Morito

I prefer the more relaxed informal vibe of little sister tapas bar Morito to Moro (next door). They are both on a charming Exmouth Market street, bustling full of cute shops and great world eats. From great pizza, brunch, Portuguese to good pubs.
Firstly I had a sensational tapas dish from Morito Tapas. Beetroot, feta, dill & walnuts. Think this one is a game changer from the salad and veg menu. May have to create this one at home. Tastebuds going Lady Gaga over these combinations.
I also had some superb dishes that included potato bravas, jamon croquettes, pork belly, tortilla, bocadillo and classic tomato bread. All excellent. Very authentic and tasty.
I sat at the bar on stools. Not the most comfortable but when the food is this good I don’t mind. I think most best tapas places are best enjoyed at the bar anyway. Thumbs up all round.

Quick glance:
+ tapas with a twist
+ friendly staff
+ trendy interior
— cramped space for sharing
Full review:
What a great place full of delicious tapas with a modern twist. The deep fried aubergine covered in whipped feta is a must-​try. And for the carnivores, try the lamp chops and the slow cooked pork belly — both are tender, bursting with flavours, and oh-​so-​delicious. The biggest downside is the cramped space and stylish but not-​so-​comfortable wooden stools, which makes sharing in a group a very snug affair. If you are going as a group, make sure you’re no larger than a foursome otherwise one of you will be sat in the middle of the narrow but busy thoroughfare between the table and the bar.

Excellent tapas. The brandade de bacalao tasted like at home. We also liked the spiced lamb with yogurt, aubergine and pine nuts. Our son also loved the pan con tomate y jamon. Great ingredients, lovely spices with great service in a simple but welcoming room. What more can one ask for on a Sunday afternoon?

Morito is the type of neighborhood gem we were glad to stumble upon when we were looking for low key comfort food. Nothing extravagant but all in all really good small plates, but filling. We weren’t huge fans of the dry sherry but gave it a try to start.
Ham and chicken croquettes– tasty with rich sauce oozing out. Good starter.
Lamb salad– really nice shredded lamb
Crispy aubergine– really good flavor and texture
Fried cheese– need I say more? Went well with the bread.
Would recommend coming early so that you can get a table. Was full by 8pm. Minor complaint was the lack of backs on the chairs. Looking forward to returning and trying new stuff on the menu.

I came back from Barcelona vacation recently and really just craved more tapas. Morito is right down the street from my work so I thought I would give it a try. Me and my partner went quite early, around 6:30, and can only sit at the bar because the tables were saved for bigger parties. You can watch the chefs cook your food tho. The service was definitely friendly and attentive. I thought the price was fair but maybe Im just getting use to London now?
While the food was definitely not just Spanish — they were all delicious. The lamb chops actually tasted exactly the same as Uyghur-​style lamb skewers (the version without sichuan pepper), something I desperately missed and did not expect. The lamb and the pork belly were both cooked just right, and a combination of juicy fatness & meat — so heads up to those who only want lean meat. The refreshing cocktails were much needed during the heat wave. Am definitely coming back again!

Great athmosphere and tasty, affordable and delicious food. Will def. come back soon. The aubergine & feta was amazing, so was the squid and the scallop and fish rice.

