Gambas Tapas Bar in Bristol, City of - Phone Number, Reservations, Reviews

A visit to Gambas had been on my wish list for many, many months. We finally visited with a group of friends, and it truly lived up to expectations. Delicious wine, with a mix of classic and more unusual tapas plates. The croqueta were a particular stand out dish. I look forward to returning.

We ordered around 5 plates and did not really enjoy any of them. The restaurant itself is nice but did not enjoy the food at all. Plus the meat dishes came a while before the vegetable ones so I had eaten most of it by the time my partner ate.

Genuinely some of the best tapas I've had. Worth the money.

Amazing food, amazing staff. Everything you hope and wish for when you go out for a nice meal. Go try for yourself

Great food (vegetarian friendly!), lovely atmosphere, good service. Had a wonderful experience with my family - all three generations of us.

Prompt service, delicious tapas, great atmosphere. Really enjoyed the red wine, the goxua dessert was a highlight among many delicious plates. This was a repeated visit for a late Sunday lunch. I will definitely be back.

Fantastic tapas, the staff are very friendly and very helpful with recommendations and suggestions. The food was excellent and plenty to choose from.

Great quality food in a relaxed atmosphere. The table was divided about the best dish, with each new plate being "the best". Don't miss out on the Galician Octopus- just sublime 😋

Ok so I ate here tonight with four friends on a whim - we paid £47 a head and left feeling sated and happy. On the negative side, our fifth member of the table was a little neglected (four plates at the start, four towelettes at the end, and he had to wait for an extra chair - only little things but not first class service in this regard). The cost was high but I reckon that it was in line with the quality of the food which was surprisingly good and above expectations for a random visiting to a tapas place. The portions are small for the money but the flavours came through pretty well. Perfect calamari. The croquettes were cheesy and rich and unctuously delicious. The tomato salad well dressed and refreshing. The aubergine and molasses was a little high on the absorbed oil but amazing nevertheless! Mussels done simply but well and full of flavour. Most dishes were slightly better in quality than I’d expected so a pleasant surprise. I was happy with dishes coming piecemeal (unlike other reviews I’ve read) because the food is coming fresh when it’s ready. Having it all arrive at once would have been a pain! And some stuff would have gone cold too soon. Wine not the cheapest (prob £80 for two bottles having a healthy mark up) but we enjoyed it! To summarise, costs high but reasonable for what we ate. Would come again.

Excellent food with attentive servers, great place.

Highly recommend. Excellent service from the staff. Food was great.

Tasty and well prepared food but way overpriced. Super micro portions for what you pay. 6 people and we have order about 13 tapas, some vine bottle and cider. For example we have had dogfish tapas, it cost £10 and you get 6 tiny cherry vine tomatoes size pieces of fish ;-0 Everyone end up super hungry and it cost us about £300 This tapas is more like have a glass of wine with tiny snack to eat stop.

This place has it licked. Top drawer. 👍

Had the most amazing meal tonight. Can’t thank you all enough. Everything was amazing from start to finish including service, food and drinks.

Visited Bristol with my partner and booked to eat here. Exceptional in all departments, the tuna was amazing and the Peach and Thyme Sangria was a game changer. Highly recommend.

Have used Gambas for many years. This visit was particularly good in all respects - food, service , atmosphere. It was particularly notable as it was to celebrate a birthday. Thank you to all at Gambas for making it special.

Great food and service, loved the music too - Steely Dan and Led Zep - what’s not to like!

Wonderful leisurely lunch. Lovely staff and relaxed atmosphere. Delicious food. Thanks team Gambas!

The food is amazing, sat outside on warm evening, overlooking the waterfront. It was a great evening

Food was good but service was half baked

The sister restaurant of Bravas is just as brilliant. Every dish was a perfect balance of flavours and textures. Staff friendly, fair pricing. Brava!

Super vibey place with really fun and attentive staff. Food was brilliant too. Excellent place that is well worth a visit. It's inside a stack of shipping containers if you're feeling a bit lost with map directions. Definitely worth nosing it out

Oyster happy hour for 2£ each from 5-6pm every Wednesday to Friday

Great service and great food! Fresh, succulent ingredients of the highest quality cooked to perfection and served with a smile.

