LOCATIONIn the Capitol Theatre Centre in Manuka, a few minutes’ drive from the Canberra CBD.
DETAILSLegend restaurant’s modern interiors are kept stylish with masculine black leather ottomans and a sleek, curving timber bar that stretches across the inside wall. Chrome bar stools overlooking the surrounding promenade through a giant window space are the perfect perch on which to enjoy tapas, while the upstairs bar area offers further lounge and dancing space.
FOOD & BEVERAGELegends serves traditional and modern Spanish a la carte dishes, ranging from sopa castellana with Chickpea, chicken and sherry broth served with chicken dumplings for entrée to platters for two offering up succulent grilled chorizo sausage and Spanish meatballs, as well as much-loved tapas and paella. Doubling as a wine bar, Legends offers solid selection of local and international drops, including wines from Spain, France, Portugal, Australia and New Zealand.
PROFILED BY DE GROOTS MEDIAJust like the bright toreadors painted on the walls of Legends, this restaurant surprises, dazzles and ultimately delivers a spectacular time in the most fantastic surrounds south of Cadiz. Tucked away above a cocktail bar and next to a cinema, Legends commands a fine view over Manuka from its top-floor position making it almost hard to find, except on Friday or Saturday nights when the warm and welcoming sounds of a Spanish guitar accompanies Flamenco dancers in the centre of the dining room. But it’s not all about the atmosphere, right?
The food is mainly Basque-inspired, but with plenty of familiar Spanish dishes as well. Legends boasts a long menu of tapas that will continue to delight and surprise even those well used to Spanish cuisine. Straight from Catalonia comes the Patatas Bravas (potato wedges served in a deliciously spicy sauce), although I prefer the Pulpo a la Brasa (grilled baby octopus, marinated in paprika and oregano). For the more adventurous, the Rinones (lamb kidneys cooked in onion, Spanish sherry and cream sauce) are deliciously different and difficult to share. For a larger meal though, their giant paella, inspired by the tastes of Valencia, can come with seafood, chicken or just vegetables – though you will need a friend to help finish it off. Of course, it wouldn’t be a Spanish restaurant without homemade sangria blended to a secret recipe, and just the thing to quench your thirst while waiting for the paella to arrive – which can take up to an hour on busy nights. But that is, of course, the Spanish way. So while the waiters dance and tell you “The food will come… ¡más tarde!” just resign yourself to enjoying your margarita and the entertainment.
Russell Buzby