⁵⁄₅!
(if my Mom were Unilocaling — and, while we’re on the subject *why aren’t you Unilocaling, Ma?!?* — she’d say «one ½ point off for the bravas!». But well, I’m in control of this review so… as good as it gets, 5 stars for you, Morito!)
It’s a tiny spot, the lil’ sibling to the larger and more formal Moro next door.
Lunchtimes they take reservations, but otherwise it’s…queue and wait patiently.
And wait patiently you should, because Morito is worth the wait. As Ken N’s review mentions: dinner kicks off at 5pm, so if you’re there right on time you’re well positioned to wedge yourself into the tiny space which has room at the bar, seats by the window and low tables… if you’re lucky and the weather behaves, some seating outside, too.
Small plates are perfect amounts to split, and the smaller veggie-​based plates are 4 — 6, with some of the meatier running pricier. The padron peppers are a must, for 4.50. The patatas bravas a logical choice with equal amounts of smoked paprika-​studded «red stuff» and thick olive oil-​y aioli atop crisp shards of potato. The beetroot with dill? Great. The crispy aubergine with whipped feta and date molasses? Don’t mind if I do.
For me, the recent standout was a spring special: a rhubarb, walnut and bread salad, topped off with a dollop of perfectly tangy labneh. As Rich M calls out: it’s hints like this (za’taar, labneh) that confirm that Morito isn’t just a «Spanish» resto. There are twists everywhere, so I’d encourage you to pass over the reviews faulting it for not being a traditional tapas place with nothing-​but-​traditional options. It’s not every day that you find a Spanish tortilla made with black garlic. Embrace it (trust me).
Solid drink menu, quick service, and delicious, special food served in lovely terracotta plates. It is a delight eating here.
Unilocal note: COOKBOOK TO BRING HOME (see also: I’d rather just continue regularly visiting Morito!).

Das Morito ist DER Ort, falls man ein Date hat, und der Person näher kommen möchte.
Das Trendlokal wird einem von Einheimischen empfohlen, und um überhaupt einen Platz an der Bar zu bekommen muss man sich erst auf eine Warteliste setzen lassen und eine englische Telefonnummer hinterlegen.
Das Essen wird einem dann total unkompliziert auf kleinen Tellern serviert. Der Service ist sehr familiär und unkompliziert, das Essen sehr, sehr lecker, und die junge Frau hinter der Bar sahen wir immer wieder zur Musik tanzen, während sie einkassierte oder beim Abwaschen half.
Man fühlt sich wohl, es ist eng und laut, und das Essen schmeckt. Mehr will man doch eigentlich gar nicht, oder?

I sat down today at this small tapas restaurant with high expectations based on its zagat rating. I was not disappointed. Although seating space is limited, the ambiance of the restaurant was fun and energetic and the food completely surpassed my expectations.
I arrived just a few minutes ahead of Morito’s 5pm dinner opening and was the first one through the door. I picked a seat at the bar and enjoyed hearing the staff playfully ribbing each other over some the outcome of practical jokes. While looking over the menu in ordered a glass of dry sherry to cleanse the palette.
My first item was a sort of amuse-​Bouche: a small stuffed pepper full of goat cheese and a mint leaf. Delish! The flavors worked really well together. I could have eaten three or four of these.
Next was a small plate of shredded spiced lamb, served over puréed eggplant and topped with pomegranate seeds and pine nuts. As good as my first dish had been, this one was even better: We’re talking knock-​the-​ball-​outta-​the-​park amazing.
About this time, I noticed that the place is obviously very popular. Twenty minutes after opening and there’s not an empty seat in the house.
My third selection was a perfectly grilled cheese adorned with walnuts and a slice of some kind of fruit terrine. At this point I started to question why I would ever eat at any other restaurant while in London.
Next, I wanted something light to close out the savory portion of the meal and the waitress convinced me to try the fennel, orange, and monk’s beard salad with a Spanish dry white wine. It was also very tasty, but I struggled to tame the wild monks beard and bring adequate combinations of flavors to my mouth.
I had been planning to sample something from their dessert menu lastly but I just couldn’t manage another bite. Will have to leave that experience to my next visit, which will hopefully be quite soon.

Delicious, fun & well priced. The lamb was amazing, as was the grilled cheese thing & the chickpea salad. Also had salt cod croquettes, tortilla, and a grilled fig salad which I’d give a miss if ordering again. A bottle of house wine & £55 pounds later we vowed to come again. Thanks Sam & Sam!

