Review Lola Cocina Spanish Restaurant - Crows Nest

Amazing spanish meal. Tapas style and very well done. Loved the sangria and all the dishes were well displayed and had amazing flavour. Went with my husband and we had a chicken, pork belly and he got a seafood, and 2 veggie dishes. Was the perfect amount for 2 people. I definitely will come back. The waitress was very knowledgeable and friendly. I want to make it back on a Saturday to see the salsa dancing!

Lovely Spanish restaurant with nice ambiance, although with the front door open, the street noise wasn’t as pleasant. The drinks and wine list were extensive including a few interesting selections like vermouth. The tapas were quite generous given the price. Would love to go back when there is music on but they hold it on weekdays.

Food was OK. Paella I had - Veg and Chicken was bland but would be good for someone who doesn’t prefer spicy or hot food. Mushrooms, potato and chicken tapas were not bad. Customer service was good. Would I go back all the way from City on a bus? Probably not. One off is OK.

Overall experience was awesome! The service was great and the server was very personable and helpful with the menu. We jumped around and had meat, seafood, vegetarian, dessert and drinks. All were awesome… Definitely a great atmosphere for date night.

Incredible service, vibrant atmosphere and delicious food! One of the less expensive places to eat in the area. Highly recommend for groups or date night!

Best Spanish restaurant I've ever been to in Sydney. Outstanding food and very friendly staff. Highly Recomended!

Great cheese and tasty Jamon Serrano. I really enjoyed house white & rose wine. The portion of paella is large and more than enough for 3 ppl. Don't miss out Flamenco dance on Saturdays.

We opted for the all-you-can-eat tapas and one glass of sangria - which is available on Wed and Thu nights for $45. The tapas were pretty good. Nothing stood out one way or the other. The churros were a bit average. Definitely understaffed and it takes a lot of time to grab someone’s attention. Bottom line - I dont regret going here once but can’t see myself here again

I have visited Lola cocina twice and both times have been blow away by the quality of the food and service. The staff are lovely, the owner is a gem, who deals with even the most vile of rude customers with perfect customer service (not me, 2 women who wouldn't stop making a terrible entitled scene), and the decor is warm and inviting. I especially like the live music on Thursdays. Will definitely be back. Also, they have rewardle with lots of points options!

Review by Becca Bites ���� Lola Cocina in Crows Nest is a nice little Spanish restaurant I have been wanting to try. Always busy and sometimes hard to get a seat, luckily I was with a well known local who got us a table no problem. We started with red sangria with vodka which I had never tried and really enjoyed $40 and I guess if you think $10 per glass and could be described as a cocktail it's a bargain!!! We did wait a little for food and it seemed to come out in a weird order. Tho knowing it was busy it's hard to complain and the fact that the food was good makes up for it I guess. We started with haloumi salad, good quality haloumi and fresh salad. Mussels second in a yummy broth and bread for dipping, there were a couple of suspect mussels we didn't eat tho that's not uncommon to find an unopened mussel, my one tasty a little dodgy so I did not eat it. The broth was nice. Then we received the figs wrapped in prosciutto which we thought we would receive first, very very good!! Lastly we got the pork belly which was divine!!! Cooked well and tasty accompaniments, the highlight of the meal and a good note to end on:) If in Crows Nest I highly recommend trying this little gem for yourself, I am excited to return to try some other dishes which is always a good sign. Live music on Thursday night as well, tho it can get a little loud there is two sections inside and outdoor seating with heaters to cater for your needs. ���� Becca Bites

Had delicious food in relaxing environment,this is the best place to have fun with your friends and families.10 out of 10 for everything,cheers��

Great ambience -exquisite food-variety and freshness in the menu-and a fantastic Sangria-Cheers! Highly recommended.(Friendly and efficient staff-thank you!)

I was at the restaurant 2 weeks ago and it was so good we decided to take some friends on Friday night to experience the food as a larger group. We sat down and started ordering a bottle of red. I picked a bottle - and the lady corrected me as she REMEMBERED that was the same bottle we had the week before !! Can you even believe that. What attention to detail. Fantastic food.

Great menu and reasonably priced. The best paella we've had in a long time and the Sangria was amazing! We'll be back to dive into the entire tapas menu ☺

All the food is amazing and the service is so good even when they're flat out busy. Have never been dissapointed and Rita goes above and beyond every single time.

The best tapas on the North Shore. ❤️ Greeted by wonderful friendly staff and delicious food.

Great food and service, seemed a little rushed as the whole platter was put out at once which caused the food to go a little cold. Will be back

Great little Spanish restaurant tucked away in Crows nest. Extensive menu wish we had gone with friends so we could have tried more dishes. Great ambience, friendly staff and added bonus of byo if you wish.

