Santiago's Tapas in Cardiff

Food was disappointing for myself. My steak was overcooked and the amount of mushroom sauce poured over it ruined any remaining flavour, which also made the salad soggy. When we arrived the restaurant only had 2 tables, we were sat in the middle of these 2 tables, which felt a little awkward. At no point did anyone come to ask if our meals were ok, only once we were about to pay so I didn't have chance to inform them how disappointing my food was.

Lovely little tapas place. We had a great table by the window and the food was delicious and came out in good timing. The service was a little off. Still polite but had to keep asking for things and was like the whole team was temporary or their first time. The only thing was they didn’t have any sweet wine or dessert wines listed on the menu. Looking forward to going again though as had a wonderful family meal and a friend and was relaxing and enjoyable.

Always have such a brilliant time here and the food is incredible! The staff are very helpful and friendly! Highly recommend 😁

The food and service here is as good as ever. We were fooled by the change of name to EL CAMINO, but soon realised that staffing hasn’t changed. The name change at Merthyr Road follows a domestic upheaval. The restaurant is run by the female half of the now no longer partnership.

A name change to EL CAMINO but same staff and excellent food.

Excellent service, lovely atmosphere and delicious Spanish cuisine, fully recommended it!

Always excellent food and service here… we love the authentic Spanish decor too! The menu is varied and always well-priced representing excellent value, definitely a go-to for us.

The food is excellent if you like tapas. A good choice, good service and friendly staff. Highly recommended.

The food was delicious, it is the kind of place where you want to order more and more small tapas plates. The staff were amenable, they were booked inside and we booked an outside table. It wasn't due to rain, but it did, so they kindly worked out a way of offering us an inside space.

I love it here only one dish I want though. Paella and sangria are 😍

Good authentic Tapas food. Changed its name to El Camino, presumably because Santiago's maybe wasn't a clear enough pointer to what it is. Friendly Spanish lady on front of house. Service was good, about 3 tapas dishes per person was a good feed. Little bit of Northern Spain in Northern Cardiff.

Dreadful, the food is well below the standard it once was and is totally devoid of seasoning. I would avoid at all costs

Went to celebrate my daughter's graduation tonight. To be fair mist of the tapas was really good. Squid, prawns, peppers. Patatas bravas was actually mini roasted potatoes with flavoured mayo, , paella ok, but really nothing to rave about. Service was pretty poor as our waitress was busy chatting to the barman so we had to lean over a couple of times to remind them we were there. The worst thing was the toilets, absolutely disgusting, one cubicle for the men and one for the ladies. The ladies toilet had pubic hair and dried on urine and faeces all over it, the sink had a crack in it and the tap was loose from the sink. Would have been more hygienic to wee in a bush with a paper towel.

Very good experience eating there

Fab starters and sangria. Sadly our mains order was forgotten. waited for main meal too long, so had to leave. Will return as its a lovely venue and friendly staff.

The name change is extremely confusing to begin with, no notification from the venue to our party beforehand, as we were all walking up and down whitchurch village trying to locate the venue. Food was delicious, but the poor waitress was completely out of her depth. We were a party of 16, along with 7 or 8 other tables eating. Our meals came out all confused, and delivered to the wrong table ( we had 2 tables). 2 of our party received their meals after the entire group had finished their meals. Sorry but won't be returning any time soon.

Food was incredible! We went two nights before the grand re-opening, so drinks service was a little slow due to two new members behind the bar, however the staff were so polite and friendly. Fabulous evening, thank you!

Brilliant evening at Santiago’s Whitchurch - the venue was beautiful and authentically spanish - we loved the homemade tables! The food was excellent and we would definitely recommend the octopus, prawns and croquettes! The whole experience was made even better by the staff, especially the owner of the Whitchurch branch who was so accommodating and personable. We can’t wait to come back for your relaunch on 8th June!

Really poor food - £25 for the smallest steak I’ve ever seen - was meant to be a fillet but I don’t think it was - it was flat and gristly. Served with “Canarian” potatoes (5 boiled potatoes and 2 tiny dishes of sauce from a jar, I saw the clef pour them out) and few salad leaves in balsamic. Waiters forgot several drinks, then they virtually started stacking chairs at 10 oclock which we took as a cue to leave. Very poor value for money and poor food.

Had food this evening, not the best , steak was over done , prawns were rock hard , sea bass was lovely but all in all would not eat there again

Lovely service and amazing food as always. Reminds me of home in a little way!

