By Brian Freedman

Before chef and restaurateur Jose Garces opened up Tinto in March of 2007, it’s fair to say that few Philadelphians had ever heard of pintxos. In the time since then, though, Tinto’s riffs on the small plates of the Basque region have become some of the hottest dishes in Philadelphia. That’s the power that Garces wields here. Regardless of concept, his restaurants are some of the most successful in a city with no shortage of great dining destinations. His first restaurant, Amada, introduced the city to traditional, Andalusia-influenced tapas. Subsequent projects include Distrito, which focuses on the traditional fare of Mexico City; Chifa, whose Peruvian-Cantonese adventurousness has won over this notoriously fickle city; and the brand new Village Whiskey, his first American concept.

Garces is a busy man these days, working with his restaurants, planning future projects, and even dealing with the publicity and responsibilities that have come from his victory on the Food Network’s “Next Iron Chef.” With all his travels and work, he didn’t have time to sit down for a face-to-face interview, but he did respond to the questions I put to him via email. I also spoke with Paul Rodriguez, beverage manager for Tinto and Village Whiskey, about his wine program.

Brian: You’ve done more to introduce Philadelphians to Spanish and Basque food than anyone else in the region. Did you set out to do so?

Jose: My focus with all of my restaurants has been serving a specific genre of food – usually Latin-influenced in some way – with the finest ingredients available and a deep attention to the details of preparation. When I think of how I’d like to go about creating a restaurant or a menu, I draw from many places: my family heritage, my culinary training, my experiences as a working chef and my imagination. I am honored to have been given the opportunity to introduce my guests to the cuisine of these regions.

Brian: What is it about tapas and pintxos that’s so appealing right now—the size of the portions, the number of flavors that people can experience during a meal, or something else entirely?

Jose: I’ve always thought most fondly of meals I’ve shared with friends in the literal sense, sampling and nibbling from each others’ plates and discovering the flavors and textures before us as a group, together. Small plates are advantageous because they afford people that amazing opportunity to share an entire meal, rather than just the time while they’re eating it. Each dish arrives at the table at the peak of its freshness, straight from the kitchen as soon as it’s prepared, rather than waiting for other, slower plates to be assembled and all coming out at once in a stodgy procession of impossibly large portions.

[On a personal level, Chef Garces is fond of beginning a meal with Spanish charcuterie and cheese – jamon Iberico and queso Lenora in particular – and then moving onto richer items like Tinto’s pork belly montadito, a succulent, thoroughly addictive canapé of honey-lacquered Berkshire pork belly with shaved apples.]

Brian: Before Tinto opened, most Philadelphians had likely never even heard of the Basque region. Were you ever concerned about selling the city on its food?

Jose: The cuisine at Amada, my first restaurant, is representative of all of Spain, but it's primarily Andalusian, or southern, in nature. Tinto's is Basque, and the cuisines are similar, but the French influence is more pronounced. Both restaurants are tapas-style, meaning that they serve small plates that are meant to be shared, and both are still really Spanish restaurants, even though they draw their inspirations from different regions of that country. The menu at Amada was so well received, and I was hopeful that Tinto’s Basque menu would be as well.

Brian: I know that you strive for authenticity at your restaurants, but what unique Jose Garces touches have you brought to the traditional “pintxos y vino” experience?

Jose: My focus is on showcasing the Basque region by creating great dishes that represent the area. Then we add a thoughtfully selected wine list. For example, we have a selection of sparkling Cava and ciders on Tinto’s list.

Brian: Does the wine-friendliness of a dish play any role in your creation of new recipes, or do you focus exclusively on the food and let Paul worry about finding the right pairing partner?

Jose: I would like to think that just about any dish can be ‘wine-friendly’ if you can find the right pairing, and that’s where Paul and I work as a team. He brings a sensitive palate and a tremendous depth of knowledge to our wine list, and painstakingly selects offerings that
complement the food – even the dishes that feature unusual flavor pairings, such as our green beans with almonds, dates, orange segments and paprika-sherry vinaigrette. That’s a lot of sweet and savory playing off each other, but when you try the dish alongside one of Paul’s crisp whites, the tart acidity of the wine only highlights subtle flavors that you would never otherwise have noticed in the dish.

Brian: Paul, do you have any specific pairing philosophy that you apply to pintxos in general and, more specifically, to the dishes that are served at Tinto?

Paul: First and foremost, the dishes that are very indicative of the Basque region, the ones that are less interpretations and more classics from the region, I always tell the staff to go with regional pairings. Regarding the green bean preparation that Jose mentioned, that would go with Txakoli, that would be our classic. Because you have the fat of the bean, the fat of the almond – the acidity in Txakoli is perfect for riding alongside that. They both work together. As you progress through the menu, the food gets heavier. We tend to make tapas that can be a little richer than one might find in the Basque region. That’s when we progress through the different styles and bodies of wine, so to speak, Rioja being on the lighter, more perfumed and acidic side, and then moving our way to the northeast with the full-bodied reds of Priorat and Montsant.

Brian: As the beverage manager, do small plates make your job easier or more difficult in terms of all the pairing possibilities throughout the meal?

Paul: It kind of depends on how the guest wants to experience things. It can be more difficult because you’re jumping around from flavor profiles, and that always is a challenge with wine because you can have a miss. But I think that both Amada and Tinto lean more toward the rich and savory, so you’re in a good spot if somebody takes a bottle of wine that has a lot of body and tannin. The food is going to continually meet that wine. Honestly, though, my philosophy on pairing is that it’s so far from an exact science—there are things you don’t do—but there are so many ways you can go around the classic ideas on pairing.

Brian: Then what are the regions or grape varieties that you see becoming more popular, or at least becoming more widely accepted by your guests?

Paul: Galician wines, and particularly Galician reds. And when I say that, I mean Mencía from Bierzo, Mencía from Ribeira Sacra – those are wines that our customers, once introduced to them, are gravitating towards and finding things that they like about them. They’re very character-rich, they’re darker, deeper, deeper-flavored, deeper-colored. They’re bigger-bodied wines. With wine trends, everyone goes for the big wines, and those wines from those two regions definitely offer that.

Brian: So do you think that you have a little more leeway with pairings because so many consumers may not be all that familiar with Basque or Spanish wines?

Paul: Exactly. That’s probably the best thing we’ve got going for us: They’re unfamiliar, so they’re willing to kind of take a chance.

About the author:
Brian Freedman is a food and wine writer, wine educator, and food and wine consultant. He is Director of Wine Education at The Wine School of Philadelphia, contributing writer for John Mariani's Virtual Gourmet, contributing editor and food and drinks writer for Philadelphia Style Magazine, restaurant writer for ICON Magazine, contributing writer for Where Magazine and the annual GuestBook, wine columnist for Affluent Magazine, contributing writer for Catersource Magazine, and WineChateau.com's resident blogger on www.UncorkLife.com.

Tinto is located at 114 South 20th St., Philidephia, PA 19103
Tel: 215-665-9150

Amada is located at 217-219 Chestnut St., Philidephlia, PA 19106
Tel: 215-625-2450

Village Whiskey is located at 118 South 20th St., Philadelphia, PA 19103
Tel: 215-665-1088

Distrito is located at 3945 Chestnut St., Philadelphia, PA 19104
Tel: 215-222-1657

Chifa is located at 707 Chestnut St., Philadelphia, PA 19106
Tel: 215-925-5555