A perfect combination of good food, good service and good atmosphere. When it comes to Spanish food, I tend to be pretty fussy and discerning. Spanish food may at first glance appear to be simple, but trust me, simple is difficult. The team at Gambas do a great job of preparing those small tasty dishes and serving them on the double whilst there are still piping hot out of the pan. If you’re curious and would like to see a well oiled machine at work, I would recommend sitting at the chef’s counter where you can see all the magic happen. The food is quite flavoursome and varied. Plenty of choice to suit all tastes. The olives are great and the marinade they come in is pretty good to dip your bread in. The Spanish omelette with chorizo has a delicious smoky flavour and the crema catalana is a perfect way of finishing your meal.

The standard of the food here is incredible, every dish was special. my friend was dairy free too and we didn't struggle to order loads of dishes we both wanted to share. service is brilliant, friendly and they all seemed very informed of the menu. it's a very small space with lots of tables so if you're looking for a quiet relaxed environment then this isn't the place to pick but I love the bustle and pace. it's nice to see into the kitchen too. my favourite dish was the monkfish and I also loved the chocolate mousse. I've also had the truffles before and they are insane.

Could use air conditioning food was good, quick and friendly service

AMAZING! They were swamped due to festival but service was still great. Mix up at bill time but again, dealt with really well. Food incredible. Great ambience. Would go again!

Great food, chilled place, lovely service!

We enjoyed our meal so much we came back the next day to eat here again. We started with croquetas on both days, the first was flavoured with blood sausage and the next with mushrooms, both were superb. Many things stood out, for example the mussels were the best I've been served in England for years (so often wizened and disappointing, not here), they were huge, plump and perfectly cooked (see the photo). The calamares were fried n the lightest of batters and deliciously crisp, the octopus was just so tender, the tortilla - gooey in the middle just as it should be. the staff obviously take pride in the food and took real care of us. The restaurant is built into a cargo shipping container with views of the river. We sat at a table outside watching the buzzy life going on all around us. If you enjoy seafood this is the place to go in Bristol.

What a fantastic find! Well worth the drive from sleepy little Wells. The selection of tapas is amazing, the portions are good and the quality excellent.

Excellent service and a lovely atmosphere. Food was excellent and the croquettes were the best i’ve had!

Great Fish and Chips! Nice Scampi as well. Central location. Kind and friendly staff.

Fantastic authentic Spanish tapas, professional speedy service. Highly recommended!

we can eat amazing Spanish meals!

The food was absolutely delicious and the service equally impressive. Will definitely come back to try the dishes we didn’t order this time!

Great food and excellent staff, not just one but all 4 we spoke to. Well done all of you for making it a special evening. We hadn't booked but managed to get a table after a short wait on a busy Friday night. Highly recommend the pink txacoli for the jeopardy in pouring! (Order it and you'll see) Also the shrimp tortitas which were an accidental order and therefore complimentary. Loved it.

This place is just amazing . Food, service!!!! Lovely bunch of people and food is divine!!!

Always perfect cooking, and great service.

Lovely staff, delicious food. Great atmosphere!

Nice service and location but everything was way too salty, and the portion size was too small for its price.

We went here for a friends Birthday, the service and food were incredible.

Excellent food packed with flavour!! My friend and I booked for the first time and were so impressed. We had 6 dishes between us and cocktails and sangri and not one of the dishes disappointed. Atmosphere was busy and pleasant. Certainly felt like I stepped into Spain for the evening. Will 💯 return!

Simply loved this place! Great menu and very high quality food. Authentic Spanish tapas with fresh ingredients. It is almost like a instant transportations to Spain. Lovely staff.

Absolutely fantastic meal, couldn’t fault a single dish! The tuna especially was sublime, couldn’t recommend Las Gambas more 10/10

Way too expensive for what you get. £12 for 3 prawns?! You have to be joking. Also the tortilla needed salt, so did the squid. Most things underwhelming and eye wateringly expensive. Also one of our table said they didn’t want to partake in the wine we were ordering but the waiter still Insisted on bring her a glass anyway AND pouring her a small glass ‘just in case’ .. this is terrible waiter etiquette. She doesn’t drink. Also had to call staff over constantly if we needed anything like the bill or other things, we saw them mainly wandering about. Won’t be back

Lovely friendly staff The food is amazing

Very kind and efficient service. Croquetas were absolutely divine, but the rest of the food was just average in our opinion. Apricot/basil sangria was disappointing, not much flavour to it.

