in a flavorful tomato broth, was a delightful combination of textures, and the Pollo Vasco was surprisingly moist for white meat, and just spicy enough, without being overpowering. Both dishes were served with rice: the Zarzuela with a more traditional Spanish rice-and-peas dish, and the Pollo Vasco with a wonderful risotto-like creamy Idiazabal rice.
Unfortunately for us, our dessert didn't measure up to the rest of the meal. We were both full but craving something sweet, so we decided to split a creme brulee. Ours was thick and over-cooked: the egg yolks in the custard had begun to congeal, giving the whole thing the texture, if not exactly the taste, of sugary scrambled eggs with an insufficiently satisfying crust to "crack" on top.
All told, go to Isla Ibiza. Go quickly. The atmosphere is delightful, there's sometimes live music (and even when there isn't, they're playing great salsa music over the sound system), and the prices are more than reasonable. Just don't order the creme brulee.
Isla Ibiza Restaurant & Bar
1176 North Third Street (at Girard Avenue)
Phone: 215-923-8500
Fax: 215-923-8540
E-mail: isla.ibiza@yahoo.com
Visa and Mastercard accepted
Image via Isla Ibiza.
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Isla Ibiza is wonderful! There is some duck breast tapas dish that we've had twice. It is out of this world. They also do $5 tapas/cheaper sangria for happy hour 5-7 and 10-12 on weeknights (and weekends?)- but only at the bar.
The onions were only undercooked if you're someone who doesn't like raw onions in the first place. I found they added a great sweetness to the asado. (Not to mention whatever marinade was on the asado - it tasted like worcestershire sauce and a little brown sugar, with possibly some garlic and black pepper. I could be wrong on the ingredients, but that's what I remember it tasting like.
The scallops were cooked perfectly, but the chorizo butter lacked the kick I was hoping for.
Jill's Zarzuela was excellent, as was my Pollo Vasco. I only had a couple bites of her dish, but my chicken was perfect. I'm someone who generally doesn't order chicken at any restaurant but because of what I'd eaten in my previous couple meals, I wanted to err towards the lighter side. The chicken packed plenty of flavor for a light dish, and the risotto was impeccable.
The "creme brulee" was a MAJOR disappointment. It had the texture of flan. But we didn't order flan. We ordered creme brulee. For me, it put a bit of a damper on the whole meal. So if anyone can suggest a place near Isla Ibiza to do dessert after having a main dinner there, we might have a perfect date night.