Bar Rioja

Had a lovely evening at Bar Rioja. The pinchos were good along with a nice selection of wine. Our waitress, Alessandra, was just wonderful and she was very accommodating in adjusting the pinchos to our dietary requirements.

Donel was a fantastic server! Recommended a delicious wine and the cheese board was delectable! Take your girl here

Amazing service and beautiful explanation of the wine and the region from where it was harvested, please ask for King Arthur and Donal, they both are fantastic

Last Thursday’s wine evening at Bar Rioja was nothing short of glorious — the kind of night that reminds you why wine is poetry in a glass. From the moment I stepped inside, the atmosphere hummed with warmth and anticipation. Candlelight flickered against the white brick walls, glasses clinked in cheerful rhythm, and the air carried that unmistakable aroma of oak, spice, and promise. It felt intimate yet vibrant — a small room full of people united by one noble cause: exceptional Rioja. I tasted a couple of outstanding Gran Reservas: Ontanon and Prado Enca 2016. I can’t wait to go back and have the full wine-tasting experience. What elevated the evening further was the depth of knowledge flowing as generously as the wines themselves. I loved the staff's warm welcome. And I was told they welcome well-behaved dogs. I will be back!

Booked a table for date night for me and my boyfriend and was thrilled to learn the bar specialises not only in red Rioja, but a range of white, red, rose and sparkling Rioja wines. We had delicious food and wines hand picked by our waiter Donal who excellently recommended a wine for each dish. Standouts included the cheese selection, the talos de chorizo and the seasonal beef bikini. Would highly recommend visiting this bar, the atmosphere and service by our waiter were top notch! Can’t wait to come back for more food and wine recs!

Saw a piece in Decanter Magazine about this place so decided to try it out. Chose the taster menu at £45 a head for four pintxos with 4 matched Riojas. Really enjoyed the whole experience; the wines were fabulous and showed a marked variation in styles. The waitress was charming and very well informed. Tricky to find as it's in a 'yard' at the end of an alley by the Camino Restaurant. We will be back!

Delicious food and our waitress Alessandra had some fantastic wine recommendations! They also gave us some lovely tapas at the end of the evening which I assume otherwise would have gone to waste, we’ll be back soon!

My partner and I visited a couple of weeks ago on a Saturday and absolutely loved it. We went for the 5–6pm free pinchos with a glass of wine deal, which turned out to be incredible value. Our server Donal (apologies if I’ve misspelled it!), was so lovely and knowledgeable about all the wines. Whenever we weren’t sure what to try, he had great recommendations and each one was spot on. The gordal olives came in a kind of chimichurri sauce and were honestly the best olives of my life. The pinchos were delicious too and paired beautifully with our wine. It’s a teeny little spot tucked away in the courtyard of Camino, and makes for a very romantic date night. Highly recommend.

Had a great time. Tried a sample menu and really enjoyed the different flavours both to drink and eat. Trying the food paired with the wine and contrasting the different wine types made an excellent evening. Will definitely come back when the opportunity presents itself.

What a Gem. The wine is over the top. Very comprehensive list. Service, can’t be beaten by ANYTHING; sweet, charming, welcoming…Black rice (Arroz Negro) is the best we EVER have! Thank God for such a wonderful place.

Cute spot for Spanish wines - they’ve got a commendable list and the whole vibe feels quite Spanish. Didn’t get to try the food, though will definitely be back for more.

Great selection of Spanish wine, cosy atmosphere!

Beautiful little hidden place friendly staff and quick service with amazing food and wine options

3rd visit in as many weeks. High praise for a great list and a knowledgable team.

Excellent food and wine ! You get what you desire ! I recommend !

Never disappoints, cosy , intimate and white rioja with fresh calamari to die for …

This place has been on the list to visit for so long, and we finally came, I only wish we came earlier!!! Nayah and Viki were so knowledgable and made our experience so much fun and we learned a lot. Not to mention a great selection of wine and food was delish. Atmosphere was lovely and we stayed for hours when we were only meant to go for one… We will be back very soon!!

A tucked away gem that all wine lovers (not just rioja!) need to visit. Great for a first date with wine being the passion. Friendly staff, great wine selection with perfect light bites. A must visit.

Fantastic! Excellent selection of reserva wines from Rioja, not crazily Londonly priced. Very tasty tapas coming from the tapas bar next door.

