Tapas is having a moment on the Providence food scene and as the kids like to say these days, I’m here for it! (To paraphrase our servers yesterday, the plates are larger than appetizer portions and smaller than an entree.)

There’s Aguardente on Governor Street, Bacaro’s brand-y new sister restaurant Otra , and the new-ish one on Steeple Street that every other RI’er seems to be buzzing about right now — Palo. (For those tempted to @ me, I know I’m leaving a few out.)

We tried walking in to Palo without a reservation on a recent Thursday night and they were booked solid.

I learned the lesson, though, and made sure to hop online and make a reservation as opposed to, say, attempting another pop-in on a weekend.

The space itself is glow-y (we were there yesterday LATE AFTERNOON, so there was plenty of natural light) and delightful.

Frankly it feels just like an authentic tapas style bar that you might stumble upon on a charming Madrid side street.

Or Andalucia. (Their mission statement is predicated on introducing “the tastes and culture of Andalucia to Providence.”)

We had no problem finding meat-less dishes including the Olivas (olives), Pan con Tomate (tomato bread), Tortilla Espanola (Spanish omelette ), PInchos de Setas (marinaded oyster mushrooms with a side of pita), and Camarones a la Parrilla (grilled shrimp…we do eat some seafood once in a while).

Everything was yummy: I particularly enjoyed the tomato bread and the omelette and would go back in a heartbeat to try more from their menu. (Pssst, kicking myself that we didn’t order the Setas al Jerez or mushrooms with sherry that our wait person suggested.)

They also have mocktails (which I would also go back for) and Buns Bakery Babka for dessert !!! (Anyone who follows me here and over on IG knows how much I absolutely LOVE ❤️ everything from these RI-based bakers.)

Find Palo at 3 Steeple Street (at the foot of College Hill) in Providence.

As always, if you motor over after reading this, please do let them know you were inspired by Patty J and PattyJ.com.

Photo Credits: All images above are courtesy of PattyJ.com.

This post has been updated from one that has appeared previously on the site.