Bar de Nada

Flamboyant and exciting, Bar de Nada is a friendly, locally run, bar/restaurant on the corner of Broad Street and Lower Parliament Street, at the north end of the hippest strip in Hockley, with a clientele that's both laid-back and hedonistic, and definitely a style that is all it own. It lays claim to being possibly the most genuine of Nottingham's bars.

People come there mainly for the excellent Spanish and World tapas but also to indulge in a uniquely different atmosphere where the lack of a dress code, affordable drinks and a range of some of the most amazing beers from across the world create the right kind of buzz. One of their popular offers is from 5 to 7 pm on weekdays for a special tapas menu where the price you pay is the time you arrive, and that allows for three tapas and bread. So if you arrive at 6.15, it costs you £6.15.

It?s one of the best places to head for tapas, which are served Monday to Saturday till 9.30pm in an informal and spacious environment. The menu brings together an interesting mix of classic with some very eclectic world variety tapas elevating the experience to another level altogether, while also giving plenty of choice for vegetarians.

The range of classic tapas is such that even prolonged attendance at this buzzing restaurant should not dull the appetite for what has become an increasingly popular form of gastronomic grazing. Consider the traditional Spanish casserole of haricot beans in tomato sauce with chorizo, black pudding and ham, or prawns fried in olive oil with sliced red chillies, the delicate pickled white anchovies in dressing, or lamb's kidneys in sherry - a real dish for the connoisseur.

 Tapas often tend to lose in the making, so it is refreshing to find the simpler dishes such as mature Manchego cheese served with tomato and olive oil, or Spanish mackerel pan-fried in garlic, the two strong flavours blending rather than competing with each other.

Amongst the world-style tapas expect to find pork dumplings in Chinese pastry, the celebrated tom yum soup with choices of chicken, mushroom or prawns, the Indonesian deng deng chicken, or chicken Caribbean jerk style with red bonnet and chillies.

Thirty beers from around the world, with the likes of Anchor Steam Beer and Erdinger on draught, are regularly enjoyed by a crowd of friendly, appreciative types who lap up the continental vibes and are about as troublesome as a day-old kitten. Spacious and inviting, the serving of tapas till 9.30 encourages the social imbibers but doesn't deter determined drinkers from joining in the fun.

More information including the full tapas menu is available on their Website.