Mundaka

"Bite Sized Tapas for Pint Size Eaters"

Mundaka is a sophisticated Spanish restaurant in downtown Carmel serving tapas. The food is gourmet and the crowd is hip. Mundaka is my kind of place; though not so much my toddler’s.

I arrived for dinner with two adults, two boys, ages 6 and 3, and a girl, age 3. Of the three kids, only one did not care for Mundaka’s delicioso menu and that's because he refused to try any of it. If you have a picky eater, as I do, skip Mundaka’s or carry chicken fingers in your purse. If you’re blessed with a child who eats a variety of food, by all means bring your lucky self down!

THE FOOD

The food is superb! Originally, a tapa was a hunk of bread set on top of a glass of wine to ward off hunger and bugs. Boy, have tapas come a long way! A few of Mundaka’s “knock your socks off” tapas can make a full-fledged meal. Mundaka's lacks a kids menu but the children favored:

• Mini lamb burger, pickled cauliflower, tarragon aioli, fries (we told the kids they were sliders)
• Bravas (fried potatoes, tomato sauce, aioli)

THE RESTAURANT

Mundaka is nestled in a courtyard on the east side of San Carlos Street. Keep an eye out for it; it’s easy to breeze past if you’re a tourist who’s also trying to visually track your wandering youngsters.

Mundaka’s is very swanky. A characteristic I’m normally very fond of, but I was a little worried Mundaka’s was too cool for the kids. Everything turned out ok though, this story ends well.

We were seated by a piano in a cozy corner table which offered us some privacy and a black and white movie projected on a wall helped keep the children distracted and quiet.

It's a rare pleasure for me to dine in a restaurant without an attached playground. While sadly, I was not able to stay for the after-hours club scene (movies and videos are projected on the wall in the bar and live music plays after 10:00 p.m.) At least for 40 minutes, I felt part of the “in crowd” again.  

Mundaka is open for dinner daily at 5:30pm, as well as brunch on Saturday and Sunday. Call 831-624-7400 for reservations.

Disclosure: I received complimentary dining as a guest of Mundaka’s. Mundaka did not request that I express any particular point of view and my reviews always reflect my honest opinions.