Pizarro | Bermondsey Street

Combine NYC’s Lower East Side – the exposed brickwork, the intimate glow emanating from industrial light fittings, the dark wood and the naked concrete – with the warm buzz of large communal tables, sharing plates and the best in seasonal Spanish fare.

El resultado: Pizarro.

Launched by the team behind perennially jam-packed tapas bar José, Pizarro shares its policy of accepting no reservations.

Which means that you need a battering ram to get in. 

Should you forget to take one along then a positive mental attitude, a hard head and a short run up will probably do the trick.

The bar and open kitchen are found behind a long L-shaped, white marble counter set atop some rather attractive Spanish-flavoured tiling.  There you can perch on a stool to combine your meal with front row tickets to a cooking lesson from Team José. 

Should you prefer a table, there are lots of those too.

In contrast to the nibbly tapas served at José, Pizarro serves real starters like quail in romesco sauce and beetroot-cured salmon dripping in egg yolk, plus mains like salt cod and the “Secreto Iberico” served with olive oil mash and piquillo pepper.

While tapas is out, its sociable spirit remains within shared bar space, two large communal dining tables and a (soon to be introduced) selection of sharing plates: perfect for those vagrants who enjoy pinching food from their friends. 

There’s also no service charge.  At the end of your meal – and this is a coup - you just need to tip your waiter whatever amount you feel they deserve.

Old School.

Pizarro on Bermondsey Street - Worth a Trip.