Samuel C.
Yelp
Pobre Luis is a giant family of restaurants.
It is not truly a chain because every establishment is different.
The founder was a Uruguayan migrant to Argentina.
There is some branch of the Pobre Luis family in most Argentine and Uruguayan cities.
Sometimes the restaurant is strictly Argentine.
Sometimes they let their Uruguayan roots show.
I am reviewing the Buenos Aires Uruguayan-style mother ship.
* * *
How good is Pobre Luis's Buenos Aires mother ship?
My main dish was awful ...
But I am still giving this place a wildly enthusiastic five stars.
You can guess how good the appetizer, and the side dishes were to justify a five star rating.
Of five things I had, three were legendary, one was entertaining and one was not so great.
Three legendary dishes in one meal?
Bring on the five stars!
* * *
The first absolute winner was an appetizer - grilled liver on a hot plate.
I adore plain ordinary liver - I don't care what animal it comes from - and I don't care how you cook it.
But THIS liver would totally appeal to liver haters as well as liver lovers such as myself.
a) It was unbelievably suave and mild.
I believe this has something to do with how the animal was raised and fed.
But I have never had gentler more sophisticated liver.
b) It was cut thin, WRAPPED INTO A CIGAR SHAPE, and grilled.
At Pobre Luis's, lots and lots of dishes are cut thin, wrapped into a cigar shape and grilled.
This gives you
b1) even cooking.
b2) a fine char on the outside.
b3) rare tasty meat on the inside.
This liver tasted like steak.
I am not making this up.
At first, I really thought there had been a mix up and I had been served steak ... but the dish was too tender ... and then there were a few bites that could have only been liver.
This was the suavest liver dish I have ever had ...
And don't underestimate the charm of having a char on your liver.
* * *
Dream Dish Number Two:
Tortilla with potatoes.
Yes, this is a staple Argentinian (and Uruguayan and Brazilian) dish ...
Simple eggs and potatoes and caramelized onions.
We have already had this dish about five times while we were here.
(My wife loves it.)
But at Pobre Luis's they just execute on this dish with far greater skill and art than do even very good competing kitchens.
The tortilla is higher.
It is filled with far more onions and they are far more caramelized.
The eggs are firm on the outside but the onions are juicy on the inside.
These were my wife's eggs and potatoes, but I just could not stop eating them.
Fortunately, the tortilla is huge and there was plenty to eat for two people.
* * *
Dream Dish Three:
Plain ordinary baked acorn-style Hubbard-style squash.
They serve three kinds of squash at Pobre Luis's.
In fact, they have so many vegetable side dishes, you could literally order a dinner of all vegetable side dishes.
You would eat like a king.
Each of the three squashes can be served to you in three preparations.
This squash is SMOKED.
You read that right, Yelpers.
Smoked.
If you have never had smoked Hubbard style squash,
You are in for a treat.
We got the version with nothing on it except for the squash.
Putting anything on that squash would have been a crime.
* * *
Dessert
An Almendrado.
This is a standard Argentine dessert which is nicely done here.
A slice of Crema Americana ice Cream with almonds and a sweet glaze on the edges.
The version at Pobre Luis's adds sesame seeds to the outside coating
Which is a fine fine fine idea that adds mellowness and richness to the dessert.
Crema Americana ice cream is ice cream with no flavor in it.
It is just the cream itself.
The Argentines love Crema Americana.
They serve it by itself.
They serve it with chunks mixed into it, such as chocolate bits.
You want a Crema Americana here because the nut flavoring on the edges is very very subtle.
Having a Vanilla ice cream for the slice would drown out the flavor.
Almonds, sesame and sweet cream are a fine fine fine fine mixture.
I would be happy to have this dessert any time.
* * *
The One Mistake
Chicken Pamplona.
Pamplona is a Uruguayan specialty.
You take chicken or pork or lamb or beef, and you make a thin fillet out of it,
Such as you would do with a milanesa.
You spread filling on the meat, roll it up in a jelly roll and cook it on the grill.
The stuffing here is mostly cheese. (Provolone, I think.)
Frankly, I think an orthodox Milanesa is much more interesting than a Pamplona.
The char on the outside doesn't do much for the dish ...
And Milanesa's often need a sauce.
(Tomato sauce rocks with a milanesa if you can find good tomatoes.)
Other Yelpers praise the steaks and grilled meats to the high heavens.
I should have probably gone for a simple meat dish here ...
Particularly in the light of how good my liver was.
* * *
That said,
give me three legendary dishes and a fine dessert to finish things off
and Samuel C. is one very happy camper indeed.
Thumbs up all the way!