Lots of empty tables on arrival and offered a table for 2. Considering this is a Tapas Restaurant and all the food was brought out at the same time, I now appreciate what it must have felt like to be a T-Rex, elbows in short arms! Just enough room to keep the drinks on the table and not the floor 😱. Service was poor and very slow, minimal levels of engagement and conversation. Food was very poor and portions were really small. Chicken Skewers only had 2 chunks of chicken! All food was very bland and disappointing to feel the need to head straight to a takeaway after. Management maybe need to visit other Tapas venues in Cardiff to see how it should be done. In terms of the toilet facilities, when questioned when the last inspection of the toilet had taken place it was met with a stunned silence as evidence by their check sheet.

Friendly helpful staff, and tapas tasted great and arrived quickly.

We visited Santiago on a Monday lunchtime. The restaurant was lightly busy. The first thing that hits you is the beautiful vibrant interior and how clean the restaurant feels. We were quickly seated by our waiter who helped us with the menu and made some great suggestions like the lamb stew. We went for the white Rioja to accompany it. Although I had high hopes I really could not have expected the food to be as good as it was, the lamb stew was just to die for as were the prawns. The dates wrapped in bacon were an absolute revelation, just so tasty and a combination I've never come across before. We also tried the cod and the mushroom crochets. We finished with a wonderful paella. I cannot recommend this restaurant enough. If you are in the area you should definitely go. It's real authentic tapas in a wonderful setting with great service. We will definitely return here with friends.

Visited here for lunch - ate off the set menu and it was delicious! Two different dishes and a small glass of wine for £12.95. Ordered four different dishes between us and shared. Looking forward to going again. Wait staff were really helpful and friendly. Lovely atmosphere

Excellent paella and the croquetas

Lovely restaurant serving authentic Spanish Tapas, great selection of Tapas as well as main meals and very friendly staff. Would recommend.

Great portions for Tapas. Would recommend the anchovies dish, sardine dish and red wines. You can either sit at talk tables or normal tables. I prefer the tall ones. Nice cosy atmosphere great for dates, work meet ups and socials.

The food lacked depth and complexity, and the service unfortunately did not make up for the poor food. We waited 1.5 h from being seated to starters, we then had to keep reminding staff for things we had ordered and there was not a single smile from staff all evening. Atmosphere was ok, food average and service poor. Would not rush back.

Lovely place with authentic Spanish and Canarian tapas. Wine selection good, beer was limited on last visit but usually a couple on tap. Would be good to see a few lunchtime offers or deals at quieter times, as cost can add up quickly! Staff friendly. Worth booking ahead for evenings.

Couldn't fault it will be returning soon

Worth a visit. Vegetarian options

Fabulous food and excellent service. We visited Sunday early evening for Mother's day and honestly can't fault the service or food. We are a family of 5 with kids ranging from 1 to 12 and everyone left feeling full and having cleared their plates. There was a great selection of food including a really good selection of gluten-free food. The management has clearly taken the reviews on board. The staff were very attentive, the food was served promptly and nothing was an issue. We can't wait to go back again soon.

Delicious Tapas. Good vegetarian and vegan options

Visited Valentine’s Day and gave previously been for a Birthday celebration. Friendly staff, great menu, great service.

I had a wonderful valentines night. We went solely for the Paella, (seafood) it was amazing. Service fantastic. The restaurant has a welcoming feel. I returned a few weeks later. Of course, our order was Paella, we at first asked if we had been given the wrong order, and the young lady was very helpful, went and checked, stating it was our order. As it was a seafood order, we had 3 strips of some kind of white fish on the top. I was sad to leave. However, we never ate it, paid what we owed, and left. Ending up two doors away in another restaurant. I would return asking whilst making the booking the right ingredients were available

Really good selection of food - the patatas bravas and the garlic prawns are outstanding. Staff were attentive and friendly. Reasonable selection of drinks. Will definitely come again.

We read a few scathing reviews about Santiago's Tapas, and had some reservations about visiting, but we're glad we did. The food was spot on - we had a series of tapas dishes and all were delicious, cocktails and sangria were great, and deserts were superb. Plenty of veggie options too The staff were attentive and friendly, and the ambiance was lovely. The venue was mostly full, lots of chatter and plenty of smiles We only thought to take photos at dessert (everything else got scoffed pretty quickly!) Wholeheartedly recommended

We read a few scathing reviews about Santiago's Tapas, and had some reservations about visiting, but we're glad we did. The food was spot on - we had a series of tapas dishes and all were delicious, cocktails and sangria were great, and deserts were superb. Plenty of veggie options too The staff were attentive and friendly, and the ambiance was lovely. The venue was mostly full, lots of chatter and plenty of smiles We only thought to take photos at dessert (everything else got scoffed pretty quickly!) Wholeheartedly recommended

Enjoyed our meal, and food served quickly and efficiently. I've been a few times now and always constant. It's great to have in the village.