Beautiful place for a sherry and fantastic tapas. Super cute with a small number of tables inside. Staff are really lovely and helpful. And the tortilla, the salt cod and the padron peppers were all incredible! Will definitely be back

I booked this a couple of weeks ago and there was a mix up/issue with overbooking, we were kindly offered a space at their linked restaurant Camino with a 25% discount. On the night we got another call to seat us back at Bar Rioja, which was so appreciated, and we were still offered the discount. This was handled so professionally and I have to commend Chiara for this. The vibes were very chilled and relaxed, the bar was super warm and cosy, the menu was impeccable, and the service was hospitable and helpful. I can’t wait to come back! Thanks for such a lovely experience, even with the mix up :)

Tucked away behind Kings Cross this restaurant is wonderful. A great spin on a heavily saturated market. This is premium tapas. The prices are quite high but not outrageous. I had a great time and also went to the bar after my meal. Highly recommended and super yummy. Staff were fast, efficient and full of recommendations.

Pretty much my favourite bar in London. It's tiny, but still usually accessible, partly as it's slightly hidden away, but also possibly because the focus on sherry frightens off some of the casual drinkers, which is all the better for those of us that love it. Service is friendly and knowledgeable, the list of sherry is relatively short, but well selected, and while the focus is definitely on drinking, there is a small selection of good tapas to go with it. Other nice touches include the sherry flights, which are a great way to try several different wines, and the fact that they do off-sales (at very reasonable prices) so you can pick up some of the harder to find bottles. Love it.

It was very good. Great for meeting friends. You forget your sitting near the busy streets of Kings Cross! The drinks were great, and the manager came over to chat to is about his new cocktail which he let us try for free. We will definitely be returning!

Nice cosy wine bar with a lovely atmosphere and staff with good wine knowledge

Bit rammed a lot of the time but if you get a table it's a great vibe. Cosy, great wines and the tapas selection is small but perfectly balanced. Special shout out for whatever olives they have cause they're some of the best I've ever had.

It’s a nice place, food is good and wine selection is huge. Great recommendations from our waiter! Would recommend.

This is a fantastic little tapas bar tucked away near Kings Cross Station. The staff were great, the food was good and the wine was lovely.

Amazing small sherry bar. Cosy, only maybe room for about 25 inside but with some outdoor seating. fab food and amazing jamon. Only bugbear is having to go to Camino next door to use the loo - sooo busy on a Friday night and a shock to the system after cosy grown up Pepito.

+1

Having spent a great deal of time across Spain , it is great to find a place in London that offers a fantastic overall experience- value for money - staff well trained and attentive- especially Nyah well done - I will be back with others

SPANISH WINE & TAPAS 🍷🇪🇸 📍 King's Cross, London ⭐️ 4/5 💸 £££ 🍴I just found the world’s only dedicated #Rioja bar, right here in London! @bar.rioja is a little slice of Spain, offering an incredible selection of around 50 #wines, all from the Rioja region 🍇 As a wine lover, I was seriously impressed by their cellar! We went for a BIG GUN WHITE Valenciso, an intense and complex white from 80-year-old vines with preserved lemon and smoky notes. Feeling adventurous, we also tried the Orange Wine Phinca Hapa Blanco, which had unique hints of balsam, quince, peach, and honey 🍊🍯 Of course, the wines were perfectly paired with some delicious tapas. While the portions were on the smaller side, the flavors definitely delivered! My top 3 favourites were: 🥓 Croquetas de #Jamón Ibérico – crispy, creamy, and packed with rich flavour 🥩 Braised #Ox Cheek – melt-in-your-mouth tender and deeply savoury 🍰 Baked Basque #Cheesecake – silky, creamy, and perfectly caramelised If you're a wine enthusiast looking for a taste of Spain, this spot is a must-visit! 🍷✨

+6

I gave 4 star even when I give 5 star on food, service, and atmosphere because the price is a bit too high for what you get. Everything is in tiny portions and we are left hungry even after we have paid c. £90 for the meal. We were so hungry that we couldn’t go to sleep. The food tasted absolutely amazing tho. It is the same kitchen as the restaurant next door (Camino) and they even share a toilet. This restaurant has a much more intimate atmosphere which I think is better for date nights. However the space is very small compared to Camino and the tables are so close to each other. We can clearly hear what’s the gossip in the next table so I do not recommend going if you plan to have private conversations. The inside of this restaurant is VERY warm so make sure you wear layers that can be taken off or you’ll find yourself longing to go out for a break to breathe. But it’s also because of that, it adds an extra coziness to it. The staff is very attentive and friendly. But just know that because every table is very close to each other, they will walk very close around you a lot so as other customers. Also note that there’s nothing to hang your jacket or bag.

