The hottest restaurant openings of 2014: Narcissa, The Clam, Barchetta, and GATO (just to name a few). Gato, opened this spring by Chef Bobby Flay, brings Meditteranean and Spanish cuisine to NoHo, and adds more restaurant gold to this up and coming area. If the hype surrounding Gato’s opening wasn’t huge already, the hard (and I mean annoyingly hard) to get reservation only adds to the hype. I finally went to Gato this week, and I am happy to report that Gato surpassed my high expectations! And with Chef Flay behind the line, you may be in for more than just great food, a cool vibe, and unique cocktails… you may even have a sighting of the celebrity chef…
Tapas and spanish cuisine can be difficult for the nobread crowd, but thankfully plenty of options on the menu are gluten free. Nobread approved orders my table enjoyed: the squid, eleven layer potato, octopus, oven roasted shrimp, charred carrots, crispy potatoes, roasted cauliflower, and the PAELLA. Both the octopus and paella were absolutely delicious; we had to order two of each! The paella is both gluten and dairy free (the only allergen is egg) and it is tossed with flavorful kale, mushrooms, artichoke, and egg. The octopus was perfectly tender, the shrimp and squid spiced just the right amount, and the eleven layer potato was definitely the most interesting dish of the night. For all the gluten lovers out there, my table couldn’t get over the soft shell crab crostini. Other dishes my friends ordered that unfortunately were NOT nobread approved included the gato spreads, crab risotto, and pizzas.
The tapas are small, especially the “bar” tapas, so be sure to order a bunch if you are with a large party. Great tapas and Mediterranean/Spanish cuisine, plenty of nobread approved options, awesome drinks, and dinner with a bar scene; Gato has it all!