Saw a review of Gambas before visiting Bristol and it didn't let me down. We didn't book, but they squeezed us in at the bar which allowed us to see the chefs at work. The fried aubergine drizzled with molasses was delicious! Great food, service and atmosphere.

Delicious spot - very authentic, broad and interesting menu (great specials) and fabulous service.

Exceptional. Great service and food from the gods. The specials were immense. Even the music was good

Great food, although on this visit our food was a little too salty. We sat at the bar where we watched as chefs liberally sprinkled salt on everything. Next time I’ll ask for less salt

Our favourite spot to eat in Bristol

We used to come to Gambas a lot when living back in Bristol. It was our favourite restaurant. We came back recently, and it is still very nice but something has changed. The menu is limited, the service didn't feel as intimate or exclusive and the food took a lot longer to come out. Has to ask the waiter to order a few times. Having said that, it is still very nice but disappointed that the quality hasn't been sustained.

We booked Gambas private dining room for our work summer get-together. Everything - the food, the wine, the service - was truly exceptional. Huge thank you to Nell and the team for a very memorable evening.

Picked for 25th birthday and was well worth it. Really nice spot near the harbour side with friendly staff and unique tasty food. Would highly recommend

Wow, amazing food and drinks. Ordered an espresso martini, pesto tomatoes, potatoes, and pork. All of it was worth writing home about. If you get one dinner in Bristol, this is the place to go as far as I know. Excellent food, service, and atmosphere. Go out of your way to get here. It's worth the detour.

The Private Dining Room at Gambas proved to be the perfect venue for an intimate and informal retirement dinner. From start to finish, the experience was seamless, largely thanks to the incredibly attentive and friendly staff. Nell, was exceptional. She ensured every detail was meticulously handled, which significantly contributed to the overall delightful dining experience. All of our guests were thoroughly impressed with the ambiance, the quality of service, and the delicious food. The warm and inviting atmosphere of the Private Dining Room, made the evening memorable for everyone in attendance. Thank you, Gambas!

Sat at the bar, would recommend, mussels best I ever had done over charcoal maybe? And gambas came authentic in bubbling hot oil, cocktails were on point too. Can't fault it, especially during golden hour. 10/10

There was a lovely ambience on Thursday evening and the staff were attentive and friendly. The food was authentic and of good quality and what we had was tasty, although some of the dishes were a little small for the price. A nice experience but slightly overpriced in our opinion.

I really like this area of Bristol and have yet to be disappointed by any restaurant here, once more I'm not the food was excellent. It's a tapas food style, which can work out expensive I always think but here it is worth the expense. We had a bill of per couple and there were three couples, so not a cheap interesting food and drink. No I didn't leave so stuffed I couldn't move, interesting hungry, and I wasn't drunk so if your aim is to eat plenty and drink lots on a budget then maybe this isn't the place for you! But as a treat and interesting tasty food, although the potato bravas was made with pre cooked slightly old potato's (it a thing of mine that I can taste re used potato and the longer they sit the more of the flavour I can get, however rich or spicey any sauce is) but the rest of the table enjoyed it. Non of us could cope with the prawn and the odd black sauce that came out when you pulled the heads off, we left most of the smaller prawns, nobody could bring themselves as it looked really nasty! But again 8m sure we were being silly and if was all fine. Nice location, good good, good company but please don't call me a guy, I'm officially guy'd out and wish waiting staff would stop using it! But I'm a middle aged woman and maybe I'm alone (not on my table last night though!)

Exceptional restaurant, easily one of the best food spots in Bristol.

My fav lunch spot in Bristol. The air dried tuna is a stand out

Very buzzy and busy on a Friday night. The staff were lovely especially as one of our party is in a wheelchair and they were really helpful with her. Hande our server was great. The food and wine were delicious and we had a great evening. Would highly recommend.