Great tapas place, Highly recommended it. Tapas or paellas with sangria is a must. Very friend staff.

We went here for the first time for dinner with our young son. They were very accommodating and the tapas and sangria were absolutely delicious. We will definitely go back.

Lovely delicious Spanish food, tasty paella � sweet sangria

Food and wait staff were excellent went the tapas and very yummy even the sardines were excellent As for the restaurant it needs air conditioning or a fan in the main eating area although the windows were opened it was very stuffy

Beautiful food, Sangria and Coffee. A must try if you are in the area!

Most amazing food I have had in a long time worth the money I will defiantly be going back for more

We love Spain and visit there as often as we can. When we can’t get there we love Spanish food elsewhere. Lola Cocina is a cosy place in Crows Nest that offers a variety of Spanish food - including tapas - in a lovely environment. We were here for the tapas. We love white anchovies. In fact, we love the brown ones too. The Boquerones were white anchovies on top on thick sliced baguette topped with piquillo pepper slices and drizzled with olive oil. It was such a simple dish but it tasted so good. The salty anchovies were offset nicely with the spicy pepper.

While the tapas isn’t exactly tapas. It’s actual mains. The tbone was actually a full tbone with potatoes. The taste and execution was basic, something you can make at home on a weeknight. <br/><br/>The pork belly had the typical combination of apple and saukraut however because it wasn’t fresh, the crackling was hard to eat and chewy. Again, it wasn’t tapas, more ljke an entree with 3 belly squares .<br/><br/>The mixta paella had a lovely deep tomato base and seafood flavour but it didn’t have the crust at the bottom. It felt like it was preprepared and heated up in the oven just before serving. <br/><br/>Flavour wise the food is decent. However due to paella being the star and crown of Spanish eateries and as this one doesn’t deliver the crust, I won’t be returning.

By far this is the best Spanish Restaurant. a lot of  variety of food and sangria which is always great. Busy busy all the time and amazing vibe.

Delicious and fresh tapas. Buffet on tapas was good value. Will be back!<br/>

It’s actually a 3.5. Recommend by my husband’s colleagues, so we decided to come here on a Saturday night. Tapas and Paella were tasty, Sangria were good too. However the portions were bit too small for the price, not complaining, just a comment.

Nice pleasant environment with rustic charm. Dark candle lids ambience reminds me of a restaurant somewhere in the Mediterranean.<br/><br/>They have a decent kids menu, kind of chuffed my kiddo can order the mini paella instead of some boring chicken nuggets!<br/><br/>We settled on the sharing platter with option for 3 seafood tapas and 4 meat tapas.<br/>Had the:<br/>- stuff peppers<br/>- scallops (my fav with blood sausage)<br/>- deep fried calamari/squid<br/>- lamb skewers (slightly tough)<br/>- cheese croquettes (very rich)<br/>- pork crackling (wife’s fav)<br/>- espanada (beef and pork stuff pasties)<br/>Also added the stuff zucchini flowers (2nd fav).<br/>Accompaniment of salad & potato bravas (latter is excellent as per other reviewers) was perfect. <br/><br/> They also have flamenco dancing on alternate Sat. We missed this time.<br/><br/>PS the sangria isn’t bad either. Never had a white wine one but I can’t fault it!

Lovely Spanish restaurant, good atmosphere, casual, fun, without being too rowdy. We got the Mixto Platter to share. The deal is for your choice of 3 seafood & 4 meat Tapas, and came with sides of paella, potatoes, baguette & salad. It was a bit hit & miss with our choices. Highlights were the meatballs, scallops, prawns & the potatoes. On the other hand, the croquettes were dried & dense, I could hardly finish 1. The paella rice were cold & but dry. The baby octopus would've been good if it wasn't over-charred & tasted burned. Overall very good value, we couldn't finish all the food & had leftovers for lunches.

Really nice pasta dish, very creamy and full of flavour. I'm still not entirely sure why I ordered pasta in a Spanish restaurant, I will definitely have to do the all you can eat tapas next time. Restaurant is quite large with an upstairs section as well, menu can be a little pricey for the a la carte options. Service is friendly, and it seems to get busy on a Friday night

Went in on a weekday and the place was buzzing... The food was spot on and the service impeccable. Like they say it's the little things that matter the most and speak the loudest. Staff was super polite and friendly... And hats off to the chef for the lovely and authentic food... We're definitely going back... Though they do have a promotional tapas menu at 35$ pp which is great for people with big appetites, I'd still strongly recommend going ala carte... Muy bien!!👍

Lola Cocina is a cosy Spanish restaurant with attentive wait staff. It’s a great place to dine with family or friends or for a date night. Their Paella Mixta combines two of my favourites: seafood & chorizo. Seared scallops & pork belly were also delectable. They also make a mean sangria!

