Despaña

One of the best meals I had in while! If you are around the area. you should definitely stop by. My seared lamb shops that I asked for was delicious and cook to perfection and the portions are very generous.. And I suggest to make room for desert, my favorites crema catalana or tarta de Santiago. yummy!

I have never been in a place that asked me to leave before finishing my meal. This place treats a consumer like a product that need to be sold and not like a someone that come to enjoy and have a good time

Not a fan. I had made reservations 3 weeks in advance. We were seated by the bathroom. The restaurant was very noisy – could barely hear each other speak. Our waitress came to our table too often to, it seemed, push us along in ordering. The food was meh – the grilled? octopus was terrible-​thick and bland. Nothing was memorable. I would not ever go here again.

We have been here three times. Frankly, the food is terrific, really authentic Spanish cuisine. The wait staff unfortunately give incompetence a bad name. When the appetizer and/​or the salad arrive simultaneously with the main course you know something is terribly wrong in both the kitchen and with the server. Management should review the proper sequence for serving courses with the staff to ensure that diners get what they want when they want it.

More «Spain» like then most. The Tapas were great, atmosphere great and service very good.
We will be back

Who doesn’t love an outdoor rooftop patio? We focused on the sandwich menu for lunch. They are large and next time I will spilt it and explore the tapas. I recommend splurging on the fries. Pleasant atmosphere and staff with a robust menu.

Short and sweet review of this place… The food is awesome! Definitely would go back again. Also love the ambience.

Was here last Friday for dessert and coffee. I didn’t realize that this was a Spanish restaurant.
After a great meal at Blue Point Grill, we wanted to have desserts at next door Small World Coffee but it was closed. So we walked into Despana for desserts at upstairs dining area. We ordered chocolate churro, flan, almond cake and creamy vanilla bean and cinnamon custard. The waitress said that the almond cake was from Spain. The desserts were OK but my cappuccino was very luke warm with too much foam.
They sell Spanish cheese, Chorizo, paella rice and seasoning, olives, sardines etc. Next day, I came back and tried the sliced Chorizo meats and Menchengcho cheese and they were not too salty, little spicy and delicious.

Had a wonderful time here! Came here to visit my aunt for the holiday season. She decided to take us around Stanford, although we stopped by this place to have lunch and grab a few drinks first.
Growing up in California, I’ve really never had authentic Spanish food in my life. So I was excited to finally try tapas with some wine.
The place is very clean and modern. We were seated upstairs by the window and had a wonderful view of the town. Our server was very polite and patient, considering we didn’t know what to order. But we ended up with a few plates of tapas and this seafood rice entrée with squid ink. Super delicious!
We also had some sangria with our meal that was served on this awesome looking wooden jug, never really been a fan of mixing my wine with anything, but sangria is now definitely one of my favorite drinks on a nice day.
Really wish they’ll open up somewhere in California, but this place is definitely one for the books that I’ll definitely go back to.

As a fan of Despana’s Lower Manhattan location for years and who truly loved their selection of Chorizos, ham, cheeses, canned goods, seasonings and Sherry’s I was rather disappointed at the rather sparse selection of food products at Despana’s Princeton NJ branch.
More of a bistro/​restaurant than a purveyor of Spanish food stuffs the small selection of their Chorizos did not disappoint however and I walked away with 2 of their excellent Iberico pork salamis that proved to be dark, meaty and rich with that fatty pork.
Perhaps I’ll try their upstairs menu soon.

I wanted to like this place, I really did. Did a dinner visit first where the food was «ok to fine» but not exceptional and not very flavorful compared to meals I’ve had in Spain. BYOB policy saved the day since a nice Rioja was brought from my cellar. However, our primary server was very poor (food runners were good) and put a big damper on the end of night as our waitress just forgot about us and I had to go ask for the check after 30 minutes. Still, I was hoping that was an aberration and I scheduled a business lunch there a few weeks later. That time our server was great, we sat on the outside terrace (nice) and the food … was still in the «meh» range. As others have noted this place has a good location, nice ambiance and so much potential for greatness, but the food needs to step up about 2 notches to match the prices.