Lovely food as always , great atmosphere, very chilled night

Went last night 14th May with four colleagues and friends, and they were very flexible to accommodate our increased number. . First visit for three of my friends who loved the food and vibe. Tried lots of new dishes all of which were excellent. IberiaPork was a revelation. Great value and highly recommended

I will keep coming back to this place - the food is always absolutely spot on. Simple dishes and flavours but the quality is always excellent. Staff and setting are great too. Add more vegetarian options and I'll come even more often!

One of our favourite restaurants in Bristol. Recommended

Never fails to disappoint I really love it there.gambas Phil pil the calamari basically everything on the menu.the staff are great too

First time at Gambas. Regular eater of Spannish Tapas. To enjoy Tapas (Small Dishes) ideally your choices should be all served together so that you can taste something different everytime and enjoy mopping sauce with you bread. Unfortunately this is not how it's served at Gambas. Eating one plate at a time is not an enjoyable experience so it made no difference how good the food was and it was good, Tapas is best served all together. Sorry poor show, won't be returning.

Hongchang Title: Exploring Swansea’s new treasure – Hongchang Xing Super League Hello everyone! Today I want to share with you a new treasure in Swansea - Hongchangxing Super League! 🛒✨ Located in the heart of Swansea City, Hung Cheong Hang Chinese Supermarket is a supermarket offering a variety of Asian ingredients and products. Whether you are interested in Asian food or want to find the taste of hometown, this is your best choice! 1. Diverse Asian ingredients: Hongchangxing Supermarket has a rich variety of Asian ingredients, from fresh vegetables and fruits to various seasonings. Whether you're looking to cook an authentic Chinese meal or try other Asian delicacies, we've got you covered here! 2. Specialty products: In addition to ingredients, Hongchangxing Supermarket also provides a variety of specialty products, including snacks, condiments, household items, etc. You can find many unique items here to make your life more colorful! 3. Comfortable shopping environment: The Hongchangxing Super League store is clean and bright, and the shopping environment is comfortable. The staff's friendly service attitude will make you feel the warmth of home during the shopping process. If you are also interested in Asian food, don’t miss Hongchangxing Super League! Come here and explore the world of Asian food! 🌏🛍️ #Swanseafood #Asianfood #hongchangxingzhongchao

Wow! What a find this was, excellent food, service and atmosphere. We will definitely be recommending and returning.

Love cargo restaurant down by the harbour. Would recommend the croquettes and the aubergine fries which were surprisingly sweet but very tasty!

Very cool restaurant serving both traditional and unusual tapas plates - all delicious. Warm welcome, friendly attentive service and relaxed vibe. We loved it, thank you!

Fab food and nice people! They also offered some water to our dog :)

Very nice tapas, definitely worth the hype so make sure you book! Good wine and service too. Would recommend the prawns (of course) and the Iberian pork in particular. There were a couple of things on the menu which were unavailable but they were clear about that from the moment we sat down so not a problem in the slightest. They recommend 3 plates per person which was exactly right. Only marked down a star cause the fire alarm kept going off, might not be the restaurant’s fault but it was obviously quite annoying

Can’t review the food because we didn’t get that far. After being seemingly forgotten we decided to leave. Took five minutes to get menus, no biggie. Took another five to get the gluten free menu. No drink orders were taken at either visit to the table. And then… tumbleweed. We sat there with our tap waters and waited. Our server seemed to disappear completely. Two other servers were around - one walked past our table three times. Didn’t even look at us. Communication is free. If you are running slow, be honest with customers rocking up to see if you’ve got a table, and at least we can make a judgement as to whether we’re going to stay. Don’t repeatedly walk past tables pretending we don’t exist. It was a real shame because the location is lovely.

The food was great and the atmosphere was very nice! They are dog friendly and accommodating for our dog. We enjoyed the fish of the day(mackerel with dill and lemon sauce) and the variety of the seafood dishes. Highly recommend the gambas pil pil. Will definitely visit again!

We had a fantastic meal at Gambas!! Really fresh tasty food and good wine! The staff were excellent and fun !