Loved this place. We will definitely be going back❤️

Lovely food, good prices and fast friendly service

I have eaten both here and the one in city centre and both times were underwhelming which is such a shame. The bread with the dishes are like cheap tesco baguettes. The prawns are definitely from frozen and not fresh. Each dish came with a side of the saddest salad. Just poor effort and overpriced

Amazing music, food and atmosphere. It would be great if they had salsa nights.

Awful service and a very disappointing filet steak. Visited here for the first time tonight for my daughter in laws birthday. Took quite a while to get drinks and over half an hour before we gave our food orders and only then by asking one of the two waitresses!!!!!!! The waitress we had never smiled once she had no idea what drinks were available and when she did come back she leant over me with a baggy jumper which landed in my drink and face, not appropriate wear at all. We ordered our food and I ordered fillet steak medium. It wasn’t medium it was so pink I could only eat the outside of the steak, I did tell the waitress- she said she’d tell the chef?!?!?!?!? After we had our meals we ordered two cocktails pina colados, they came just pure pineapple juice and Malibu no coconut milk. We asked the waitress again she said there was no coconut milk and she had made them as per the instructions but we pointed out on the menu it says COCONUT MILK. The waitress took them off the bill. So going forward there needed to be somebody front of house because the service was very very poor we had to keep asking. I shouldn’t have been charged for my very rare steak after telling the waitress it was too bloody. The young girl serving us needed to not be wearing a baggy jumper which was in my face and food. Very disappointed spent £125 and won’t be going back any time soon. Where was the management? Front of house??? Who could we complain to????

We had booked a table on a Tuesday evening, expecting it to be quiet, but they were quite busy. I expect the staff were not the most experienced, which is why we had to wait. Then we had to flag the server down to get him to take our order. The starters were ok, nothing to write home about. We ordered paella, and I was expecting something at least faking Spanish, but what we got was like something out of the freezer. The rice was cooked, the prawns were overcooked, and the squid was soggy. There was almost no flavour either. The churro's were particularly disappointing, the chocolate sauce was more like watered down chocolate syrup that didn't coat the pastry at all. I don't think this was the fault of the staff, as they were clearly working hard, and very friendly. They didn't even kick us out when we over stayed our welcome, long after the kitchen had closed. Great staff, nice atmosphere, just a real shame about the food. Can't recommend for that reason.

Great selection of tapas, especially loved the papa arrugadas 😋, and the sangria was amazing.

Read recent reviews before we went and as a result had low expectations but we were very pleasantly surprised.The tapas ,the service and the atmosphere were all great.House red was excellent.

Had dinner and drinks here but was unfortunately quite disappointed. The atmosphere is good and it was easy to get a table for dinner. The food was all edible but nothing particularly special and a bit expensive for what it is. The sangria was awful and despite me telling the server I could not drink it, this was not deducted from our bill/no alternative was offered.

We turned up on a Sunday at 19.20 and were turned away. We wanted a quick tapas and drink but they said they close early on Sundays. I checked the website and it said they close at 21.00. Staff was sat there in the empty restaurant doing nothing, being busy on their phones. Shame. This would have been our first time here, definitely not returning for another try!

Baby squid like pork crackling so overcooked,tapas paella so dry and no meat

Ordered about 10 different tapas dishes. Some really yummy like the gambas, some just ok like the chorizo. Sangria was very good, service and price were OK. Ambience would best be described as 'loud' unfortunately. No background music, although there could have been, it was just so noisy in there you had to shout to be heard by the people on your table.