Update 2019:<br/>This experience was awesome. The staff were so lovely and answered my questions about the dishes very nicely. We ordered the paella for two to share between three and it was definitely more than enough. We got a few tapas to share too though. Highly recommend the scallops. The prawns weren’t anything amazing, still good though.<br/><br/>2018:<br/>The tapas here are quite good - some of them a bit too salty. I recommend getting the mussels, crispy pork and the stuffed figs. The pork was well flavoured and the skin was super crunchy. The truffle and Parmesan chips were pretty disappointing - there was no truffle taste what so ever. Spent $8 on basically chips with cheese. Staff were very friendly but it was hard to get their attention as there were not enough wait staff.

Cosy place with friendly wait staff. As there were only two of us, we just ordered a selection of tapas dishes. The dishes were larger than expected and were very well executed. Their garlic bread is amazing. The stand out dish for us was the Spanish peppers stuffed with diced prawns, salted cod and bechamel. Sangria was great too. The prices were very reasonable. Just wish we could've tried more dishes, I guess we have to come back to try more!

Lola Cocina is a Spanish restaurant in Crows Nest, known for their tapas and all you can eat buffet. The chefs and owners have a combined 16 years experience in the hospitality industry of which 12 were spent working in Spanish and European eating establishments in Sydney CBD. We came here to try their all you can eat buffet which allows you to eat as much as you can during a 2 hour sitting time, as long as you order 2 tapas at one time and finish one round before you order the next.

The ambiance is great with friendly staff. Lamb skewer literally melts in the mouth. The crepes recommended by the staff is super yummy. Great value for money!

I’ve been walking past Lola Cocina ever since I moved to the Lower North Shore, often making the mental note to pay a visit.<br/>So last night we did.<br/><br/>Although it’s not the most traditional Spanish on the face of the earth, it’s relatively tasty and well executed. If you go on a Tues/Wed/Thurs it’s also quite good value - all you can eat tapas for $35 a head.<br/><br/>The service was probably the thing that stood out the most. The waitress that looked after us was absolutely lovely and made some good recommendations on the all you can eat menu (hint: try the chicken skewers and the mushrooms as a minimum).<br/><br/>On top of that, they have a guitarist strumming away from 6pm on a Thursday night & wine is quite well-priced.<br/><br/>Everyone’s a winner :)

We ordered a mix of tapas and mains to share for dinner. Overall, the food was so-so and portions are small for the price. Highlights: salt cod croquettes, pork belly, paella arroz negro (squid ink, seafood) and the paella Serrano (chicken, chorizo, peas). But the part was the warm and friendly service. Best to book as it was full on the Friday we visited. They also have some mid week specials. Unlimited tapas on Weds(?) seems to be a sweet deal.

Aweful experience.<br/><br/>We ordered the groupon deal and the white wine and we were given the nastiest cask wine of life. Which tasted more like a bad iced tea.<br/>The beer was tiny.<br/><br/>Only one tapas could be ordered at a time and another couldnt be ordered until its finished.<br/><br/>

$30 unlimited tapas when the 4 of us went and we definitely gave a good crack at trying to eat our money's worth of patatas! By the end of the night we were so patated out I wasn't even able to order dessert. Much shame and disappointment ensued...<br/><br/>General consensus for favourites of the night were calamari, mushrooms (though one batch arrived without the white wine being completely cooked off), mussels and bbq octopus. Service was polite and quite efficient and a complimentary drink was provided on arrival. Nice little venue for a quiet night with full bar service. Anna Howardwashere Food_Rampage_AM @INSTA

