When the DLR train takes you past the Millwall Docks and casts you out at the well heeled feet of Canary Wharf, you are instantly immersed in the Isle of Dogs. The marooned combination of old and new is not lost on El Faro, a delicious little Spanish restaurant sitting on the waterfront.

The Venue
The sharp edged, modern design of El Faro (Spanish for The Lighthouse) hints at a precision that continues inside, where a spacious, almost minimalist interior is softened by more traditional stone and woods. This is where El Faro gains much of its appeal, combining the modern obsession with presentation with a more traditional informal atmosphere, illustrated nicely by impeccable service at the al fresco waterside tables.

The Atmosphere
El Faro certainly aims at authenticity, making a concerted effort to create a genuinely Spanish experience. This is helped in no small part by the ebullient staff who are keen, especially in accent, to maintain a definitively Spanish atmosphere.

Busy lunchtimes and late week night evenings are when the restaurant is at its most vibrant with a bustling mixture of Spanish and locals, clearly enjoying the relaxed, and very Mediterranean, atmosphere. One thing they cannot seem to import however, is the notion of manana. In the restaurants of Madrid or Seville, the polite attentive service would simply never do.

The Food
The selection of tapas is a good place to start, with impressive cured meats and a deliciously delicate lobster and mussel cake being particularly memorable. Most of El Faro’s produce is imported from Spain so don’t be surprised to find quality regional specialities on the menu such as the excellent cecina (dry cured beef) from the manager’s home town.

Other produce is purchased fresh from Billingsgate Market so dishes such as the sea cod on a bed of spring garlic with Vizcaina sauce, remain equally sublime. Desserts are tasty and again, impeccably presented but you are left with the impression that the real innovative enthusiasm is saved for the starters and mains.

The Drink
The wine list at El Faro is well thought out and the staff informed enough to help you make a decision which is certainly beneficial given the menu’s many diverse flavours. The house red is a superb rioja but be prepared for the fact that the house wine is not necessarily the cheapest bottle on the menu - at El Faro they distort the traditional convention of house wine and instead take it to mean a personal recommendation of a wine that is fine enough to be served in their own home.

The Last Word
El Faro fully deserves its success and the restaurant has become a powerful little beacon of hope in an area swamped with distinctly average eateries.

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