The positives - a good selection of beer and the decor is nice! The staff are pleasant and polite thumbs up to the staff. The staff are a little bit inexperienced for example, during serving one of our starters the waitress dropped a couple of pieces of squid on the floor by accident rather than apologise and say something like ' very sorry about that would you like me to replace the dish or perhaps discount it or something else' she smiled and walked off. It was an accident and didn't bother us but not the etiquette response you should expect. Booked a table for two - key feedback to the restaurant The table was too small to serve tapas dishes for two - bigger tables please. Your red wine selection is very poor - high prices, cheap, low quality and low grade bottles, £26 for bottle of red with a screw top not good - you could buy an equivalent at aldi for £4.56 this is not good and the more expensive bottles is just not worth the price to quality ratio. The food was absolutely, well and truly poor - poor presentation - burnt / overcooked / too much salt and oil - my chicken skewers were burnt to a charcoal appeared like a carcigencic plate of protein. I did politely reject them and ask for them to be replaced which sadly were replaced by just as equally burnt skewers- let's say, my original set of skewers were 100% burnt the replacement dish was about 80% at which point I gave up as the chefs clearly are not experienced. Other issues with food - the Spanish omelette wasn't fresh it was two slices reheated which left them tasteless and dry not enjoyable at all. The pedron peppers were over cooked smothered in salt and olive oil. The paella was tasteless and very dry. Let's call a spade and spade, this isn't anywhere near the quality tapas or standard it should be! It is nothing like you would get at a good tapas bar such as Bar44 as an example. Please note I have no affiliation with Bar44 our last visit there was before the pandemic which was great! If you're looking for friendly staff and a good beer this is your place if your looking for tapas shop elsewhere. Final message to the owner, please either get your chefs the training they clearly need or, replace them - you will not have business in 12 months at this rate if the standard isn't improved.

Beautiful food, great value for money. Everything we had was just delicious 😋

Our early evening Tapas, consisted of the Stewed Beef, Prawns in Garlic with Mushroom, House Potatos, Olive selection, Chicken skewers and Mahou Lager. Great ambience, busy with Locals, and Happy Staff. All in All, a Very Pleasant Time.

We had a great night, very busy evening ! Staff friendly and polite.. wine went down very well and the food was 👍 i recommend a visit to this place if visiting whitchurch great atmosphere 👌

food is amazing! The meat paella is out of this world was literally scraping the sides of the pan for more, patatas bravas and the chicken croquettes are also 10/10 as are the other tapas selections!

Great food, a nice change from the run of the mill menus. Warm, friendly service. Well worth a visit.

Sad to say I have to be honest about my experience here, thought I’d try somenthing new as it was my partners birthday and looking for some real authenticity. The presentation and quality of the food was mediocre to start with .. starters .. olives , all green, swimming in acidity and lacking balance colour and presentation, The main was seafood Paella .. mainly rice and not much seafood with it, taste .. very basic , lacked flavour , quality and depth, on arrival only one napkin and no accompanying condiments so I had to go and ask. The place lacks any ambience there just isn’t any atmosphere especially for a Friday night .The only saving grace was the bottle of Colombard wine served chilled and quite refreshing. Price wise it wasn’t expensive so you can’t expect to be blown away .. but I wanted to feel like I was in a real tapas bar somewhere in Spain and I felt like I just got a take away and was sat in my car … must say the staff were polite and pleasant but attention to detail needs a little more care… I am sorry to say but there we are !

What an amazing evening 👍 we took our 8 year old granddaughter with us. Food was quick and tasted fantastic. There was also plenty of options for our granddaughter who actually tried more than she would eat at home. Service was fantastic and we will certainly be visiting again very soon. Well done guys had a fab night.

We were walk ins in a busy Friday night so could only sit outside but it was warm and a lovely atmosphere. Staff were very friendly and the tapas and sangria was good.

Lovely restaurant, fantastic food and really well priced. Staff were lovely too.

Visited with family to celebrate a birthday, wanting to recreate a recent trip to Spain. Food was pretty decent, not perfect but no complaints. Atmosphere and service needs considerable work however. Some staff who were not on shift had taken a prime table and were distracting the working staff, leaving tables unattended, without drinks or table checks. Part of my order was wrong and when I raised this I was told ‘no, that’s what you ordered’ (before noting my facial expression and swiftly correcting it). Customer service 101 would teach them that this is an unacceptable response that will lead to a bad trip advisor review at the very least! Staff, although pleasant individuals, were also over familiar for our liking, commenting on the choices we made etc. No management were visible during this or a previous visit - a vital missing ingredient if this restaurant, which could be fabulous, is to be saved.

Booking doesn’t mean you’ll get a table!!! We had a table booked, when we arrived and gave our name to the waitress, she just walked off and ignored us. Eventually another waitress asked if we had booked, then told us someone was sat at our table and wouldn’t be leaving for a while, so offered to squeeze us in between them and another couple. We turned down this offer and went elsewhere.

Booking doesn’t mean you’ll get a table!!! We had a table booked at Santiago and when we arrived and gave our name to the waitress, she just walked off and ignored us. Eventually another waitress came, arranged for the table of 5 that came after...

