By Karen Talbot

Feb. 15, 2023: Bravo to Luca Lucido Balestrieri for bringing authentic Spanish cuisine from Seville, the tapas capital of Spain, to Tuckahoe.

The restaurant's name - - Buleria - comes from a song of the same name written by Spanish singer David Bisbal. The song depicts the singer's gypsy flamenco heritage rooted in the south of Spain.

Buleria Tapas & Wine Bar has rich wood walls, vibrant red banquettes, and chair seats, which convey a festive and fun atmosphere.

After the four of us were seated and served tasty crusty bread with exceptional olive oil, we ordered six varieties of hot and cold tapas to share.

From Cold, the Crudo of yellowfin carpaccio with shaved fennel, capers, and a lemon olive oil emulsion, was outstanding, with excellent texture and flavor.

The Montaditos were also delicious and included smoked salmon, roasted mushrooms, tetilla cheese, and guindilla pepper on a grilled baguette.

Our hot tapas order included Croquetas, which were serrano ham balls served with both a hot tomato sauce and orange zest aioli; Esvalivada, which was fire-roasted eggplant & peppers, with onions, fresh herbs, and goat cheese (an excellent vegetarian option); Gambas Al Ajillo, which was plump and juicy wild gulf shrimp in delicious garlic, wine and chili sauce and Puntas, which is a popular choice of grilled angus filet mignon tips with bearnaise sauce.

We opted to have two tapas served at a time so that we could enjoy and savor all of the creative flavors and presentation of each one. They range in price from $10 to $20, and six was the perfect amount for four people to share.

Buleria also offers a Charcuterie & Cheese Board, six Salads, eight Entrees from The Broiler, and four kinds of Paella for two people to share.

We enjoyed Flan and Apple Galette for dessert, the perfect sweets to end our meal.

The service was just right as far as spacing out the delivery of the tapas to our table, and our energetic waiter, Arsen, was the best.

Luca's right-hand man and bar manager are Sander Gjoni, and the talented Chef is Reyes Hernandez.

The restaurant is open daily from 4 -10 pm to 4 -9 pm on Sundays. Happy Hour is featured Mon. through Thurs. from 4 - 6 pm, and Sun. Brunch will be coming soon.

Spain has been on my Bucket List, and now I really want to go and experience the food and culture of this great country!

Buleria is located at 106 Main Street in Tuckahoe.