NY Roundup III: Epic Meal at Spanish Hot Spot Tertulia -- Jamon Iberico de Bellota, Croquetas de Jamon & Anchovies on Flax Quinoa Cracker

The eating fest in New York continues. Here's round three of some serious eats I was lucky to be a part of. We had an over the top tasting menu at Tertulia, a Spanish spot notoriously hard to get a table at -- thanks JC! Overall it was a food coma-worthy meal that spanned nearly four hours. We initially declined the option to add a prime rib steak to accompany our paella at the end but being so close to the open fire grill where we witnessed and heard the sizzling of huge slabs of steak, we caved in. The paella was good but it wasn't the best thing we had.

I'm a sucker for jamon serrano and even more so for those black-footed pigs feeding on acorn, jamon iberico de bellota. I loved the started pan con tomate topped with a razor thin slice of jamon iberico de bellota. The perfectly toasted bread, garlic, tomato and some jamon on top. I would have been happy just with that and a glass of red wine.

Speaking of jamon, we had the fluffiest, most ethereal croquetas de jamon iberico topped over a base of quince paste. They were gooey-er than I'm used to but I'm not one to complain about anything jamon or croquettes. Scalding hot, yes. Be careful when biting into the crust and get ready for the delightful combination of creamy texture and saltiness from the ham.

This was a pleasant surprise: Anchovies with sheep's milk cheese and roasted tomatoes on a flax and quinoa cracker. It was once again an eclectic combination of flavors and textures that worked -- crunchiness from the cracker, creaminess from the cheese, whose flavor balanced very well with the anchovies and sweetness from the tomato.

I realized one of my favorite dishes was grilled baby leeks with romesco sauce but I was so busy tearing into them that I didn't get a shot. Romesco sauce is one of my all-time fave sauces -- a red pepper-based sauce that includes nuts, garlic and oil, to name a few.

Here's the best marketing tool -- "seat the party next to the grill." Were we glad we had come to our senses before it was too late. 

The 40-day aged prime rib was cooked perfectly medium rare, just the way I like it. A massive piece of in-bone steak with just the right amount of char on the edges. It was very theatrical, I'll give them that. They even showed us the big cooked steak before slicing it up. The steak was solid -- juicy, soft and flavorful. It may be a matter of grilling vs. roasting but I liked the super tender prime rib at Freddy Smalls better.

The accompanying roasted potatoes were cooked perfectly -- browned on the outside and soft but not mushy on the inside. At that point, we were beyond full even with a break in between. Still, somehow we kept eating because it tasted good.

The lamb meatballs in tomato sauce dabbed with sheep's milk cheese pieces was comfort food at its best. I didn't love the lamb flavor by itself as much but when masked with some tomatoes and cheese, it was a winning combination.

The chicken and veggie paella was very good. The chicken was moist and the vegetables added a crisp and refreshing element to the dish. I just wished that it had roasted piquillo peppers, which I love. I also like chorizo but hey, it was a beautiful and well executed dish. I have yet to master a paella so kudos to the chef!

Here are the less successful ones: asparagus salad and patatas. The asparagus salad included potatoes, mojama, which is filleted salt-cured tuna and dressed lightly with some custardy lemon sabayon. Maybe it's because I'm not a big fan of white asparagus that didn't have much flavor but this was one of least memorable dishes.

The potatoes were a bit overcooked and as much as I love garlic, the aioli drizzled on top was too much. I wished it were served on the side to dip it to taste instead of drowning the potatoes in the sauce. I liked the roasted fingerlings a lot better.

We could barely make a dent on the dessert because we were so full but also because it wasn't that exciting of a choice. I had hoped for something like flan or churros and while the cake was good, it was a bit too dense to eat after all that food. All in all, a great meal that I'll remember for a while.

Photo credit for some of these goes to HY. Thank you!