Went here with my wife on a Friday evening, and we really enjoyed it. The tapas was reasonably priced, well portioned, and every dish we had was delicious. The staff were really friendly and helpful; it’s great to know that there’s a good tapas restaurant outside of the city centre!

The food excellent staff excellent would recommend it and we will be going back.

The service was excellent, as the young ladies were very friendly and accommodating. The food was ok. The soft drinks were fine, but the wine was lovely. 3 stars because the food was not excellent, but good enough to put a smile on your face.

Had a very nice meal at this restaurant, very good wheelchair access, they do have a disabled toilet but does not have great access to the toilet itself, the meal was very nice a good atmosphere very freindly staff

Just fabulous - will go a third time soon, great tapas selection and Spanish beers x

Wow, was just like being back, an absolute ratatouille moment! You also know it's good when you hear Spanish speaking people sat having a meal too! Great staff great food will definitely be going back.

The food was lovely! Came out extremely quick though which was slightly worrying, still, tasted great. The service wasn’t great I’m afraid to say. Took a while for our order to be taken, despite four members of staff stood behind the bar chatting. Majority of...

Awful food. I visited Santiago’s a couple of years ago and really enjoyed the tapas. I decided to go back with my partner and was left embarrassed that I suggested it to him. There was 0 atmosphere. No music on in the restaurant apart from...

Disappointing experience, went there with high expectations, however the service let us down. The food arrived quickly but after that we were left waiting for the table to be cleared with no drinks for almost 2 hours. The quality of the food was satisfactory at...

Sat outside in the sun. Lovely afternoon. Food was good, service was a little slow, but with a smile. Would go again.

Superb food. Great place for occasional meal.

We've been several time to this restaurant and always enjoyed the food so we were very disappointed with the poor food served today. Food was bland, dry and most of the dishes were obviously not fresh and just reheated. There were extra items we hadn't...

The food wasnt very nice. The patatas bravas werent typically Spanish (roast potatoes with garlicky mayo) We ordered lots of food but I couldnt eat most of it. I had to ask for bread because it was the only decent food! The drinks were the best part and the service was great! Martha was a fabulous waitress!

Miserable unwelcoming staff. Food OK. Staff awful

Had better more authentic tapas elsewhere in Cardiff. Not bad, but not quite there

The food was really lovely enjoyed it

Really lovely food. Loads of flavour and a nice place. Was disappointed with the service at first, no menus brought to us and no one asked what we wanted for a good ten minutes despite it being 1/3 full. The food made up for it, and eventually the staff were helpful.

Really liked the no seafood chicken and chorizo paella. Fab to have that choice. Great friendly service too.

Great food. Great cocktails. Recommend!

Great food fantasic service Thank you

A truely authentic experience and top quality food, and consistent. Well worth a visit. Will definitely visit it again

We had the best evening here! Excellent food (with a dedicated GF menu), lovely wine, fab wait staff, great ambience. We are already looking forward to our next visit!

Clean and tidy, lovely food, a nice selection for people who dont like to try new things and for people who want to try everything. I will be going back there again

Food was great, sangria was also lovely. Can't fault it

Great food, wine etc. Vastly overpriced for the premises.

Food was fantastic. Staff brilliant. Just a bit annoyed at a service charge for 4 people.

Very poor food, both of us very disappointed with all 6 dishes we ordered :( Bland, dry and didn’t taste fresh, won’t be returning…

The restaurant was nice, clean and welcoming, and the service was faultless, but the food itself was pretty dire. We ordered six dishes from the tapas menu and couldn’t find many positives in any of them. The paella was just microwaved dry rice with about...

Decent place, the staff were all stood at the bar talking while we were eating which was really awkward

Not much of a welcome when we arrived and we were put on a small table which was cramped. We asked for a more suitable table, but were ignored. We had mainly tapas and the food was okay, but not the most flavoursome food I...

Friendly, relaxed atmosphere with delicious food and great service.

Popped in with friends without a booking and were greeted immediately by our friendly waitress and promptly seated. Our waitress (although new) recommended a lovely Red for us and suggested how many tapas would be a good number for 3 of us sharing and which...

Sat down and the waiter threw menus on the table without so much as a word, otherwise service was pretty standard, food was ok but nothing special, 3 stars feels fair

Great food, quite generous portions, good prices. Could improve the service speed- waited quite a while to order mains and puds and then took a bit too long for those to arrive

Nice Spanish place, though nothing out of the ordinary. The octopus was a little smellyband tough and you have to pay for your bread, but the food was otherwise good and the service very pleasant.