The food was just OK. I was expecting the food to be better. The best item we ordered were the bacon wrapped dates. The waitress was super friendly and nice. The wine menu had just pared down and the sangria was a bit watered down. The shrimp was over cooked, the sausages reminded me of mini hot dogs, the egg plant fritters were soggy and the tomato bread was somewhat bland but my friend enjoyed it. The cheese board was also decent. The take away here is to order the dates.

Just back from Madrid and had a fine meal at Despana. The restaurant is very good and serves authentic Spanish food.
Very good traditional tapas, paella and jamon iberico de bellota (The finest ham in the world).
Reasonably priced and BYOB.
Also, a pleasant outdoor seating area!
One of the best restaurants in Princeton.
Also, they sell Spanish Food products. They make and sell their own Chorizo and even the cooking dishes (cazuelas) for making your own tapas at home!

We went to Despana because of the outdoor seating option. One thing I’ve learned about Unilocal and the Princeton restaurants, is to lower the expectation. The tapas were bland and nothing special. The big disapointment came with our main dinner, the paella was tasteless, bland with the texture of rubber. Not likely to go back.

Checked out this newer spot in Princeton for dinner with friends last night, and I have to say I am very impressed! There’s a market on the first floor and the restaurant dining area is on the second floor with an outdoor dining deck with heaters. The décor is very stylish. Our service was great. This spot claims to have authentic Spanish cuisine, so I was eager to try it since I lived in Spain for 4 months. Gotta say, it’s pretty darn authentic! We started with some tapas and a cheese plate. Got the gambas al ajillo (shrimp), croquetas with jamon, and the mussels. The mussels were gigantic and the croquetas were spot on. Cheese plate was great! We got 2 types of paella to split — the Mixta with sea bass, chicken and shrimp and the Negra with calamari, sea bass shrimp and mussels with black squid ink rice. They were both really, really good and authentic. The Negra was my favorite. And it’s a BYOB, even better! Really, nothing bad to say about this place. Will definitely be back, nice job Despana!

Was not particularly impressed with the food. For the price, I’d rather go elsewhere. Tried the bacon wrapped dates, which I liked but my companion found the date to be too big and sweet, preferring the version at Mediterra. Also had the Tosta de Pulpo (octopus on rustic bread) which was okay but a bit too smothered in sauce. The squid ink paella (Paella Negra) was also good but nothing special, and the mussels tasted too fishy. But I did really like these chunks of sea bass in the paella — they were really soft and delicious, and I would have liked to just eat that.
Also while we were eating, there were mosquitoes constantly buzzing around us, making it very distracting to eat and calling into question the cleanliness of the place.

A little spot in the corner for Spanish cuisine in Princeton. Upstairs is their restaurant with outdoor seating on their terrace, overlooking Nassau Street. While downstairs has a little «market» that you can purchase their cured meats, cheeses and different small items, such as their paella mix.
They have a great selection of cured meats and cheese at their counter downstairs, which is what drawn me to try their restaurant. Their service was great; quick hostess and friendly waiter. It can be quite loud inside, so make sure to ask for outdoor seating for better atmosphere.
One thing I like is that we can bring our own wine to make the sangria, which is a big plus because I know what kind of wine I will drink. We started off with tge marcona salad and platter of cheese (manchego, valdeon, mahon), which was both sized perfectly. I don’t really have much comment on the tosta de pulpo (octopus over potatoes) because I am not much of a fan, but my friends loved it and bragged how good they were. For entrée, we shared the paella mixta, which was cooked perfectly with a crispy on the outside and bottom but not enough seasoning. I was not impressed at all with this, as I have had better paellas in other Spanish restaurants in the city.
I will continue to purchase their meats and cheese at their counter and if I were to come back, I will have to try their other tapas dishes to better comment on this restaurant. But for the dishes we ordered, all sadly unimpressive.

