INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — The restaurant business is far from easy. And if you are trying to attract customers to a tapas bar that’s not in the heart of Central Beach, and not on a busy corner in Miracle Mile, but sitting by itself out on a lonely stretch of US1 midway between Vero and Sebastian, you have to try harder.
And that seems to be the story at Pipa Movida – a small, cheerfully decorated restaurant that begins its second full season in Vero as a winner, serving an ever-changing variety of innovative hot and cold tapas to the growing legion of fans who take the trouble to drive there.
On a recent Wednesday, we arrived shortly after 7 and our party of three was seated at a table that commanded a good view of the various dishes making their way to guests seated around the perimeter.
Our first round of dishes consisted of the trio soup ($12), the foie gras ($18), and one of their newest creations, a half lobster stuffed with lobster, artichoke, cream cheese and onion with parmesan ($16).
The trio soup is a great way to start at Pipa. One never knows which three soups are going to be offered on any evening. On this visit, the three small cups held a chicken tortilla soup, a duck lentil soup, and an Italian wedding soup.
While the tasty Italian wedding soup had the requisite mini-meatballs along with spinach, my favorite was the chicken tortilla soup – which had a nice tang – and my husband voted for the duck lentil soup, a light and flavorful broth with shredded duck meat and lentils.
Next up was the foie gras. Personally, I am not a huge fan of this French delicacy, but my husband loves it. Pipa’s version comes with the duck liver pan seared and served with slices of pear topped by a balsamic reduction. The balsamic cut the richness of the foie gras, and the pears are ideal for complementing the foie gras’ taste. A very simple dish, and very good.
The stuffed half lobster, while nicely presented, was in my view the least successful of the first round of dishes. While it was possible to find bits of lobster and artichoke in the spread , this was less a stuffing and more a dip. The cream cheese just overwhelmed everything else. A little more lobster taste would be a big help.
Then we moved on to ahi tuna ($14). The sesame tuna was perfectly seared and served with seaweed salad, wasabi and plated with dots of a hot chili sauce. We followed that up with barbecued pulled-pork sliders with coleslaw. The pulled pork was tasty but a bit on the dry side.
While we were enjoying the latter two courses, our companion was feasting on the evening’s wood oven pizza ($14) – a white pizza with a herb pesto sauce, topped by cheddar cheese and steak. Like the trio of soups, the pizzas at Pipa change frequently, but all benefit from a wonderful thin crisp crust.
Given her disinclination to share her pizza, however, we were still hungry.
So we concluded our culinary adventure with the sesame crusted scallops ($15), three beautiful scallops served with Asian noodles, asparagus and carrots. The scallops were wonderful.
We accompanied our meal with several glasses of white wine off Pipa’s interesting wine list. While the menu changes frequently, I also want to mention a couple of items we enjoyed on previous visits.
Among the cold tapas, I have no trouble recommending the salmon cones ($13) – four small ice-cream type sesame cones, filled with smoked salmon, caviar and crème fresh. And as a hot tapa, we have fond memories of the goat cheese stuffed dates wrapped in prosciutto ($10).
The tab for a party of two – with a glass or two of wine, and sharing a couple of cold and a couple of hot tapas – would likely come to $80 or so before taxes and tip. Add in another dish or two and it adds up pretty quick.
In the past year, tapas bars seem to have become all the rage in Vero, springing up both in the downtown and on the beach.
Each has its own ambiance, and several are pleasant places to eat and (mostly) drink. But for excellent dishes imaginatively prepared, we continue to believe Pipa Movida can’t be beat.
I welcome your comments, and encourage you to send feedback to me at tina@verobeach32963.com.
The reviewer dines anonymously at restaurants at the expense of Vero Beach 32963.