+1

Great place to enjoy exceptional wine! Expect to find some incredible wine labels, accompanied by the most juicy tapas! Mouthwatering… We ordered the gambas (prawns), the croquettes of course like 3x, the pan con tomate, suckling pig (really good), ox cheek (this was top, was just melting on the fork and delicious) and the rib eye stake (this was unfortunately disappointing as it was dry and pretty tasteless). Will definitely come back !

Cute little bar which offers sherry tasting. No cocktails served here but they have nice wine & loved the tapas dishes I had.

lovely little bar in a hidden corner in kings cross! great selection of wines of all kinds with authentic tapas. staffs really knows what to recommend depending on what you want. would 100% recommend and go again and again! it does get crowded during the weekend so I recommend reserving in advance

Really nice little restaurant with great tapas and lovely food. It's a nice little relaxing spot with only a few tables which is great. The only downside is that the toilets are located across the courtyard in Camino (sister company where the food is also made) so there's a very much contrasting atmosphere when you walk in there.

Met friends for Christmas drinks. Very cozy place, only a few tables so noise levels are very manageable. The bar tender is very knowledgeable and passionate about the wines and sherries. The tapas is delish, my only issue is there are only 2 vegan choices, one being patatas bravas. The expresso martinis are the best I've tasted yet. Would definitely recommend this place, especially for smaller groups of up to 4.

I had a very pleasant evening. Service was okay, but they were providing a 25% discount so I guess I shouldn’t complain. I do hope they’re going to put more staff on. Some interesting selections of Rioja, mixed with some big industrial names, which is slightly disappointing. When a wine on the list are made by big bodegas who supply Tescos it takes away some of the panache. At £2.50 for the tapas; reasonable. I think a slight problem with this place is what’s the difference between the mothership Caminos and Bar Rioja. Not much as besides, a limited selection of Tapas all of the food comes from Caminos. You are sitting in the same place so I guess it’s the wine. I tried a few. OK bubbly from Haro. uninspiring 2014 Reserva. I was expecting quite a bit more at that price point. The viña Muriel Blanco 2014 was a really great white. I checked some of the wines online and there is a 300% mark up. This is about average for London restaurants. I don’t think I’ll be returning despite the pleasant evening. Without the discount it would’ve been well north of £100, a glass of bubbly, some Tapas, a glass of wine, the glass of red and finishing it off with a cheese plate. If I was going for a meal I think there is better value at Caminos.

Lovely peaceful little sanctuary in the midst of a busy, noisy area of the city. There are heaters and huge umbrellas to keep you sheltered from the showers. The seat covers are a bit stained though. Service wasn’t great as the staff were through at the restaurant side and kept forgetting to check people were being served at the bar. There’s no cider on draft but the bottled Spanish cider is lovely!

EDIT: This changed into a wine bar so my sherry bar review is no longer relevant. I've reduced the stars because it feels criminal to take away what was a great and unique sherry bar. Half don't want to review this so that nobody else knows how good it is! We went for my birthday as I'm a big sherry fan, which isn't easy to find in the UK. The selection here was great and we worked our way through the sherry flights, also enjoying the tapas that came with them. The variety and quality of the sherry was top notch, and all the food we ordered was superb too. The bar is tiny so booking is advised. Only one lady was serving but she was very friendly and once orders were taken, food came swiftly. It had a proper Spanish vibe to it, felt very laid back and I can't wait to return!

Wine is good, but a lot of it can be found in a supermarket. Food and service were really average if not slightly below, and especially for the price. Padrón peppers were not good and came with a horrible sauce, and the patatas bravas were way overcooked.

​I had a terrible experience at Bar Rioja recently and felt compelled to warn others. I was there with a group of friends, and while the night started fine, the service became unacceptable the moment a concern was raised. ​Our server, Daniel, became extremely rude and aggressive as soon as I politely pointed out an issue with my food. He was incredibly patronizing, repeatedly calling me "darling" while dismissing my concerns. He is also very tall and seemed to intentionally use his height to stand over me in a way that felt like a clear attempt to intimidate me. Instead of trying to find a solution, he was defensive and made the situation feel hostile. ​To make matters worse, when I asked to speak to management, Daniel told me the bar manager "agreed with him" and therefore refused to even come over to the table to resolve the issue. This level of dismissiveness and lack of professionalism from both the server and management is shocking. ​The situation became so uncomfortable and intimidating that I ended up leaving my friends and the gathering early. I will never go back to this establishment and strongly recommend staying away. There are plenty of other bars in the area that actually treat their customers with respect and basic decency.