Santa Maria Del Sur

What a terrible experience Santa Maria Del Sur was Easter Monday. I had booked a table for my girlfriend and me, to celebrate her birthday. I had made the reservation for six pm and was told we are very busy; you can have a table but only for one and a half hour. This was ok, but we arrived at the restaurant at 5.55pm and they did not open the door until 6:10pm leaving us and others to stand outside on a horrible grey pavement and not a nice stretch of the Queenstown road.

I should have known the night was going to be bad right then.

We were seated by a professional guy but no smiles or welcome, or sorry to leave you standing outside a main busy ugly road; and for opening late.

The grill hadn’t even been lit! As most people know it takes a grill at least half an hour to forty five minutes to reach the correct temperature. It seemed they were still preparing to open as customers were in their seats ordering. Really bad ethos.

We ordered, I had the tuna steak at 6 15pm to start and asked for it to be left pink inside. It arrived at 6 45pm overcooked. We had waited 30 minutes for our starters; I didn’t say anything.

Then I asked for my fillet steak to be cooked medium, it arrived charred outside and red rare inside. When I cut in to the chips oil seeped out of them, obviously the oil hadn’t been heated and was cold when the chips were put in.

Next the insult to injury, the head guy comes and asks me if I mind moving from our table to one right at the back. He says he knows the grill was late in firing up, right there I reminded him also that they opened late, he then says “oh you came early.” “I said no I got here for 6pm which was the time I was told to arrive at” he ignored that and said we can… More

When trying to impress the possible future mother in law, who happens to be Argentinean, it is a risk taking her to a restaurant that was meant to reflect her countries finest cuisine. Would it lead to a long and lasting marriage? Upon arrival, the restaurant presents itself as a rustic and authentic atmospheric steak house, which was combined with a delightful aroma of grilled steak wafting through the air, as we were lead to our table.
Whilst the mother in law passed a critical eye over the menu, I was left to order the wine, with some good advice from the waiter; I received a Merlot 2004, Mendosa. A mop of the brow and cautious look to the other half, we then went on to order the starters, delectable sliced ox tongue, empanadas (which surprisingly matched the incomparable standard of my Cornish heritage, pasty eating). The starters, short of the empanadas, were light and yet prepared you in a bold carnivorous manner for the focal point of the evening, the main course.
I have always been cautious when coming to ordering meat, blue rare, particularly after working as a waiter during my student days, in many “clean” kitchens. However, feeling comfortable, we all ordered the Argentine Fillet Steak. It truly guaranteed the marriage proposal; the steak was succulent, tender and extinguished any thought that Argentine beef is not the highest quality of meat available.
Feeling delightfully satiated and brilliantly serenaded, the evening cemented the relationship. My only regret is that we did not hear the live tango music. I guess we will have to go next week.