MoVida Aqui

Secret Spanish party! That's what you're prone to think some nights as you walk up the steps behind this unassuming office building to find a terrace alive with animated patrons sipping manzanilla. Inside the long, modern restaurant, quirky features (milk crates over the bar, vintage advertising posters on the walls) bring to mind youthful energy. But the Iberian food, masterminded by Frank Camorra, is so fine, and the service so smooth, that Aqui attracts everyone from suits to hip young things and their parents. They're here for signature tapas such as Cantabrian anchovies on wafer-thin croutons topped with smoky tomato sorbet, and little flour-dusted rolls filled with fried calamari, mild peppers and mayo. Then there are the dishes made for sharing. maybe luscious braised beef cheek on a puff of cauliflower puree or fig and salt-cod salad riffing sweet and salty. Desserts - say, velvety Pedro Ximenez trifle with sugared almonds - are smart and fun.