An International taste in the heart of Linden...Gaucho in 7th Street.

 

It was my wife's birthday recently and we decided to break our self imposed isolation

and eat dinner at an actual local restaurant rather than do take-out yet again.

When we arrived, these flowers from Plantation Revival in 3rd Ave, Linden were waiting for her.

Minette, the owner, produces the most awesome creations with indigenous flowers

and is my wife's go-to florist. You can contact her on  083 257 1678

Supporting two local establishments in one day.

Gaucho on 7th Street is where we would be having the birthday meal.

Although Gaucho has technically been open for more than a year,

then opened just before lockdown in 2020 and as a result

this is the first opportunity we have had to visit the carnivores paradise in our suburb.

This grill is where the magic was to happen during our sojourn at the restaurant.

Understated elegance is the overall theme...

 Who needs too much crockery and cutlery to distract when the star of 

our evening was the food? 

Hand sanitiser on every table and all the required COVID-19 protocols in place.

Temperatures were taken and names and contact phone numbers were also taken on our arrival.

There is an intimate outdoor seating area that has 4 or 5 tables which is where

we decided to enjoy our time together.

Gaucho Loaded Fries. 

A bed of golden crispy fries topped with roasted brisket slices. Drizzled in chimichurri verde.

We shared this as a starter and it was almost an entire meal on its own!

We will certainly be returning to have a second helping of this bowl of deliciousness.

Not something that we have ever had anywhere before.

It was as tasty as the description and although we thought that there would be some

to take home, we finished it all!

Chimichurri Verde, Chimichurri Rojo.

We could not decide which of these we wanted with our mains, 

so we were brought taster portions of both.

And a couple of slices of the tastiest bread we have enjoyed in a long while.

A change from the vast quantity of homemade sourdough bread

that we have been consuming during lockdown.

My choice, a 300g fillet, done medium-rare.

Gaucho does not mess about when it comes to portion sizes! 

Fillet 300g
Rump 300g
Sirloin 200g/300g
Ribeye 400g
Picanha 600g
Tomahawk 600g

Having previously tackled a 300g steak on my own,

I decided that discretion was the better part of valour and

 I split a fillet it with my wife.

(She in turn shared her fish with me, because that is the way we roll)

And each dish comes with a side.

My choice... 

Creamed Spinach with sautéed onion and Parmesan cheese.

Grilled Chilean Sea Bass

Served with toasted almond salsa and a side of  Bean, corn and avocado salad.

I can hear people questioning our choice of fish at a predominantly steak restaurant,

but this particular dish had been recommended by friends who eat here regularly,

and who were we to argue...

Given that it was prepared, like all the meat, over an open flame,

it was done to perfection.

Crispy skin and translucent and succulent flesh, 

it certainly lived up to the hype.

When last did you see an actual fish knife at a restaurant?

If the devil is in the details, then he was certainly involved in the decore.

The kitchen staff were just a blur...

The actual space is very limited and reminded me of a kitchen on a train.

But if space is used correctly then the actual size is relatively unimportant...

This is the man who makes all the magic.

Chef James can manipulate the flame to produce spectacular results.

I am in awe of his talent, and we have to say a big thank you to him

for presenting such a memorable meal that will be remembered

for all the right reasons.

Sopaipilla
Argentinian doughnut holes with dulce de leche.

A dessert that I had not tried before. 

I was rather taken aback by the taste of the dulce de leche

as I was expecting it to be more of a condensed milk caramel,

but I was informed that I was incorrect and my taste buds

took a moment or two to catch up with my brain and

then all fell into place.

Bread and Butter Pudding.

Now, this I have had before and I enjoyed every mouthful.

All the dishes that we had were shared between my wife and me 

as the portions were generous, to say the least.

No meal is complete without a cappuccino,

and this meal was no different.

A big thank you to all the staff who made the evening very memorable.

And especially for NOT singing happy Birthday!

Contact details:

087 655 4480
info@gauchorestaurant.co.za

Trading Hours:
Monday – Friday 09:00 – 21:00
Saturday – 08:00 – 21:00
Sunday – 09:00 – 16:00