When we arrived to do a feature on El Castano in Jesmond we had no idea what a treat we were in for. Assuming we were just everyday customers we were met at the door by the duty manager with a warm welcome which we learned was standard practice at this fine establishment on Osborne Road in Jesmond. After meeting our contact Mike Gordon we were shown to a table over looking the rest of the restaurant.
El Castano is a very relaxed, welcoming kind of a place, you could feel quite at home dropping in for coffee in the afternoon, or for an early evening glass of wine. The colours give off a warm Spanish feel with a ‘traditional’ Mediterranean feel to the décor. There is seating outside with space heaters too, and the restaurant is lucky to sit where the sun rests in the evening, perfect for that early evening drink after work. Saying this you’d be cheating yourself if you didn’t try the food!!!
El Castano was voted the North East’s number one Tapas bar in Lifestyle magazine and after being presented with a range of their fayre it wasn’t too difficult to see why. After an appetiser of real garlic bread with a glass of what I can say is one of the best house red’s I’ve had in the UK we were served with an awesome array of Tapas, including a cold meat & cheese platter with chorizo, olives, Spanish cheeses & salad, a delightful pork & peppers dish I didn’t catch the name of, and a plate of spicy king prawns to name but a few. The range & quality of the Tapas was truly impressive and on looking through the menu I was actually a little surprised to see that it was very reasonably priced with an average dish being £4.00!
Customer service is obviously important to this establishment, and customer comment slips are provided at the end of the meal which is a nice touch, we looked through a dozen which were uniform in their obvious appreciation of a great meal and restaurant experience.
In keeping with much of what we try to actively support at IRN, El Castano source as much of their food locally for freshness, and the rest tends to be specially imported directly from Spain.
I would whole-heartedly recommend this restaurant for a really enjoyable night out, especially as the owners have decided to up the ante on a Monday night by holding Salsa Evenings complete with a live music set from local favourites Apu. I’d advise booking anytime past 7.30pm as it was filling up steadily on the Thursday night we attended by around this time.
EL CASTANO
44 Osborne Road Newcastle Upon Tyne, NE2 2AL
Tel - 0191 281 9111