On the ball
Pro Best meat we've tried in town, just about.
Con It comes at a price.
Pay
€€€€+
Per Person €50 Shared: bread, two starters, dessert, opening beer, bottle of Malbec. Solo: Mains. Gratis; Pumpkin soup amuse bouche, we think. But there's a chance it's included in the €2.60 bread charge.
Find
Website https://piantao.es/
🛈 Info Dietary info not on menu
Access Step free. There's a ramp into the dining area.
In Short
Hopes. Will it feel porteño?
Reality. Buenos Aires, Shoreditch and The Village all in the mix. Modern to the max.
First Impressions. Post-industrial matadero chic.
USP? Genuine Argentinian Influence.
The offer in three words. Porteño, but not portentous.
Service! Excellently uncomplicated.
Friend friendly? Really not the spot for the V-minded, to be honest.
Rating for dating. If you're both on the same page, meat-wise, it'd work, but doesn't feel the spot for a first-meet.
Tip? 5%
Change one thing? Up the apple intensity in the pancake.
Revisitability. For the meats, very high.
Compare & Contrast
A fairly traditional BA vibe, complete with unexpected hats and moustaches, at El Camoati in La Latina.
In Pictures
On Google Images
What's the story?
Apparently a popular spot with Madrid's Argentine football diaspora, you'll be pleased with the authenticity at Piantao, but the price might mean visiting is a special occasion experience.
Breads, smoked butter and pumpkin soup are an enjoyable and determinedly non-Spanish kick off. Although, advance news, you're paying for those breads, so make them matter. Some top notch chorizo is typically lightly-spiced. A bean salad does it a lot of good, adding a touch of acid balance that's really enjoyable. The morcilla is going to be an acquired taste - a very soft, almost mushy blood sausage that is very, very different from what Madrid-trained expectations might be anticipating. It's big too. There's certainly enough for four to share.
But it's the main courses where this place's reputation is ultimately at stake. Or steak. Ho ho. The good news, is we're talking some of the best meats in town. A proper, bitey chimichurri's on the table, but these cuts are so good you hardly need it. And you don't really need the mega-chunky giant-jenga chips. Truth be told, they are a bit too thick for us, and some could have been fluffier on the inside. Go 30% smaller we say, or cook a tad longer.
A note on the meats. There's a large range, with cuts in the Argentine style, complete with a helpful diagram on the menu. Bife de chorizo, which doesn't have an English name as far as I can work out, is a hard one to turn down. And I didn't. It was excellent. As good as I've had outside my best meat experience ever. A phrase that needs clicking to not risk being misconstrued. Bear in mind these cuts are not necessarily huge - 300g equates to a large chicken breast, for example. We should mention cooking style. It's Argentinian style, so be prepared for each level to be about half a notch lower than you might used to from Spanish style meats, and maybe a whole point lower than US or British ones.
We did a dessert, You have to, don't you? Here's apple pancake with rice pudding ice-cream. We were happy. What more can you say? Well, actually it could have been a touch more appley. But was a decent and unquestionably Argentine style finish.
Service is very good, with everything explained as required, plenty of friendly chat and things arriving on time, although an early beer got lost in the ordering process and we had to ask after it. Decor is entirely in tune with the Matadero opposite, exposed concrete, lots of distressed wood and a general air of post-industrial done-up smartness. You know the score. If one thing jars, it's the meat lockers in the main dining area which are more reminiscent of a funeral parlour than the designer surely intended. Odd. The semi open kitchen is pleasingly dramatic, though. Oh and the shrine, there's no other word for it, to a certain very handy footballer, is a touch of pure Boca culture.
Go and you'll surely achieve your own Argentinian goals.
Food 🟊🟊🟊🟊 Service 🟊🟊🟊🟊 Ambience 🟊🟊🟊🟊
Pro Best meat we've tried in town, just about.
Con It comes at a price.
Pay
€€€€+
Per Person €50 Shared: bread, two starters, dessert, opening beer, bottle of Malbec. Solo: Mains. Gratis; Pumpkin soup amuse bouche, we think. But there's a chance it's included in the €2.60 bread charge.
Find
Website https://piantao.es/
🛈 Info Dietary info not on menu
Access Step free. There's a ramp into the dining area.
In Short
Hopes. Will it feel porteño?
Reality. Buenos Aires, Shoreditch and The Village all in the mix. Modern to the max.
First Impressions. Post-industrial matadero chic.
USP? Genuine Argentinian Influence.
The offer in three words. Porteño, but not portentous.
Service! Excellently uncomplicated.
Friend friendly? Really not the spot for the V-minded, to be honest.
Rating for dating. If you're both on the same page, meat-wise, it'd work, but doesn't feel the spot for a first-meet.
Tip? 5%
Change one thing? Up the apple intensity in the pancake.
Revisitability. For the meats, very high.
Compare & Contrast
A fairly traditional BA vibe, complete with unexpected hats and moustaches, at El Camoati in La Latina.
In Pictures
On Google Images
What's the story?
Apparently a popular spot with Madrid's Argentine football diaspora, you'll be pleased with the authenticity at Piantao, but the price might mean visiting is a special occasion experience.
A note on the meats. There's a large range, with cuts in the Argentine style, complete with a helpful diagram on the menu. Bife de chorizo, which doesn't have an English name as far as I can work out, is a hard one to turn down. And I didn't. It was excellent. As good as I've had outside my best meat experience ever. A phrase that needs clicking to not risk being misconstrued. Bear in mind these cuts are not necessarily huge - 300g equates to a large chicken breast, for example. We should mention cooking style. It's Argentinian style, so be prepared for each level to be about half a notch lower than you might used to from Spanish style meats, and maybe a whole point lower than US or British ones.
We did a dessert, You have to, don't you? Here's apple pancake with rice pudding ice-cream. We were happy. What more can you say? Well, actually it could have been a touch more appley. But was a decent and unquestionably Argentine style finish.
Service is very good, with everything explained as required, plenty of friendly chat and things arriving on time, although an early beer got lost in the ordering process and we had to ask after it. Decor is entirely in tune with the Matadero opposite, exposed concrete, lots of distressed wood and a general air of post-industrial done-up smartness. You know the score. If one thing jars, it's the meat lockers in the main dining area which are more reminiscent of a funeral parlour than the designer surely intended. Odd. The semi open kitchen is pleasingly dramatic, though. Oh and the shrine, there's no other word for it, to a certain very handy footballer, is a touch of pure Boca culture.
Go and you'll surely achieve your own Argentinian goals.
Food 🟊🟊🟊🟊 Service 🟊🟊🟊🟊 Ambience 🟊🟊🟊🟊