This Argentinian steakhouse has branches all over the world, with the HK one located in Central, at a very convenient location on Queen's Road Central. We were shown to a comfortable sofa table with plenty of room and sufficient distance from the nearby tables to enjoy nice privacy. If you want there is also a bar area for some drinks prior to dinner too.
Originally we wanted to try the tasting menu but that actually need to be ordered in advance, so we had to opt for the a la carte instead. For starter we decided to have the Seafood Sampler which marinated shrimp causita, tuna ceviche and seabass tiraditos. The shrimp has an Asian feel with some radish peel providing some spiciness which is reinforced by the mashed potatoes with paprika. The tuna is fresh and tasty, with parsley and avocado adding fragrance to the fish. The seabass has a few pomegranate to give acidity and flavors as well.
The other starter we ordered is the Special Starter, which is a clam with scallops and asparagus. Unfortunately I have to say this dish is not particularly impressive, and calling it Special may be a bit exaggerated from my point of view in terms of its preparation and taste. The scallops nevertheless were decently pan-fried but could be a bit less cooked to maintain the softness inside.
For the main dish we had the Asado de Chorizo, which is a strip cut marinated with smoked garlic, parsley and olive oil. The meat is gamey as recommended by the staff, but my biggest issue on this dish is the tendon of the strip making it extra difficult to cut. It is so chewy and tough that cutting is hard, and certainly too rubbery to swallow. I guess the quality of the meat would be better if we opted for the sirloin or rib-eye, which I would suggest you to do so. On the sides we ordered the flat mushroom and sweet potato wedges. Both are decent in my opinion.
Although already very full, we decided to sample the dessert and ordered the lemon sorbet to clean the palate and the poached plums. The sorbet has good acidity to balance the sweetness to make it refreshing and cleansing, while the plums had mascarpone sabayon sauce, orange compost and shortbread crumble to supplement. It is certainly filling but the shortbread is a bit softened which made me feel it is not very freshly made but overall it is still acceptable.
With a bottle of water, three glasses of wine, the total bill on the night was $1,861 and frankly the price was lower than what I would expect in such a restaurant in the neighborhood. Even though the quality of the food is only fair if given the total package I would still rate the restaurant as having good value over money.
My overall rating is 68/100.
On the night we ordered a BBQ Pork Set, which had an assortment of four different types of pork, a shiitake mushroom, a slide of onion and some hardened rice pudding. There is also a salad and vegetable included. Frankly the pork I would only rate as decent, with the marinated meat not particularly tasty. The portion also is too small and barely enough for three. Quite pricey considering it is charging $380.
In addition we also had a Dduk Bokki, the spicy rice pudding, which is another dish commonly available in all Korean restaurant. We had asked to have a less spicy version to accommodate our taste, but I am quite disappointed that it turned out to be bland and flavorless. The fish roll is also a bit stale with a fishy taste.
