Long Wait for Kingfield Tapas Bar Finally Ends

After holding on for the better part of a year, Kingfield finally has its tapas bar, helmed by the chef also behind the popular Cafe Ena, Hector Ruiz.

Tuesday afternoon, Rincón 38's Facebook page announced it was opening at 4 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 27.

The restaurant was originally slated to open in early 2012, but problems with securing licenses from the city delayed the opening for almost a year. It finally secured a wine and beer license late last year.

As Patch first reported last year, the restaurant will focus on traditional Spanish fare:

“Rincón” means “little corner” in Spanish, and little it will be, with only 35 seats and plenty of little tables and a counter of single stools. The inspiration, Ruiz said, was the Spanish habit of eating little bites and drinking a glass of wine in the long breaks in between meals—Spanish breakfast happens around 8 a.m., lunch around 3 or 4 p.m., and dinner not until 9 or 10 p.m.

“Tapas fill the space in between,” he said.

“When my (Spanish) friends invite me to their houses, this is stuff I eat with them,” added the well-traveled Ruiz, a native of Mexico who’s worked in restaurants in France and visited Spain many times. “I tried to replicate or recombine those things into new dishes.”

No menu has been posted online yet, but a tentative menu Ruiz shared with Patch last year had prices in the $10 to $12 range for tapas plates and wines topping out at $10 to $12 a glass.

Already, mouth-watering photos of some of Rincon's tapas have popped up on its Facebook page, and fans have begun declaring their love for the restaurant.

Have you stopped by Rincón 38 yet? What do you think so far?

Update 2:28 p.m. 2/28/13: At least one Patch reader has already stopped in at Rincón. Les Phillips wrote up a blog post about his take—Check it out!