Argentinian down under at Gaucho's Argentinian Restaurant, Adelaide

Posted by Hendy

No trip to Adelaide would be complete without a visit to Gaucho's Argentinian Restaurant, which prides itself as being Australia's first Argentinian restaurant.

Established in 1985, Gaucho's offers many dishes that Argentinian cuisine is best known for: beef, pork and an elaborate selection of grilled meat dishes. The name Gaucho's comes from the original pioneers of Argentina who roamed the vast plains of the Patagonian grasslands, the pampas.

Ciabatta with extra virgin olive oil and house made dukkah at Gaucho's Argentinian Restaurant, Gouger Street, Adelaide

The restaurant has both indoor and outdoor seating and with the warm, beautiful Adelaide day, we opted for the great outdoors.

Starting with ciabatta bread with olive oil and dukkah, and warm, marinated mixed olives, we trawled through the extensive menu which is broken down into courses: entrada (entrée), primer plato (first course), segunda plato (second course) and firma plato (signature dishes).

Oliva - Warmed mixed olives with chilli, paprika, tequila and lime

What stood out in the signature dishes were all the asado barbecue or grill based dishes. There was everything from simple eye fillet, scotch fillet, porterhouse beef cuts and a number of wagyu cuts – including rump and striploin – to mixed grilled meats that can all be 'asado'ed.

Churrasco Grande - Wagyu rump

It was hard not to, so we all opted to order steaks or ribs from the mouth-watering asado menu and a number of side dishes.

The first plate to arrive was the Churrasco Grande; a 500-gram wagyu rump steak with a marble score of 8+, aged for over 42 days and sourced from Mayura Station in Limestone Coast, South Australia.

The rump was well cooked to medium-rare as ordered, delectable with just a pinch of salt and very, very tender with the wagyu marbling giving it a buttery texture. There was also the light chimmichurri marinade that Gaucho's put on all its steaks to give them their signature finishing.

Bife De Chorizo - New York style porterhouse

A number of us ordered the Bife De Chorizo grain-fed Riverine porterhouse, aged for a minimum of 42 days. Simply presented alone on the plate, the porterhouse was there to shine; similarly tender at medium-rare as with the wagyu rump.

Six-hour slow-cooked beef ribs coated with blue cheese sauce

The last protein to hit the table was the six-hour cooked beef ribs - one of three specials on the day. Giant as it seemed, the slow cooking meant the rib meat just fell straight off the bone.

The single rib was served with a blue cheese sauce that surprisingly wasn't overpowering but complemented the beef, providing it with a draping of flavour alongside colourful vegetables on the side of the wooden board.

Hand cut fried potatoes with rosemary and sea salt

Hand-cut, skin-on, fried potatoes, a fancy chunk of a chip if you will, come default with the main dishes.

With their mid-sized cuts, the potatoes were crunchy on the outside and wedges-fluffy on the inside, seasoned with rosemary, sea salt and paprika to finish.

Verduras verde - Seasonal greens sauteed with olive oil, lemon and fresh chilli

To topple the protein imbalances, we ordered greens from the ensaladas é verduras menu. The greens side of broccolini was simply sautéed with oil, lemon and chilli.

Pera ensalada - Salad of pear, witlof, radicchio, pecorino and roasted walnuts

The pear salad was a colourful and flavourful mix of sliced pear, radicchio and pecorino cheese, with toasted walnuts and some witlof greens.

I loved the balance of flavours of the salad, from the saltiness of the pecorino to the bitterness of the radicchio to the sweet slices of pear.

Being my second time at Gaucho's since few years ago, not much has changed. Gaucho's has retained its simplicity and ability to present good Argentinian dishes at its purest form - making it a worthwhile stop if you're ever down under in Adelaide.