A weekend in Tenby is synonymous with chips and ice cream and while there's no way we'd visit without having either, dining out in the seaside town has just become even more exciting with a brand new venture between Tenby Brewing Co. and fire-cooks Feast - Tap & Tân. Found in the little courtyard at the top of Upper Frog St, Tap & Tân is somewhere you should go if you can, especially if you like your dinner on the mega-meaty side.
The courtyard is a vibrant, busy place and through the high season it will only get busier, but it's worth a punt to see if you can get a table, as there are no bookings, and in Tenby you're never short of places to eat if they are full, see more here. We went on a Saturday evening, the day of the busy Carten event, so we were surprised to be able to walk in and sit down straight away.
We first ordered some drinks and with the Tenby Brewing Co involved you know the choice will be great. A pint of Son of a Beach and a smokey negroni ( delicious ), and a glass of red supped we set about choosing what to eat. It didn't take us long to be honest - we picked a BBQ special platter (£45 for two sharing) and a smoked beef bun (£14) with some extra spice roasted potatoes (£4.50) on the side.
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The food - cooked on an open fire in an open kitchen area- took what seemed like no time to arrive, but maybe it's because the hustle and bustle of the venue makes you feel like you are in a pub - which it sort of is anyway - making the time pass quickly. We were happy with our choices, the towering beef bun was filled with 'low and slow' smoked Pembs beef which was melt-in-the mouth, and the other components really made it, namely, the wild garlic salsa verde which shot through the meatiness with a fresh spark. Gorgeous. We were sharing so we could get a taste of everything, and let's just say, we could have all scoffed one of these each. Oh yes, it also came with a pot of beef fat gravy, which fully rounded out the dish making it a 10/10.
The BBQ platter was also teeming with hot, sizzling meat. There was more beef - which we didn't mind - pulled pork, sausages, house wings, spiced pots, more gravy dip, BBQ sauce pot and some pickled cabbage and pickled cucumber and house slaw. There was so much meat and even with three of us sharing there was some spare. Again the beef was melty, the pulled pork soft and flavoursome but that didn't stop me lashing it in the house BBQ sauce, which had a deep, piquant flavour. Generally, I can take or leave sausages, but these were top bangers, local free-range pork, they tasted quality.
Potato-wise, these tots were good. You know with new potatoes sometimes you can get a dud, solid-as-a-rock one, these all broke apart perfectly, a testament to whoever cooked them and the spicy rub wasn't overpowering - a lovely side.
The service was good too, although we didn't get the menu to look at desserts in the end, but that was lucky as we were full up. But otherwise our servers were quick, friendly and helpful with the much-needed napkins and finger bowls. It's a great place to spend a Saturday night sinking some cocktails and eating great BBQ food, those who dined with me said it was possibly some of the best food they've eaten, too.
Tap & Tân is going to be rammed this summer so get there while you can.