A friend and I went for lunch to Morito, and as a fan of tapas, I was a bit disappointed. Whilst the food was okay, it wasn’t a wow-​er. More importantly, I wasn’t impressed with the menu. First, I felt that the menu lacked some key tapas that most tapas restaurants tend to have. For example, as a fan of prawns in garlic sauce and pulpo gallega, the fact that Morito didn’t even have the option to order these classic dishes was disappointing. Second, some of the twists that Morito had on tapas weren’t exactly for my taste. For example, the cod croquettas was a miss for me in that it lacked the essential croquetta character of soft fillings and also smelled a bit of fish.
The restaurant itself, whilst casual, could have been better decorated as well. The entire restaurant gave me a feel of a canteen rather than a sit-​in, proper but cozy tapas place.
All in all, I wish I had a better experience at Morito.

Can’t wait to go back. Slap bang in the middle of Farringdon’s Exmouth Market it’s small and busy, food is best shared to get the tapas experience, staff were attentive and efficient, and the recommended wine was great.

Located in Exmouth market is Morito, a popular tiny tapas bar next to its sister restaurant Moro. We managed to get a table straight away even on a Friday night as a World Cup football match had only just finished, usually you should expect to wait for up to an hour from joining the waiting list for a table or space at the bar.
The menu changes regularly, we ordered the following:
Salt cod croquetas £4.50
Scallops with samphire & pickled cucumber £9.50
Spiced lamb aubergine yoghurt £7
Slow roasted Pork belly cumin & lemon £7
Chiperones — baby squid £8.50
Avocado quails eggs & mojama £6.50
Crispy aubergines, whipped feta & date molasses £4.50
My favourite dishes were the spiced lamb & aubergine yoghurt and the crispy aubergines. My dining companions especially enjoyed the avocado & quails eggs, although I thought this dish was just average. The scallops dish was disappointing, usually I am partial to seafood particularly scallops but this dish was not well executed and was cold by the time it reached our table.
Pricing at moritos is competitive, lower than the various tapas bars in soho. If you prefer a sit down meal in a more comfortable setting and do not mind paying more then you are better off dining next door at Moro where you can make advance bookings.

Really enjoyed the squid, fried aubergine, beet root, octopus (remarkable!) but all dishes were executed well. Tiny place, little stools. Go next door to Moro if you want a sit down dinner. The sherry cocktails are a great way to start.

I came here for a family lunch and perhaps it wasn’t the great choice for a sit down restaurant with the parents… you are packed back-​to-​back with the other diners and you sit on stools that are a bit unsteady. That said, I can’t argue with the food: we ordered 11 plates for 4 people and came out absolutely stuffed. My favorite was the pork belly, but we had a good selection with olives, patatas bravas, Spanish tortilla, croquettes, padron peppers, and scallops as well.

I have to admit — In general I haven’t had amazing food experiences in London so my scale in this town is a bit off.
I thought this place had a really nice atmosphere — cosy, lively, friendly and hip.
I love tapas so they won me there. They had a nice selection of things that were all pretty tasty but I can’t say I had any really stand out dishes. I would suggest getting a bunch of plates and sharing. That’s what we did and though there were no shining stars there also weren’t any disappointments.
It’s a bit overpriced which is why it gets 3 stars instead of 4

