FOOD & DR INK
ATaste of Spain
Set in a beautifully renovated townhouse, it’s the project of a team of four, with Mark – a bar owner with many years’ experience, joined by his brother, plus Danny, a Spanish produce importer and, erm, retired world-famous footballer Gaizka Mendieta. The big idea was to bring the flavours of a Spanish market to Cambridge, sourcing the very finest ingredients they could get their hands on, be that wild prawns from Huelva, Galician octopus or Iberico pork from Salamanca. The menu offers both tapas-style dishes (jigglingly authentic tortillas, creamy croquettas, crispy squid bites) and mains, such as the towering Txuleton steak, served with patatas bravas. There are top-notch Spanish wines, too, plus dessert gems to try including Tarta de Santiago. As well as an authentic taste of Spanish cuisine, the team is keen to give diners an alternative to the big chains that dominate the city centre. “We thought Cambridge needed an independent restaurant in the centre of town. It’s really hard to find premises, because most of the decent ones are taken up by the chain restaurants and you can’t compete with them on cost,” explains Mark. “There are not enough independent restaurants and it’s a shame. All we’re doing, really, is getting nice food, cooking it from scratch and serving it to people!”
t’s impossible not to get swept up in the enthusiasm of Mark Hughes as he whisks through his new restaurant, waxing lyrical about the ingredients; pointing out a marbled cut of wagyu beef here, a crate of almost football- sized tomatoes there, dodging chefs in the gallery kitchen as they prep for the service ahead. On the topic of paella, he becomes especially animated, giving a quick, dizzying lesson the perfect socarrat (caramelised crust) and the steps to achieving flawless flavour and rice consistency in Spain’s most famous dish. It’s this passion that has put Mercado Central, Green Street’s latest addition, on the foodie map in Cambridge, generating a huge buzz when it opened in December.
“The menu offers both tapas-style dishes and mains”
IMAGES Mercado Central’s mix of authentic tapas-style plates and main dishes is mounting a challenge to the high street chains
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