Great Spanish cuisine option in downtown Princeton with lovely outdoor terrace seating and sleek, modern décor inside. The restaurant is upstairs, while downstairs is a counter where meats and cheeses and other delicacies are sold.
After walking and driving by several times, we decided to try Despana. Our party of three was sat outside on their upstairs terrace overlooking Nassau Street. Our server was fairly knowledgeable about the menu and recommended a few different tapas to start, including the garlic shrimp, honey fried eggplant strips, meatballs, and patatas bravas, delicious fried potatoes in a creamy aioli sauce. All were very tasty. We ordered a bottle of wine to combine with their sangria mix, which was refreshing on a hot evening. We followed all this with a paella for three with a mix of seafood and chorizo. The paella was cooked to perfection, crispy on the bottom with plenty of meats.
Note that they serve wine by the bottle only, otherwise they are BYOB. They allow you to purchase sangria mix to combine with your own wine, a nice touch.
Only one real negative — we had to ask for water twice before we received any, which was particularly annoying since we were outside and it was a bit hot. We would have actually preferred inside seating, but there was a large party enjoying their dinner (loudly), and the large indoor space echos sounds quite easily which would have made conversation difficult.
For dessert we indulged in a delicious almond torte with vanilla ice cream. A sweet end to an overall good experience.

Before going to Despana I was unfamiliar with the tapas experience. I have to say I was impressed! Our server Steff was fun and knowledgeable. Her suggestions were exactly what we needed and I enjoyed every plate!
My new favorite food is the bacon wrapped dates! It’s tastes like a fantastic breakfast pastry mixed with a zapple! I could eat a million of them!
The cured meats were out of this world and cheeses were amazing!!! Steff mixed our wine with a fantastic Sangria mix.
We also got a paella and it was great. Very filling. Next time I would probably just order more tapas just to keep it interesting and fun. Not because the paella wasn’t great, because it was.
Steff’s personality and charm added just that little extra special touch that made the meal and experience that much better. My wife and I had a fantastic date night.
I will be going back, and hopefully sooner rather than later.

I’ve been looking for an authentic Spanish restaurant outside of NY since living in Spain several years ago and this is nearly as authentic as it gets. I went with my Spanish boyfriend, who is very hard to please when it comes to Spanish food, and we both loved it! Everything from the patatas bravas and the buñuelos de bacalao to the paella and the crema catalana were up to par with any food you’d get in Spain and the wonderful service just enhanced it. We’ve been to some pretty mediocre «Spanish» places in the U.S., but Despaña is the real deal, owned by a Spaniard with another one as the chef. A+!

Despaña isn’t clearly the worst restaurant in this area of Nassau Street, but it’s a prime candidate for the honor. (People have bad things to say about the Thai place two doors down — that’s another contender.) The tapas that we had were mediocre in every way and overpriced to boot. Fortunately, the damage was limited because we were allowed to bring in wine from the liquor store across the street. We ordered five things, and I’d recommend none of them. Efes next door is a better deal. Avoid!

Clients of mine insisted in wanting to go so I said ok but warned them of prior experience.
I must say, it got worse…
Clients weren’t thrilled either and they were from Madrid!

Came here for Valentines day and again a few months later. It was phenomenal! I lived in Spain for 6 months and this food transported me back! For appetizers, we had papas bravas, definitely a crowd pleaser; the croquettes are a MUST, the béchamel filling is dangerously delicious. Also had traditional tortilla, again spot on.
The paella was perfect for either 2 (small size) or 4 (large size) people. They let you customize the paella to your taste, but paella mixta was perfect — comes with Bronzino, shrimp, scallops, chicken, and chorizo… all topped off with roasted peppers. The bottom of the pan was perfectly crispy.
The wine situation was kinda neat– you could either purchase wine from Despaña or BRING your own bottle; either way they’ll make sangria for you with fresh fruit. We ask for no sugar added to the sangria, and they happily obliged.
Outside has a nice patio, its been too cold yet, but perfect place for a night reminiscing about tapas in Spain.

Good food, great service. Tad bit expensive (three tapas dishes, paella small (for 2), a soda, and a flan + Tax and Tip — 100 bucks).
Not enough parking for dinner service if the restaurant fills up.
For those who care about sodium levels — the food is a bit high on salt — it doesn’t taste bad but can overwhelm someone careful about sodium in their diet.

As I get settled in to my new town, I was pretty excited to learn there was a Spanish restaurant in town.
An automatic plus for this place is that there is an outside deck. In the summertime, this will be absolutely clutch. The restaurant itself is located on the second floor while the first floor contains various spices and ingredients for making different Spanish dishes, including paella.
When it comes to the food, I must say I was a bit underwhelmed. I started with an order of patatas Bravas, which is potatoes with aioli sauce. The potatoes themselves were pretty good and had a nice crisp to them. However, the entire dish was drenched in aioli sauce, which for me made it almost uneatable. The aioli sauce itself was ok, but it needs to be a lot more subtle in my opinion.
I then had an order of vegetable paella. This too wasn’t what I hoped for. It was ok, but lacked the spice, taste and overall flare of traditional paella. I also found it to be slightly on the bland side
Having had paella in Spanish households over the years, I can say that this was unimpressive in my opinion. Not bad, but not anything special either. I’ll definitely come by during the summer, sit outside and try an app or two. Maybe a few of the other dishes are better.

