Eats | Las Iguanas

It’s the middle of winter, it’s freezing and miserable. But on the corner of George Street, it’s still summer in Las Iguanas. Serving up Latin inspired food and a bevy of cocktails, it’s always sunny in Las Iguanas, so on a cloudy, grey day, it seemed like the obvious choice for a filling lunch last week.

The décor is bright and airy. A fun combination of colours and patterns add to the casual atmosphere of the restaurant, lending it the perfect ambience for sharing with friends – whether it’s tapas, a pitcher or just some gossip.

The cocktail menu is generous and ordered by country – Brazil, Mexico etc with additional Las Iguanas Favourites meaning you’re spoiled for choice. I went for the Strawberry Red – strawberry liqueur, Malibu Red, lemon and cranberry juice topped with lemonade which made for a fruity and refreshing combo. There is also a good selection of beers and my dining partner went for a Peruvian beer which complemented our mains.

We decided to go for the tapas option and as our eyes are bigger than our bellies (and the table!) we got the 5 dishes for £24. As we had been seated at a small table we had to have the dishes brought out in two lots, but it was a quiet day and the service was swift so this wasn’t a problem. We had the nachos, calamari, chicken enchiladas, chorizo and fish tacos. It would be impossible to choose a favourite dish from these. The nachos were freshly made tortilla chips and came with guacamole as standard (thank God! Don’t you hate it when places think that guac is a privilege that you have to pay extra for – no, it’s a standard ingredient surely?!). The calamari and the chorizo were both cooked perfectly, so tender and not a hint of chewiness so probably the best I’ve had anywhere. The chicken in the enchilada was creamy with a good flavour. If I absolutely had to choose a favourite though, it would be the fish tacos. The fish (not sure of the type but it was white so possibly cod) was juicy with a lovely crisp but light batter. The dressing with corn and red cabbage was sweet and crunchy and complemented the soft fish brilliantly. I could eat that all day.

Even though we were feeling pretty full by this point we couldn’t resist the call of churros for dessert. Restraining ourselves by sharing the single portion (which we found to be plenty), they came out of the kitchen steaming hot, crispy on the outside and soft in the middle. They were accompanied by rich, thick dulce de leche which, alongside the cinnamon sugar of the churros made for a warming, filling dessert which required us to be rolled home.

As a huge fan of Latin food I knew that I would love Las Iguanas but the quality and freshness of the food far exceeded my expectations of a chain restaurant. I’ll definitely be back very soon, probably eating my weight in fish tacos.