Leave your castanets at home tonight, and head to Tinto Tapas España for its first flamenco show. Previously the West Hollywood Spanish tapas restaurant has had recorded flamenco music, but starting tonight a professional will do the clicking during the two dinner shows, which will include flamenco guitar and singing as well as dance.

Tinto is authentically Spanish, from the bullfight paraphernalia on display to the list of tapas written on the mirror over the bar, the way it is done in Spain. And, of course, the food: patatas bravas, spicy potatoes drizzled with aioli; the txipirones en su tinta, seafood-stuffed squid in its own ink. And the gambas al ajillo, shrimp in a white wine and garlic sauce, that is so good I've tried to copy it at home. This weekend, in honor of the flamenco show, there will be new tapas on the menu: broiled octopus, prepared in a way typical of northwestern Spain, and Spanish black onion sausage cooked with red peppers, onions, potato and fresh tomatoes.

Valencia (Spain, not California) native Mercedes Ferrandiz, whose daughter, Virginia, manages the restaurant, will come in that night to cook the sausage dish, and she'll also make coconut flan, using her own recipe.

Tinto has also redone its wine list, so there will be plenty of Spanish wines to try, and also three sangrias. One of these is made with Spain's sparkling wine, Cava, and that sounds like the one to choose if you want even more sparkle in your evening.

Tinto Tapas España: 7511 Santa Monica Blvd., West Hollywood; (323) 512- 3095. Flamenco dinner shows are tonight at 7:30 and 9:30 p.m. Reservations are suggested.

Barbara Hansen also writes at target=”_blank”>TableConversation.

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