The food was just yum ! Highlights for me were the mushroom croquets and the omlette tortilla with chorizo ♡ It looked very busy and bit claustaphobic inside so we sat outside near a flame heater, it was still bit chilly but the food and the lovely view kept us going!

Genuinely lovely restaurant run by genuinely lovely people. Food is amazing, would highly recommend to anyone who will listen.

Delicious food, good portions and friendly service.

Food was really underwhelming, had high hopes for this place. Biggest issue was the Prawn Pil Pil, a dish that is as simple as they come to make and a personal fave, but what they served up was shocking. Hardly any garlic flavour, lacking in spice. Literally red oil and a fluffy prawn that was disgusting, almost tasted off. Sent had one bite each and had to snlend it back. The calamari's seasoning was inconsistent and tasteless. I've had better from a chip shop. The tuna tortita was bland, greasy and some the tuna belly had hard inedible bits in there, so I imagine poor fishmonger/knife skills. Aubergine was decent enough, but came about 20 minutes after everything else. Heritage tomatoes for nearly a tenner, had zero taste, like the Holland based Lidl variety. The tastiest part of our £120 lunch for two, was the bread and aoli. All in all, the place has a nice vibe, but I've eaten way better Tapas at a fifth of the price in Spain. Won't be visiting again, unless the kitchen have a real think about he quality of what they are sending out.

Great evening. Fabulous food. Friendly staff. Really enjoyable evening people watching, watching the sun go down with fabulous food

Tasty food , for the most part, but didn’t like the combination of flavours on one of the dishes and the bones in the fish would have been better managed with a fish knife. The wine was also overpriced. Good service and lovely being close to chefs, however. very nice all round just nothing special.

Fantastic food and service as always at Gambas. The specials menu was lovely, particularly the beef carpaccio and tomato dishes. Nice buzzy atmosphere too.

Superb food, friendly chefs and a great experience. We’d especially recommend the mackerel and the sherry. We also loved the building

Best calamares I have ever had!

From the moment we walked in the service was excellent. The tapas were delicious, the chefs so creative. My husband and I enjoyed it so we’re booking again soon! I’d recommend to book a table as I would be so disappointed if they couldn’t accommodate us. We went on a Saturday so it was busy.

Great food. Friendly staff and a buzzy atmosphere. In a great position.

Walked past looking for lunch and randomly found this small place for tapas. Looked busy which always is good and the smell of the food enticing, only down side was having to sit outside as cold. Luckily there was a heater at the table otherwise ee wouldn't have stayed. Made a selection of tapas with some help from staff recommendations and a very nice bottle of house white. The food came as and when cooked, all the plates were fantastic, fresh and really better than antipated. Would highly recommend.

Food was delicious and private dining room lovely. Our Spanish friends were very impressed and felt the menu was very authentic.

Never been here before but will not be the last. We thouroughly enjoyed every thing about it . Was concerned the only table left was the chefs counter but to be honest it was great and interesting to watch, perfect when you are a 2 we will be back with friends👍🏻

Fantastic seafood-based tapas, incredibly light and refined. The tuna tortita that day was divine. As were the gambas pil pil & the aubergines w/ molasses…

I didn't realise Gambas meant prawn. So when seeing all the prawns on the menu it all suddenly made sense. It's great food!

Excellent carpaccio and octopus!

Lovely place very tasty food and attentive service highly recommended if you like tapas to share with friends

I’m celiac, ordered from their gluten free menu, they served us regular bread. Ate it thinking it was gluten free, started feeling sick, when it came time to pay the bill, I mentioned it and they removed 1.50, for the gluten free bread from the bill. I’m about to have a terrible day to having eaten their bread and they had the cheek to take 1.50 off the bill. Any reputable place would have not charged us anything. Extremely disappointed by the way we were treated there. Do not recommend.

NOT gluten free friendly!! We ordered GF items but then they gave us none gluten free items and my partner has celiac and now our day is ruined!! I’m so upset and also on top of that they charged us for it.

Delicious food and really friendly staff. Online said fully booked but I rang in case and they had a window seat. Despite a busy service we weren’t waiting long at all. All the plates were amazing and would happily visit again!