Torpedo

Let me start small: my glass stood empty for longer than the half-full room excused. Torpedo is a natural wine bar in the Esquerra de l'Eixample with an idea and a certain energy, and the crowd is the most polished thing in it: young, good-looking, photographing the bocadillos before eating them. I understand the appeal. The trouble is that the plates look better than they follow through, and the gap between the two is the whole distance between good and photogenic. On a forgiving night, with the right company, you would leave content enough. But this stretch of the Eixample is not short of places to drink well and eat better, and I struggle to argue for the detour. Once a year, perhaps, to see whether the kitchen has caught up with its audience.