How we were able to find ourselves seated on the smallest of small seats bunched in with a handful of other hungry diners wanting both food and shelter from the wintery gusts outside I will never know. But the hand written menu on the white tiles above the chefs hard at work signaled they were keeping everything fresh and but with limited availability as a waitress put a line through another of the dishes.
What set this place apart from the standard tapas places dotted around Central London is two-​fold. Firstly Morito is the little brother of a restaurant located next door named Moro and both dining destination in their own right blur the lines between Spanish and Middle Eastern. Morito reminded me of a cross between a butcher shop and a tapas bar pulled out of Andalucia. White tiles and harsh lighting for the fit-​out around the bar and sides while basic wooden tables and chairs take the rest of the available space.
Halfway through the meal WordMonkey looked at me and smiled. What amazing food. The place wasn’t even on our radar — it was a suggestion from John and Coran who were our fine dining friends in London. These boys have their finger on the pulse of the dining scene.
As you can see the dishes are small but easy to be shared and so fresh that the chefs will sometimes lean over the counter and hand you the next terracotta plate and take you through the dish. These guys were busy which made me wonder why they decided to open Morito immediately next door to the famously successful restaurant Moro. Yes it is run by the same peole but given the option people are going to head to the cheaper option. Moro was empty in comparision to the packed-​to-​the-​gills Morito.
Back to the excellent cooking. The next wave of dishes arrived and I was particularly impressed by the chiccarones — small squares of pork belly flavoured with cumin. The fried chickpeas (sounded boring), recommended by both the boys, came with chopped tomatoes, chilli and coriander, and were a spicy, crunchy, compulsive treat.
Other dishes included looked a little something like this:
Spanish wine served in glass tumblers was good — helped along by the fact we had visited Café Kick which was just across the alleywayfrom Morito. Previously an ex toyshop it transformed itself into an authentic continental bar. Over time customers have helped decoreate its walls bringing back football flags and bank notes from all over the world.
Happy Hour is 4−7pm every day and they cook up a mean cocktail — even though they may look toxic. But they bring everyone together on the foosball tables dotted through the interior. you will see little old ladies going head to head with suited bankers fresh from the city — it really is a free for all.
We ended the meal with on a high after which we were well and truly fed and watered.
In total we ate our fill of around ten courses between the four of us which may sound alot but the dishes were quite small. Genuine, ambitious and innovative cooking, and funky location, Morito ticks all the right boxes. I just wish I was a local so I could duck in here for a quick dinner in transit to and from home.

Great little hole in the wall type place. Cocktails were yummy and loved the various tapas dishes, although some of them were a little salty for my taste, I do have to say though that I don’t like salt much.
Overall it was a wonderful culinary experience. Also, the wait was only 3 minutes before we were seated, so even that worked smoothly. No complaints about service either.

Thumbs up Morito !!! We stumbled upon this place after we caught a glimpse of the food served on the tables of the outdoor diners. Tapas style, inviting food presentation and lively vibe in the small indoor dining area. This placed gets crowded easily not only because it is tiny but they are fantastic.
As for food, we had the bread basket, chicarones, turkish salad, quailed egg with cumin and fried baby squids. All of them were just delectable to say the least. The chicarones meat was tender, savoury and well seasoned as well as the fried baby squids. The turkish salad plate of cucumber and tomatos drizzled with mint and yogurt dressing was wonderful and refreshing pair to our unhealthy food choices. We also enjoyed the variety of bread (flat bread with herbs, rolls and small egg crackers) that came in our bread basket. What a wonderful place to enjoy a beautiful day in London!
This place is perfect to enjoy food with friends at the same time. I just hope they expand soon so more people can have a wonderful time here.

Have you ever had a sherry cocktail? Well now is the time. Fina and lime. And mint. What a winner.
Oh Morito! Every emerging tapa trumps the last, it’s hard to keep up but the chorizo scallops, baby squid, Spanish omelette and cod croquettes were of the most memorable… ah but then that wouldn’t really be fair on the chiccharones pork belly or lamb aubergine… Waste nada! –Be sure to order a warm bread basket to soak up the succulent marinade vestiges.
You won’t be disappointed with any order here, but I do recommend going with a larger group in order to maximise the variety of plates and to empower you to point and request what the neighbouring table are tucking into, or the food envy will consume you.

I like Morito. It has a good vibe – small, casual, stools, counter space and small tables, not a person over 40 in the place. A great place to dine. (P.S. – the layout is such that it is not good for groups – 4 would be the max party in my opinion).
The food is very good – in the Moro style a solid foundation of Spanish food with some more Turkish-​style twists.
We ordered traditional Spanish dishes, and they were all good, but we nodded in agreement that Barrafina is still much better (although this was relatively cheap (5 tapas, 2 beers and 2 coffees for 30 quid).
Service was really flakey – had to ask twice for water and twice for the bill.
Also, sat by the door and it was drafty (which they warned us about)..