Gaucho Grill

Where: 19 Swallow St Picadilly W1B 4DJ
Website: www.gaucho-grill.com

A very good friend from Sydney had her last night in London tonight, and after spending 3 months in Italy (lucky Jo!) the vote was that there was to be no European on the menu. Enter Gaucho Grill, Argentinian restaurant extraordinaire.

Having had no idea what to expect (I half thought it might be Mexican) and finding it down a little alley off Piccadilly (19 Swallow St), I was pleasantly surprised to find a really really gorgeous interior. With chandeliers, very sexy dim lighting and a funky fold-out menu, my first reaction was 'ooooooh'.

There were loads of options on the menu, but when eating Argentinian, the only rule can be that it must be steak. And lots of it - they had 6 different cuts (each with 3 different size options), another 6 potential sauces plus a smorgasboard of sides. The bife de cuadrilo (medium rare of course) with porcini and truffle sauce was soooo good! As were the grilled mushrooms (mushrooms are great in London!) The dulce con leche cheesecake was lovely as well - less sugary than the real thing (which is good, as it is unbelievably sweet).

Good range of Argentinian wines as well, Dave chose a good red that perfectly complemented our steaks. Mmmmmm.

Jo and Dave have also left me with parting tips for good food in London - watch this space, I mean to check out Melati for Malaysian, Flat White (a cafe run by a Kiwi for us ANZers missing just that - a flat white!) and Wasabi for hand rolled sushi.