Insanely delicious Spanish tapas. We had artichoke empanadas, ham croquetas, and chicken croquetas, accompanied by a half a bottle of house red wine.
Will absolutely come back next time I am on town!

I like Despana a lot! The vibe is cool, they have a little market/​deli feel going on downstairs but once you get upstairs it’s that cozy modern restaurant vibe.
The food is reasonably priced and pretty good for Princeton! I came here for restaurant week with a few good friends and we had a great time.
Starters:
–Patatas Bravas: fried potatoes with a spicy pimento aioli sauce, delicious! The potatoes weren’t greasy at all, and the sauce was super tasty. It’s potatoes and cheesy sauce, so there’s almost no way you could go wrong
–Mariscos Soup: seafood soup with shrimp, calamari, clams and mussels with a hint of lemon, and paprika. The broth was tasty and the seafood was fresh. I enjoyed this.
–De La Huerta Salad: romaine lettuce, cucumbers, asparagus, artichokes, cherry tomatoes with a sherry vinaigrette. Really standard, no need to get it to try it unless you’re eating light
Entrees:
–Paella Despana: hot chorizo, iberico pork loin and chicken, this was decent. I’ve had paella in Spain, so it’s really hard for me to love decent paella. But don’t get me wrong, this was fine! Much better than Blue Point Grill’s paella. The meat tasted fresh and flavorful.
–forgot the name, but it was a penne pasta with sausage, peppers, ham, and lots of cheese in a tomato-​based sauce. It was great! I love pasta, so it’s hard for me not to be happy when there’s noodles and sauce involved.
Dessert:
–we all got the crème brûlée. because we love crème brûlée. They call it «Crema Catalana». It’s creamy vanilla bean and cinnamon custard topped with caramelized sugar. Despana’s certainly wasn’t the best that I’ve had, but it was great! Better than Blue Point Grill’s. The bruleed sugar coating cracked perfectly and wasn’t too thick, while the custard was creamy and delicious.
Perfect spot for a date night or dinner with friends, BYOB too!

Tapas are fantastic and great for sharing. The cheese platter is also great. Honestly, just a really good place: friendly staff, great service, free wifi, power outlets by most tables, and the place itself is gorgeous.
Definitely great for a casual meal or something more romantic, and highly recommended all around.

Sangria mix is really yummy, just remember to bring a bottle of wine!!! Patatas bravas here are delicious, they actually taste like the ones in Barcelona! Also tried the citrus salad, which was really good, and of course the PAELLA (we had the meat) here is delicious! Way better than Mediterra. Calamari tapas was eh, kinda flavorless.
I also love the outdoor patio seating when it’s warm outside.

The first sign of Spring in Jersey and me and my beau headed to find an outdoor patio to have lunch! I had wanted to try Despaña for awhile and was so pleased with the downstairs area with the free cheese and ham samples and friendly host.
Immediately after finding the perfect seating under the sun, sangria was definitely in order! Sadly we were unaware it was BYOB, but thankfully they have wine bottles for sale too. The sangria mix is very light, having mostly fruit and wine and no trace of rum or whiskey… not terrible for the price or for drinking in the early afternoon.
Starved, I ordered the pollo alajillo (chicken in garlic sauce) with potatoes and vegetables. The chicken came out with a very large portion and decent flavor on the skin. Sadly once the skin was gone, the chicken must have not been marinated for very long, because it was pretty bland inside.
My beau ordered a bocadillo of pollo guapo which was chicken breast with tomato, lettuce and paprika alioli sauce. After seeing my pollo alajillo he felt jipped, but it was actually a really great sandwich! I loved the alioli sauce and I’m a total sucker for warm ciabatta bread.
Overall the place was decent, prices weren’t too bad. Sadly we also missed out on the free parking in the back, so that’s a perk in comparison to fighting for a spot on Nassau.