With no other options in town, the hopes of Accra-based tapas fans rest entirely on this modish bar-restaurant in the Afrikiko complex. Happily, it delivers. The interior cuts a decent dash, with chunky exposed rock walls and a few sherry barrels for drinkers and casual diners. Staff are welcoming, prompt and efficient, operating on a level head and shoulders above the city’s average. If anything bothers you, it’s likely to be the overzealous air conditioning – and even then you can relocate to the scattering of outdoor tables in the pleasant Afrikiko gardens.
A short starter list represents the menu’s weakest section – pork belly bites came up overdone and tough, and the bread, while acceptable, isn’t really good enough to carry a pan con tomate. Skip straight to the extensive tapas list, which the chefs – one Brazilian, one Spanish, – execute with aplomb. Highlights are a gooey reading of the classic tortilla, a perfectly sinful beef with blue cheese sauce, and a profoundly Mediterranean mix of fried aubergine slices with honey and feta. There are some fine fish dishes too, like a sour and meaty octopus with pickled veg, and a bracing salad of sardines, tomatoes, eggs and raw garlic (try not to breathe on your date afterwards).
To call Accra a bad city for dessert would be an understatement, so jump at the chance to sample a good one: Toro’s homemade chocolate cake is a sublimely dark, rich thing with a soft, crumbly texture. It’s right on cusp of becoming a brownie. A tart raspberry coulis offsets it perfectly.
Finally, you’ll find consistent if unspectacular coffee, decent cocktails and an inexplicably huge range of gins. With some lovely outdoor space and regular theme parties, Toro is definitely one to keep on your radar.
Expert Review
With no other options in town, the hopes of Accra-based tapas fans rest entirely on this modish bar-restaurant in the...
With no other options in town, the hopes of Accra-based tapas fans rest entirely on this modish bar-restaurant in the Afrikiko complex. Happily, it delivers. The interior cuts a decent dash, with chunky exposed rock walls and a few sherry barrels for drinkers and casual diners. Staff are welcoming, prompt and efficient, operating on a level head and shoulders above the city’s average. If anything bothers you, it’s likely to be the overzealous air conditioning – and even then you can relocate to the scattering of outdoor tables in the pleasant Afrikiko gardens.
A short starter list represents the menu’s weakest section – pork belly bites came up overdone and tough, and the bread, while acceptable, isn’t really good enough to carry a pan con tomate. Skip straight to the extensive tapas list, which the chefs – one Brazilian, one Spanish, – execute with aplomb. Highlights are a gooey reading of the classic tortilla, a perfectly sinful beef with blue cheese sauce, and a profoundly Mediterranean mix of fried aubergine slices with honey and feta. There are some fine fish dishes too, like a sour and meaty octopus with pickled veg, and a bracing salad of sardines, tomatoes, eggs and raw garlic (try not to breathe on your date afterwards).
To call Accra a bad city for dessert would be an understatement, so jump at the chance to sample a good one: Toro’s homemade chocolate cake is a sublimely dark, rich thing with a soft, crumbly texture. It’s right on cusp of becoming a brownie. A tart raspberry coulis offsets it perfectly.
Finally, you’ll find consistent if unspectacular coffee, decent cocktails and an inexplicably huge range of gins. With some lovely outdoor space and regular theme parties, Toro is definitely one to keep on your radar.