Iberia Restaurant

Doesn't Recommend

bayareafoodcritic

Joined 7 years ago

This place is a disaster - don't waste your time and money. Having good memories of this restaurant in it's original location in Portola Valley I was looking forward to a similar experience in their new location - what a disapointment !

The single bartender spent most of the evening trying to figure out how to use the till ignoring the multitude of thirsty customers lining the bar. Our order of a selection of hot Tapas took more than 40 minutes to arrive and were cold when they finally appeared. To add insult to injury this restaurant has a policy of charging a 19% service charge which, I imagine, was implemented when their appalling service resulted in no gratuities being left by the customers.

Doesn't Recommend

lovef

Joined 9 years ago

I had high expectations and was let down...... A friend from work recommended Iberia as an inexpensive tapas restaurant. Based on the fact the the person giving me the recommendation was younger than me, I was expecting a restaurant like Cascals (Mountain View). On a whim I took my Fiancee there on a Friday night. To my surprise it is was not trendy but more traditional Spanish restaurant. It appeared to cater to an older crowd. We sat in the outdoor area which is a larger space covered completely by a very large tree. Note that the restaurant is near the Menlo Park train station and you will hear the trains rumbling through (not very romantic). The menu was limited and all the dishes were traditional Spanish dishes. Did not see any tapas on the menu so I was confused since other reviewers and my friend said they enjoyed inexpensive tapas at this restaurant. We had a pan seared shrimp appetizer, my fiancee had the trout and I had dish with chicken and figs. On the whole the food was not that great. It all tasted very bland. Neither of us were satisfied. The service reminded my experience in Europe where dinner out is the entire evening and they take their time in serving you. In US standards the service was very slow. We usually like having desert but due to the fact that we really were not enjoying ourselves we requested check before we were done with our meals. Also the meal was expensive and not worth it. I dont mind paying for a good meal but the point here is that the food was not worth the price. The positive side is that the wait staff was extremely friendly. Based on this experience we will never go to Iberia again because its just not our style of restaurant.

Recommends

brianmcphail

Joined 8 years ago

Best Restaurant in Palo Alto / Menlo Park. Eaten here 5-7 times, at their deli 20 times. I think it's the BEST restaurant in the area. Offers several genuine but different Iberian dining experiences, all high quality, for different moods.

Bar - Booths, fireplace, great selection of spirits, atrium wine cellar. Intimateplace to share a drink, and get a bite (tapas).

Dining Room - Formal ambiance, hand carved chairs, layers of table linens, professional waiters, excellent Iberian cuisine and wines. Educated, affluent crowd.

Terrace - Romantically illuminated under an Oak tree, wonderful on a warm evening.

Private Dining Room - oak table seats 12-14, fireplace, tapestry chairs - countryish, elegant.

Iberia is a genuine Iberian restaurant. They don't serve the BAR FOOD in the DINING ROOM. The waiters are PROFESSIONALs not local drop-outs who interrupt with smarmy chatter. It's an rld oasis in Silicon Valley. Try it if you're looking for the real thing.

Recommends

beebo

Joined 8 years ago

Unique Tapas, martinis and ambience. We found this little place tucked away on a side street and entered. The bar is superbly decorated. Excellent lighting (not too bright/dim) comfortable seats, 20 ft ceilings with the "wine cellar" above, encased in hand carved Spanish stone and wood. Tapas menu is diverse, long, and cheap. $2.25 plates are many. We ordered martinis, 4 plates each and dessert and it came to under $20. Outdoor dining too, under giant oak trees on romantic patio.

Doesn't Recommend

wacziarg

Joined 10 years ago

The Worst Restaurant in the Bay Area?. This is a terrible restaurant. The food is wayoverpriced. The service is so rude I don't know where to start. We had to beg so the maitred would bring my 8 months pregnant wife a cushion - they seated her on a wooden bench. One of our friends ordered a dish which never came. Upon complaining, they said they had dropped his soup in the kitchen and had to make a new one, but ran out of the exact ingredients so were going to make a "custom" soup. My friend asked to cancel the soup and to order another, but they said they would have to charge us for the original order anyway!

Upon exiting the MaitreD approached my friend and said "I hope you understand that you are no longer welcome here". A fair amount of yelling ensued. It now turns out that none of us are welcome there.

Doesn't Recommend

cjglynn

Joined 11 years ago

Authentic Food & Disdain for Diners. Tucked away on an obscure street in Menlo Park, Iberia Restaurant features a cozy bar serving a myriad of small plates and a formal dining room for full meals. The menu includes authentic Spanish selections ranging from tapas like Torta Espanola and Croquetas de Jamon, to entrees such as Parrillada Mixta, a selection of grilled meats, and Trucha con Tomate, a whole roast trout garnished with tomatoes. While the food is reminiscent of Spain, the brusque servers with arrogant attitudes do little to replicate the warm reception of dining establishments en España. While the wine list is adequate, the corkage fee of $35.00 per bottle is egregiously expensive and the inclusion of a 19 percent gratuity, regardless of number of diners in the party, is insulting. With its high prices (dinner for four $300), poor service, and seeming disdain for its clientele, Iberia Restaurant is one to be avoided.

Recommends

PhitenPower

Joined 10 years ago

Enjoyed the Meal. Food and atmosphere was pretty good. Despite other reviews on this site, the service was quite decent.

I don't quite understand why others were not allowed to have tapas (appetizers) at their table. We all had appetizers at our table before the main course. Strange.

Doesn't Recommend

SFBayArea_foodie

Joined 11 years ago

WORST Place in the World. I can not believe I actually paid to eat this place. The food was only ok and the quality inconsistent. The waiters were snotty, leaving much to be desired. I think the whole staff should apply for attitude adjustment classes. It's a shame, too. I had high hopes from the Zagat rating.

Doesn't Recommend

banananutbread

Joined 11 years ago

Eat here only if you are masochistic.... This is the worst restaurant I have ever been to. I took my little sister here as a treat for acing Spanish class so she could practice her Spanish. What a mistake. The waiters were not only rude to us in general but shot down her attempts to order in Spanish. Unfortunately this happened towards the middle of the meal. The food was plain-- nothing to write home about and I hated the fact that the tapas menu was unavilable to us.

Doesn't Recommend

Gibson

Joined 11 years ago

Don't Bother. I agree completely with the other reviewer who told their terrible service and the strange tapas rules. The dining room was empty (I am guessing the service there is just as bad given the undeniable dislike of customers shown by all but the busboy). They have a great tapas menu and, admittedly, good tapas. But, for some reason, they don't like serving it. They made us feel like second class citizens for ordering it (even though we were 6 of a very small number of diners in a very large restaurant) and relegated us to some uncomfortable table/area in the bar. By far the worst restaurant experience I have ever had in the bay area.