Ever look at a restaurant and think “I gotta eat there”, well I saw this place year, or more ago and have now finally eaten ay El Gaucho’s steakhouse. Was it though worth the wait and indeed the cost? The short answer is yes….
Post dining I was to discover that El Gauchos Steakhouse was not only part of a chain that starches from Pataya to Manila, as well as throughout Ho Chi Minh City, but that it was Argentina themed.
Which has since got me thinking, why have Argentina restaurants not yet taken over the world? I remember visiting Buenos Aires on an Antarctica Tour many years ago and the taxi driver saying to me “In Argentina all we have is great steak, amazing wine, sexy women, pure coke and top football”, to which I looked back bewildered and replied “its not a bad start”. I digress….
Table of Contents
What the El Gauchos Steakhouse District 1
In fact there are two District 1 restaurants, with me going for the one that is slightly more downtown and very near walking street, Hoang Phi Hotel and the big market, It was buying football shirts at said market that led me to initially walk past here.
From the outside it looks good and professional, with the menu being lit up and the main restaurant element occurring on the scenic floor with a great view of the city.
El Gauchos Steakhouse Address;
74/1 HAI BA TRUNG,
BEN NGHE WARD,
DISTRICT 1,
HCMC
SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF VIETNAM
El Gauchos Starters
So, lets start with the starters, of which it was quite frankly an epic choice, although I picked so quickly the choice part came afterwards. I personally and as always went for the steak tartare, but other tartare was also available, such as salmon and tuna, which I am fairly sure would have also been epic. These are the kind of appetizers I would expect to see in a good steakhouse.
There were also a number of sides that in fact could double as appetizers, with there being Mac and Cheese for $5 and a Truffle version for $10, I went for the later. Again this was epic, despite the small portion. And they were even better than the Mac and Cheese I had in Nha Trang.
In reality though and certainly if you are on a budget here then the bread, with three dipping sauces and butter would be more than enough to keep you going.
And they also offered apperative options…..
El Gauchos Main Courses
OK, so they have crap like salads and pasta, but hey you do not come for that. They also offer what looked like really good burgers, but again unless its lunch time you do not come for that.
Steak wise they had pretty much every option of the cow right up to Tomahawk, with the menu even getting confusing at times. Said confusion probable came form the huge selection of Wagyu that they offered, but alas unless you went tiny then a steak would knock you back a $100 a piece. I am baller, but not that much.
Best bang for your buck thus came from the shared platters, with us going for a mixed grill. This came with chicken, chorizo sausages, as well as two steaks and two steak toppings. My post meal foot coma means I cannot remember all toppings, but kudos on the blue cheese that was EXTREMELY rich, as well as the horseradish. This is not exactly to Asian tastes, but certainly made an Englishman happy.
This was washed away perfectly with a Malbec, and a coke.
A fine dessert at El Gauchos
Unsurprisingly desert not only happened, but was epic in its simplicity. This consisted of a plain cheesecake with some raspberries on it, as well as sone raspberry sauce to be poured over. Said cake was decently sized.
The killer move here though was that it was paired with absolute perfection with the Port Wine they served. I did not check what it was called, nor if it was planned deliberately with the port, but for whatever reason it worked.
And to top it all off they pulled the oldest trick in the book, but one that makes everyone happy! A free shot of homemade toffee flavored liquor. We are not reinventing the wheel here, but we are making a fairly perfect wheel.
Service, ambience and price at El Gaucho
The service here was absolutely amazing, with staff attentive, rather than being intrusive. The second floor outdoor element also meant a great view of Saigon, but also making the most of the weather (whilst being able to smoke).
Price wise it came out at $210, or so, with most of it fit for up to three people dining. This is expensive for Vietnam, yes, but on the grand scale of things not all that bad. I recently dropped $90 on a burger and a few drinks at the 4 Seasons in Seoul, so everything is economies of scale.
If though you are on a budget then you could easily have lowered it a gear and spent $100, or better still come on Tuesdays when all steaks are 50% off. I for one will be back, but back on a Tuesday….