Review: Tierra and Mar, Cirencester

This little restaurant in a tucked-away corner of Cirencester is really hard to pin down. Is it fine dining or casual? Is it modern or trad Spanish? Is it brilliant value or a bit confused? Is it tapas or tasting menu? I’m not sure I can answer all these questions, but Tierra and Mar is definitely worth talking about and definitely worth a visit.

The dining room is a nice bold Mediterranean blue with seaside prints in primary colours, and comfy but terribly floral dining chairs. I like the overall effect. Service is excellent and friendly. They offer tapas at £6-8 or a 3 course menu for £22 or a tasting menu for a bit more. I think your meal will turn out pretty similar whichever variation you plump for. We went 3 course.

First up was a rabbit terrine, with pickled pear, macadamia nut cream and a cardamom puree. The terrine was delicate, soft and beautifully rich in bunny flavour. The accompaniments added a bright, clean zing to it. Very pretty plate, lots of technique. Seven quid? Nice! Maureen’s seared tuna sounded a bit bonkers on paper: mango, black garlic, quail egg, nasturtium pesto. WTF? And yet the whole was a balanced sour-sweet affair that complimented the sesame-crusted tuna perfectly.

Second course for Maureen was grilled octopus with squid ink tapioca, samphire and chorizo, draped with wafer-thin tocino (pork fat). The slippery-salty tapioca was a magic texture alongside the meaty octopus and the pork fat just inspired. This was almost divine. The chorizo was an unnecessary distraction. Without it this dish would have been absolutely divine. Hey, still… seven quid!!! My blow-torched mackerel and pineapple with a citrusy & chilli salad was light and tasty, but simply beaten into second place by that octopus. Definitely dish of the day.

Now, for full disclosure: our third courses, both rice dishes, were badly over-salted. Something had gone oops. But when we raised it, they replaced without complaint, and once the kitchen realised their goof they couldn’t offer us enough in free wine, dessert and coffee by way of apology – very sweet. I always say that mistakes occasionally happen, and the mark of good service is how you react to them. So: super-massive thumbs up for service here.

The replacement was good, tender lamb with a fine jus, smoked garlic puree, and a selection of veg, although it’s going to be forgettable compared with the first two splendid courses.

So, yeah. Presentation-wise they’re going for a fine dining vibe, but the experience is actually more informal than that, and of course three courses for £22 is seriously – seriously – good value. The combinations are modern and inventive, certainly not solidly Spanish. And it’s either tapas, tasting or 3 course depending on your fancy! Tierra and Mar would be my first pick if I found myself needed dinner in Cirencester.