You become pretty critical of Spanish tapas restaurants after your tastebuds have been blessed with the amazingness that is Encasa. I hardly ever stray from this path because I’m so madly in love, but you never know if there’s something better out there if you just don’t try! Solid effort on Lola Cocina’s part – they even have some deals running to make the whole package that much better. If you’re looking to save a few $$$ you can go in on Tuesdays for 50% off food, or if you want free rein over their tapas for $30, then Wednesdays or Thursdays are the days to go.<br/><br/>Turns out the all you can eat tapas menu does not include everything from their normal menu, but you are still left with plenty of choice with 16 dishes. With $30 each put in, we went ahead with the ordering. There’s no extra charge so why not try everything available? It did take a while but we made it through all 16, with repeats of our favourites. If you’re here on this deal, go ahead and enjoy everything on offer (except maybe the apple and cheese on toast – it didn’t sound any good, and it tastes exactly like it sounds). If not, and you unfortunately need to limit your tapas plates, there were a few standouts.<br/><br/>The calamari and croquettes were as good as each other – both delicious! The calamari made quite a few appearances that night. I usually have issues with calamari being too tough and chewy, but these almost melt in your mouth. Almost. I am also a huge fan of mushrooms, so thoroughly enjoyed the garlicky mushrooms with plates disappearing in the blink of an eye. The continuous reappearance of the patata dishes on the table were of my doing, quite possibly because I have a love for potatoes which even I was not aware of. Initially, I ordered the patata bravas because that’s just what I do when I go to Encasa – it’s now second nature to me. And I wasn’t too impressed at first bite (because it just doesn’t compare), but once my initial snobbiness had subsided I became quite addicted strangely enough. I wasn’t done after sitting there ploughing through potato after potato, and we finished with an order including the patata aioli too. Definitely carbed up after that meal.<br/><br/>I think Lola Cocina is a nice place to come for dinner, especially if you take advantage of the promos where you can eat yourself silly. Staff are lovely too and pretty attentive.

All you can eat Tapas for $29! This was the special for the night but a la carte was still available. As we had booked we were offered the first round of house beer or wine for free! The Tapas menu came in the smallest font possible that needs to be fixed because it was simply unreadable. At times, we needed to refer to the main menu to see the description. What was dissapointing was that there were several favourites missing from the Tapas being the garlic prawns, pork belly and the lamb straps. <br/><br/>Most of the tapas were cooked well except the meat balls which were a bit dry. The standout dishes were the octypus, the chicken skewers, chicken meatballs with cream sauce and field mushrooms. There potatoes aplenty each round and we got to sample all the variations. The tapas were all reduced portions of the full priced versions which made it tricky to order. Unfortunately, there were no dishes that created any wow factor that I would be drawn back to. I felt short changed with the exclusion of some dishes are probably their most popular tapas. They could at least limit those exclusions to one serving per person to manage the costs like some buffets do.<br/><br/>The ambience is initmate and relaxing with dimmed lighting and candles with an entire Spanish feel to the dining room. The service was friendly and attentive.

All you can eat tapas for $30? Not a bad deal esp with single beer or house red/white thrown in, except that they excluded a few items from their normal tapas menu, most notably prawns, to create this $30 special. Still we were spoilt for choice as there are more than 15 items to sink our teeth into. Mussels, octopus, chorizo, cod croquette, field mushroom, chicken meatballs, calamari recommended. <br/><br/>Service was prompt and quite attentive, food didnt take that long to be served. <br/><br/>Food 3.25/5<br/>Service 3.75/5<br/>Company 4.5/5 😉

I just loved the food! <br/><br/>I went at Lola Cocina and I felt close to Spain. Nice music and lovely environment. <br/><br/>The paella was delicious! <br/><br/>Definitely I will go back soon!

Just got home after my nephew's graduation dinner at Lola with the family-am a local:<br/>-The beef was absolutely my favourite-grass fed tender goodness cooked to perfection!;<br/>-Tapas portions a little bit over-wanted to try more dishes;<br/>-Thinner churros please-more 'crunchy';<br/>-Could tell everything was from 'scratch'; and<br/>-Floor staff rocked!

Very Friendly staffs, Beautiful tapas and great atmosphere<br/>Loved the glass of sangria and the mains are amazing. <br/><br/>Would love to visit again.

Friendly staff, nice but overpriced tapas. Lacked vibe on a Thursday evening as the place was empty. Good but again overpriced sangria. Worth a visit.

awesome food and very friendly customer service.<br/>We had the gambas and the taste was amazing.<br/>Definitely recommend it to tapas lovers and will go back soon.

We had such a lovely experience visiting this delightful tapas bar. Out for a stroll with our little puppy dog and looking for a quick bite, the staff were very friendly and accomodating, and they had outside tables which is an obvious requirement when accompanied by a four legged friend. We ordered 4 tapas dishes and a delcious Spanish wine and all were superb. The food was imaginative and made with love. The peppers stuffed with goats cheese and pine nuts and the creamy garlic prawns were fabulous. All dishes were served in a timely way and there was a relaxed and friendly vibe to the venue with its funky decor and music. We will definitely become regulars at this place.

newly open restaurant in the heart of crows nest ,been there  last friday , all the tapas were great and the staff friendly too. love to see that place again and again. <br/>cheers