Tapas and cocktails are a winning combination at Cinco Lounge in Grantham
When a friend and I arranged to go out for dinner, there was only one place we had in mind – Cinco Lounge.
Tapas and cocktails – a winning combination.
There’s lots to love about Cinco, and it starts with the decor and ambience. It’s warm, noisy and feel-good.
It was fairly busy as we arrived, more so than I’d have expected for a Thursday. There were still plenty of tables, so we sat down by a window.
I have to admit, I was a little disappointed with the service this time round, something I’ve not felt before at Cinco.
On previous visits someone approached the table to take the order, but 45 minutes later and no one had said a thing, not even to point us in the direction of the bar.
It wasn’t too much of an issue – we were so busy nattering away that we didn’t realised 45 minutes had passed and we hadn’t so much as ordered a drink.
A quick look at the menu – which is varied and takes into account vegan, gluten-free, etc – and we were ready to go up to the bar. I’d describe the service there as polite but not particularly friendly. Not one to be deterred, I struck up a conversation and the staff warmed up.
I ordered meatball marinara, hummus and spicy beef quesadilla, plus a side of halloumi fries.
It seemed like only minutes before food arrived at the table, and it was piping hot.
Everything was delicious. The meatballs were soft and the sauce tasty, the quesadilla crispy and the crispy chickpeas served with the hummus were delicious. The hummus comes with pittas – it’s quite a big dish and filling.
The halloumi fries were cooked perfectly – but it’s the chipotle chilli jam that’s to die for, and the reason I can’t go to Cinco without ordering the dish.
In my opinion, the tapas is good value for money. Three dishes for £11.75 is very reasonable, plus £5.50 for the halloumi fries.
Tapas and cocktails come hand in hand in my book so – in the name of research – we ordered a couple.
Elderflower spritz was to start – absolutely gorgeous. The menu describes it as “a drink to lift the spirits”. It’s made using vodka, elderflower, lemon and apple juice, topped with soda. It was zingy and refreshing.
Next was a prosecco and passion fruit martini. It’s a classier version of a porn star martini, which comes with a shot of prosecco on the side. It’s described as “a Loungers twist on a modern classic”, using vanilla vodka mixed with passoã passion fruit liqueur, vanilla and citrus. In Cinco’s version, “a splash” of prosecco is poured into the drink instead of served as a shot. As a fan of a porn star martini, the Cinco version didn’t really do it for me, but it was nice enough.
With a price tag of £7.75 and £8.50 respectively, Cinco is reasonably priced. Cocktails are often far more expensive elsewhere.
Food, drinks, setting, ambience and value for money were all five-star. Had service been just a little better I’d have given my experience five stars.
Rating: ****
