What exactly is Cafe Sevilla: A nightclub? A tapas bar? A happy hour chill spot? A fancy restaurant? It’s literally all of these things! We had visited the nightclub section of Sevilla before, and had also tried some of their tapas at the downtown tasting events, but last weekend we had the opportunity to have dinner in the restaurant for the first time.
There is really something for every budget on the menu.
Flight of sangria at Cafe Sevilla Long Beach
My expectation was that it was going to be VERY expensive, which is one of the reasons we had never gone for dinner before. However, we realized there is really something for every budget on the menu. They had great happy hour specials and an assortment of tapas in the $7-15 range. There were reasonably priced bottles of sangria, you could opt for a family-style dinner, and they even have brunch. You could go for drinks and apps and spend $40 on a date night, or $150 on a date night. Both would be excellent, but different.
They had great happy hour specials and an assortment of tapas in the $7-15 range.
Because this was a belated Valentine’s Day date for us, we decided to splurge and do the “Journey Through Spain” 5 Course Dinner for 2, which was $79.50. Even though the price tag was a splurge for us, it was a steal considering all that it came with. We got to choose 3 different appetizers, 1 entree each, and a dessert. AND! When you opt for this dinner, you can take $20 off a bottle of select wines or pitchers of sangrias, so we did that as well. (Be careful, their sangria packs a punch!)
Even though the price tag was a splurge for us, it was a steal considering all that it came with.
Albóndigas al Jerez at Cafe Sevilla in Long Beach
Around the time we ordered, the live music started. It was Latin Jazz and the perfect volume for conversation. A few couples even got up and danced over the course of our dinner. It really added to the ambiance and the overall vibe was very romantic.
The overall vibe was very romantic.
So, back to the food. For our first appetizer, we chose the Albóndigas al Jerez, which was meatballs in a garlic wine sauce. It was light and delicious.
For our second appetizer, we ordered Grilled Spanish Salchichas, or flambéed sausages. This was extra fun because they came and flambéed them tableside. And who doesn’t love seeing a giant flame go up next to their table?
This was extra fun because they came and flambéed them tableside.
For our third app, we got the Mushroom and Fig Coca Flatbread. We normally stick to carnivore meals (as you may have noticed from our first 2 app choices), but this flatbread gave the meat apps a run for their money. It was surprisingly substantial for a meatless dish and almost could have been a meal of its own.
Mushroom and Coca Flatbread Cafe Sevilla Long Beach
It was surprisingly substantial for a meatless dish and almost could have been a meal of its own.
For our entrees, I got the salmon with a chimichurri sauce. It was cooked to perfection and I loved the black rice it came with. (Can you tell I’m not officially a food blogger? I’m sure it has a real name besides “black rice”, but it wasn’t on the menu, so just know that it’s an excellent bonus side dish.)
Jason got the 16 hour braised short ribs, which he also said were delicious and tender. Also around this time, we decided to order a flight of sangria so we could sample more flavors. I always thought sangria was just red wine and fruit, but there are so many varieties! And the flight is really aesthetically pleasing too.
I always thought sangria was just red wine and fruit, but there are so many varieties!
Almond Tarta de Santiago at Cafe Sevilla in Long Beach
And then the dessert came! It was an Almond Tarta de Santiago. It was sweet and moist and also practically could have been another meal, as well. It came out warm and tasted incredibly fresh. After we had eaten as much as we could (because we were already pretty stuffed!) we headed over to the nightclub for one last drink.
Our nightclub visit ended up being rather short (because sangria!) but we danced to a few songs and enjoyed the last of our romantic evening. We will definitely be returning for future date nights, and can’t wait to try out their salsa lessons on Tuesdays nights too.