The Port House opened in 2012, and its listing gives the address as 417 Strand. The restaurant describes itself as being in the heart of Covent Garden, and the brief it gives itself is simple: tapas, classic Spanish dishes, and a selection of Spanish wines and sherries to go with them.
This profile sticks to what the restaurant states in its own listing on our directory. We haven't added anything about dishes or staff that the listing doesn't mention.
What The Port House says it is
In its own words, the restaurant has been showing London "the culinary traditions of Spain" since it opened. The menu is built around carefully made tapas and a wider set of classic Spanish dishes, cooked "with respect for tradition and quality".
It also names a goal: to act as a cultural and culinary bridge between Spain and the United Kingdom. The listing says many guests are eating Spanish dishes for the first time, and that the kitchen takes care to present those flavours faithfully. If you're new to Spanish food, that is the guest the restaurant says it has in mind.
The wine and sherry list
The listing singles out the drinks. It calls its selection of Spanish wines and sherries one of the finest in London. That is the restaurant's own claim, not a ranking we have checked, but it tells you what the place wants to be judged on.
If sherry is new to you, a few basics help when you sit down with a list like this:
- Fino and manzanilla are the pale, dry styles. They are usually served chilled and go well with salty tapas such as olives, ham or fried fish.
- Amontillado and oloroso are darker and nuttier, and they stand up better to richer, meatier plates.
- Pedro Ximénez is the very sweet one. It is normally a dessert drink, or poured over ice cream.
- Ask what is available by the glass, so you can try more than one style before committing to a bottle.
Our sherry guide and the jerez dish page go into the styles in more detail.
How to plan a visit
Our listing has The Port House open from 12:00 every day, closing at 23:30 Monday to Saturday and at 21:30 on Sunday. Hours change, so check with the restaurant before you go.
The format suits sharing. Order a few tapas to start, add more as you go, and let the wine or sherry choice set the pace. The listing talks about "the conviviality and shared dining culture" of Spain as part of what it wants to offer.
Other London venues with a sherry focus
If you want to compare, these London listings in our directory also mention sherry in their own descriptions:
- Brindisa Soho: modelled on Spanish city bodegas, serving artisan beers, sherries and wines with tapas and bar snacks.
- Barrafina Adelaide Street: a marble-topped tapas bar with an open kitchen and a short list of Spanish sherries, cavas and wines.
- Bar Esteban: opened in Crouch End in March 2013 by Stephen Lironi, who its listing calls a sherry aficionado, with chef Pablo Rodriguez.
For the wider picture, see our guide to Spanish restaurants in London or browse every Spanish restaurant in London in the directory.
