The Iberian incursion

RESTAURANTS • FOUND Table

If and when you’ve managed to stick out the wait for a counter seat or one of the limited tables at Barra Santos, the miniscule Portuguese wine bar in Cypress Park that opened in March, the time spent in line will immediately make sense. 

First, the Iberico ham. Next, a tuna crudo, beset with Meyer lemon and glistening orange. Or maybe sardines on toast with butter, tomato, and thyme. Definitely the salt cod and potato fritters — crisp, oily, caramelized, heroic. 

These snacks are special, transportive, and so is the wine and sherry list that — especially on the sweeter end — pairs beautifully with the saltier plates. Which is to say nothing of the exposed brick, framed family photos, and blue and white azulejo-style tiles, which look ripped right from a Lisbon taberna wall.

Perhaps Barra Santos, along with Suzanne Goin and Caroline Styne’s latest, Caldo Verde, mark the beginnings of a coming Portuguese craze. I, for one, welcome the Iberian incursion. –Caitlin White

→ Barra Santos (Cypress Park) • 1215 Cypress Ave. • Walk-ins only.