Whenever I feel like eating Spanish food, I drive all the way from Coquitlam because IT IS THAT GOOD. The tapa menu alone will satisfy you. I always get the calamare,paella, etc etc. The place is either bumping with LOTS of people drinkin, partyin, etc or its nice and quite with more older crowd so pick your days to try this place. This place is definetly worth it!

This is now a favorite of our teens who are expanding their dining experiences. The decor is like Uncle Franco's basement ... circa 30 years ago ... and now ... and so we have a feel-good time here. It really has not changed much over the years and that's OK. We love tapas as it allows for alot of tasting options and everyone can find something to nibble on.
The plato variado (cold plate) is a good starting point with an array of items, and build from there. Our favorites are the patatas bravas (zesty potatoes), pimiento relleno (stuffed red pepper), calamares (fried squid), the chorizo casero (spicy sausage), albondigas (Spanish meatballs), and jamon (small cured ham breads). We get the livers (which our kids won't touch, but all the more for us). Get lots of bread to sop up sauces, and don't forget the sangria. You can add on after your main order, and it is usually pretty quick. Best seats are on the periphery - we like beside the bar towards the back, or the front inside corner. It can get loud.

I haven't been in La Bodega for approx 2 years and wanted to go there after work. It wasn't too busy for 7.30pm, was greeted by lukewarm waitress & was sat in the very back in a corner. I did ask to move to another table, one that wasn't wobbly, and saw a few, but this particular waitress didn't seem to care.

I was greeted by another server, who was friendlier, took my order and waited with hungry anticipation. I had order there prawns in garlic, meatballs, chicken wings with bread to dip into the garlic. I loved the prawns, still as good as I remembered them, and the bread was great for soaking up the garlic, vampires beware.
My meatballs where less than desired, in a sauce but I found the meatballs where overcooked & dry, not making them very tasty. I also thought their chicken wings in pass, where the best, but I should have left my previous thoughts behind to sadly disappointed with hardly lots of taste to them.
It could have been off night for the chef, but I didn't find the food all that great, flavourful or screaming at me to order more. I did try the creme carmel dessert, it was light, lots of flavour and another dish the way I remembered.
It too bad that food wasn't that great, I'm in no rush to return anytime soon. Sadly the food or service wasn't as good in my last visit. They need to fix the table that wobbles in the back..another drawback to my meal.

I love this place.. been coming for over 10 years...

Get sangria or wine ... calamari, bean salad, house salad, paella, potato bravos, and clams... the prices are great and it is so much fun... I chatted with the owner once- total sweetheart...

I would avoid chicken drummettes, ceviche, bread (extra) , ... the prawns are okay.. the pate is nice too... I prefer the red sangria over the white..

Also - i foundthe food better here than in Spain.. mind you I was a tourist in Spain ... and probably didn't go to the right places...

Definately worth it if you know what to order... There is a reason why its been open for more than forty years..

Very warm and romantic atmosphere. A variety of different spanish tapas, anyone can enjoy a meal there. The patatas bravas has the most amazing sauce and should be finished with every last piece of bread. Seafood, meats, rich sauces, wonderful staff. I would recommend this restaurant to any one of my friends. I go there anytime I am in the area. The flavors and ambiance are to die for.

the atmosphere is nice, in a homey, comfortable kind of way.
the tapas is, for the most part, good - nothing to get worked up about, but solid.

We ordered our tapas, and bread and wine, all at once. the tapas came within two minutes - a sign that it's all sitting in the back in big pots, waiting to be spooned out. fair enough, i guess.
the wine took at least ten further minutes to reach our table, and when we inquired about the bread, we were told flatly it would be another minute.

now i don't know how it takes longer to slice a white baguette than to get a plate of beef shortribs, but apparently it does. and i'm not a big fan of eating half my meal before my glass of wine comes.

the kicker was the "cheese platter" though. slices of orange american chedder? and mozzerella from iga?? i thought this was a european restaurant, that would put at least the slightest effort into finding cheese somewhere other than the bargain blocks at the grocery store.
a really distasteful end to a rather negative dining experience.

not recommended.

I love this place... just only because they are the only real Spanish restaurant in Vancouver. The food could be better... real Spanish restaurants in Manila, Philippines (with Spanish Chefs & Owners) are 200% - 300% than La Bodega...

But I cannot complain. Food seems cold close to midnight. Quality is still good but the same varieties of tapas from 7 years ago when I first came here sounds boring...

Don Quijote in Calgary is a lot better than La Bodega.

First of all, this is the ONLY Spanish restaurant in Vancouver. Other restaurants claim to be Spanish, but they are not. Spanish means the country Spain. Not Mexico or Latin-America.

Secondly, what they serve you under the name Sangria, is NOT real Sangria. It is some americanized (or if you will, canadianized) version of it. Real Sangria only comes in red wine, and it does not contain any hard liquor. So while La Bodega's Sangria is good, it's not real Sangria (which is better).

Third, Spanish food is NOT spicy. Not even remotely. Several things I was served at La Bodega are really burning hot. This is not Spanish food.

But even so, La Bodega is as close as you get to real Spanish food in Vancouver, and they are pretty good overall if you know what to get (and what NOT to get). I recommend going there to see for yourself.

I've heard great things about La Bodega, so despite a lot of bad reviews here, we decided to try. We were the only table in the restaurant around 6:30pm, so we figured we would at least get great service. The service wasnt terrible, but it was very slow, and several times we had to get the waiter's attention.
The food was dry, the chicken was greasy, the mussels were definitely NOT fresh...tasted very fishy.
The room feels very old and dirty...where if the food and service were something better, I can often forgive such rooms, consider it character, but there weren't any redeeming qualities.

With the exception of some tapas being a bit over-priced for the amount you get, everything else was very good. The one thing i noticed that was the best was our server. I havent been to a restaurant in a long time that had a server that would actually bring food and drinks in minutes, barely even waiting for either, well the food of course we had to wait for it to cook, but other then that, man she was quick!
Very nice place that is a little older, a little bit more traditional inside but has good food, great service and the clientele was a mix of all vancouverites!
Try the meatballs!