El Molino

Nice place and food, could be cleaner though. Might visit them again but not for a special occasion

DO NOT EAT HERE!!! THEY PUT SAND IN MY FOOD! I went to this restaurant next to the church late at night & clearly the waitress had an attitude because my party of 3 had gotten there close to closing time. This was also my first time having Spanish food & my first trip to London. I ordered a crêpe & told her no meat because I’m vegetarian. when she presented the crêpe to me, it had ham & so naturally I asked nicely for her to change it to one without meat… also gave her permission to simply remove the meat to avoid having to cook another crêpe. When she brought back the meatless crêpe, I thought it was ok at first, but later realized it had a sandy texture. I’m pretty sure they got angry & put sand in my crêpe. Very rude & unaccommodating for travelers. I’m not sure if they were rude because my group was American with one Brit, or the fact that we were Black or if they were just having a bad night, but our treatment as paying patrons was absolutely unacceptable. When I return to London, I’ll make sure to avoid this place at all costs.

Unassuming, homely, permanent, perfect.
Ever since I moved to London this place has always been there on my way to work, on my way home. It has been there, seemingly silent and permanent, friendly because its good, great because people care about it. You have not only great ‘homemade’ tapas but also a a really personal service. Always go for the patas bravas„ the gambas al pil pil, the octopus and the sizzling onion liver then leave room for the finishing muscat occasionally peppered with spanish travel advice.
Good times!

I love this place and try to eat here often. When friends come in town but we can’t be bothered to go central this is the first place I want to go. Great food at a fair price. Service is friendly (a little slower at times but) overall good. I highly recommend for an evening of tapas.

Our favourite local restaurant in Holloway. Can’t beat the meatballs and chorizo.

Easy relaxed atmosphere. We always come here before going to the nearby Odeon. We order a bunch of Tapas dishes and a bottle of Rioja. Never had a bad experience and always at a reasonable price.

I love this place. Helpful friendly staff and beautiful food cooked to perfection. The pulpo (octopus) is amazing and so are the stuffed peppers. Great patatas bravas and gambas al pil pil to die for. Awesome food.
Decent wine at good prices too. I love this place. Fast service as well.

Went to El Molino this sunday after I read some good reviews I decided to try. Maybe the food and service was good back in 1987, but nowadays is just un-​personal and pretty average. The food was average nothing special a little greasy and un-​flavoured. Not going back there anytime soon, however the wine was good.

This is a nice and unassuming place, serving relatively basic but authentic Spanish food at not unreasonable prices. The staff are super friendly and it’s clearly owned/​run by Spaniards. The food didn’t shoot the lights out but it was perfectly good. The wine list on the other hand is really excellent, great value and the wines we had were cracking I’m excited about going back and getting stuck into some more! Definitely worth a visit and I can see this becoming a bit of a local standby for me.

I get the Tapas here every time I visit, and each time I am always surprised by how full I am by the end of it. The staff are friendly and service is very good (though make sure you finish your food!), the prices are spot-​on, and the sangria is a must.
Check it out and take your friends.

A pretty cosy place to have dinner at, and one that is relatively affordable. e ordered a main course each, and were really surprised by the size of the portions! Each main course is literally enough to share between two.
However, the quality of the food leaves something to be desired. My medium-​rare steak was definitely more rare than medium-​rare, and even then it was extremely tough to cut and chew… my arm was sore after the meal! My partner’s pork was not too bad, but average, and the sauce was nothing special either.
Both main courses were only £11-£13, and so it was good value for money considering the portions, but if you really want some fine dining and good quality food, this is probably not the place to go.
Review by The London Insider

This is, hands-​down, my most favorite restaurant in London. As one review on the website praises, it’s «the best thing in holloway!» And for those familiar with this particular part of Islington, you know that means a lot.
El Molino has been open since 1987 and is family owned and operated. The interior is very warm and welcoming. It actually feels more cavernous with the dim lighting and dark wood furniture, especially in the evening. The bar is well stocked with a variety of hard liquor and wine.
But most importantly, the food is amazing. Just about everything is delicious. If you have the time, be sure to order the paella. Just like any great tapas restaurant, you do have to order right when you sit down since it takes awhile to prepare. But it’s definitely worth the wait. My all time favorite dish would have to be the gambas al ajillo. All I need to eat with the prawns is a loaf of bread so that I can sop up all that garlic, salt, and oil. And of course, you can not go wrong in ordering the patatas bravas. No wrong I tell ya.
So if you ever get the chance, have dinner here. It’s right up the street from the Holloway Road station off the Picadilly Line. Or you could also take the number 29 bus towards Camden.
Fantastic food, excellent prices, lovely people… what more could you ask for?

Visited El Molino after having moved into the area in the last couple of months and reading some pretty positive comments. Perfect location for us and had the opportunity to become a regular, relatively cheap alternative to home cooking. although we quite liked the look and feel of the place if not the location (sorry holloway road), the food was a disappointment. we ate just 4 dishes and dessert and not one of them was anything more than basic. the squid was very poor in fact. we may just have hit them on a bad night but I don’t think we’ll be back. staff were nice and service was prompt tho.

I love this place, too. Really unpretentious, authentic and friendly. The food is decent Spanish fare, and there’s enough for a veggie to have a satisfying meal. Not bad wine either

Great, authentic Spanish restaurant on Holloway Road. The tapas portions here are delicious and huge! I had three for myself and was stuffed. It’s reasonably priced and they have tasty and good-​value daily specials, too. It’s a basic looking place, not Spanish styled like your more run of the mill tapas chain places, and the staff are really informative and friendly. A must-​visit eatery if you’re in the area.

Excellent restaurant, has a very authentic feel, the owners are actually of Spanish origin and the food is of good quality the sardines are excellent and there are a good selection of wines. the décor is Spanish ‘homestyle’ not very sophisticated but gives a nice touch. Good place for a local meal if you’re really hungry its good for a big lunch, give it a go!