Red peppers and an overabundance of garlic.

Two items I can live without.

Garlic gluttony stays with you like a mosquito bite. The itch lingers for days as does the garlic hangover.

My foodie friends in south Florida recommended a small family owned tapas restaurant in Delray Beach.

I was intrigued.

I reserved on OpenTable and headed out on a balmy Thursday evening.

It was a quick 10 minute drive offering free parking steps from the restaurant.

We were immediately seated at Papas Tapas.

We sat outside because the interior was kitschy and someone was moping the floor emanating a  smell reminiscent of the corridors of my high school.

We eventually moved inside because we were surrounded by hard of hearing screamers and hair flickers.

The server was lovely, but in hindsight offered just plain awful recommendations.

We started with Sangria. It was dreadful and absent of fruit, a mainstay of sangria. A few sad, lonely apple chunks floated in the urine colored mixture (full carafe $38).

The Caesar Salad arrived looking like Publix had catered. It was bagged romaine with pre-shredded  Parmesan, bottled dressing and processed croutons…inedible ($7).

The only good dish was one my friend, Fran, recommended. It was fried Calamari with crispy vegetables ($16).

The Papas Bravas Potatoes came bathed in a spicy red pepper garlic aioli. Hideous ($8).

I happened to be allergic to red peppers. Most restaurants ask about allergies. This heinous ingredient was not listed and surprisingly, the server did not inquire and silly me,  I failed to mention it.

Wouldn’t you know that Papas Tapas wallowed in red pepper.

The seafood Cazuelita was awful. The sauce tasted like old fish with shrimp, scallops, calamari, mushrooms and chorizo sautéed with garlic, olive oil and white wine ($20).

The Brussel Sprouts were flavorfully al dente, but they were drowning in a sweet sauce reminiscent of maple syrup, technically honey siracha ($15).

The Paella Marinara sounded great. As advertised it took one hour and it was not worth the wait as it was floating in a sea of red peppers. The paella included yellow Saffron rice with lobster, shrimp, scallop, calamari, clams, mussels and mahi. The seafood was dry and the garlic was as prevalent as ICE in minority neighborhoods ($36).

The music was worse than Korean nail salon cover band videos.

I could not wait to leave. The garlic lingered in my mouth and soul for days.

Papa don’t preach to me about authenticity…this food sent up too many red flags.

Papa’s Tapas 259 Northeast 2nd Avenue Delray Beach, Florida. Open Monday-Thursday 12-10 PM, Friday and Saturday 12-11pm, Sunday 2-9pm. Reservations on OpenTable.com.