Charrua

I had the most amazing experience at this restaurant. My friend and I had comfy seats with pillows, great service and delicious food. As soon as we sat down someone poured us the wine we brought ourselves. Although we were in a rush the atmosphere was relaxing, charming and cosy! I recommend to everyone!

I recently had dinner at Charrúa with a large party and got to try several dishes. The beet salad is delicious! Hazelnuts, blue cheese, translucent onion, sliced beets. Mmm. I also tried the humita empanadas, the watercress salad, the fish special and the steak. Everything was excellent and prepared with care. I love the breezy, informal atmosphere. Charrúa is the kind of place where I could bring a couple of bottles of wine with friends and hang out for hours. I’ll be back soon!

I wanted to love this place (and I still plan to give it another shot). The restaurant is lovely, the staff is lovely, and the BYOB policy is lovely. But the food was meh. My husband and I got the chorizo, he got the el canadiense sandwich (filet mignon) and I got the el cheto sandwich (portobello mushroom). The chorizo felt undercooked and lacked flavor. The portobello mushroom sandwich left me very underwhelmed; everything was cold, and there was no promised mozzarella. My husband did like his sandwich quite a bit. My guess is they do red meat well (steak, filet mignon) and everything else falls by the wayside.

Wow! AMAZING live music and great ambiance. The steak & eggs was the best I’ve had in NYC and such great value for the huge portion size! Definitely coming back often, especially for brunch!

BYOB
for the ones who love that
small quaint, cozy & homey
uruguayan
chivito canadiense for all lumberjacks like me: D

My fiancée and I have been here twice. The second time was the day we got engaged! The food is fresh and flavorful. The staff is attentive and the place is BYOB.

We were planning to come here for a very long time. And finally we made it.
Came here with my friend oh last Sunday.
Very nice and cozy décor. Atmosphere is perfect how we like.
Even their bathroom is full of candles.
Service is very good. We brought a bottle of white wine. And our server (I think he is also a manager or owner) put it in the fridge.
THE FOOD IS AWESOME. I had a fettuccine with ham and Parmesan and it was one of the best pasta I’ve ever have. I am a fan of fresh pasta. And I could feel it that their pasta is fresh and homemade from the first bite! I think they should mention it.
My friend had a mushroom ravioli, which she enjoyed.
We were very happy and I’m looking forward to come back!

BYOB. Friendly service! Nice space for a group of 10 – 12 if necessary. Cool neighborhood to go out afterward.
I would recommend the skirt steak. The empandas were fine as well, but the steak was a great entrée.

The food is delicious, every dish is like a little piece of Uruguay on a plate. I feel closer to home (Uruguay) every time I visit this place. The service is great and the owners as well as the staff are very nice and courteous!
Highly recommend this spot!

Outstanding food in a somewhat cramped atmosphere. Enjoy the unique plates and glasses, as well as the excellent food at this authentic byob.

Social media can either raise or break a brand new restaurant. Perhaps a cook may make the most badass dish in the city, but if nobody notices, then the business would still die, just like if a tree falls in a forest with nobody around, was there still a sound? While not all chefs/​cooks are business-​savvy, that’s when PR guru comes into play. Have a well respected food critic (such as Sietema) even utter a few words about a place, foodies would flock to that place in no time, even if just to be FTR. So when I read the review on Eater and seeing that it is a local business with no big name and the prices are affordable, I thought to stop by soon. Also, when’s the opportunity to check out Uruguay flavors?
Not surprised, the chivitos are very similar to torta, but subbing the avocado with mozzarella cheese. Though meats are still surpreme here. So go for the steak, but the cook also caters to the vegetarians with a grilled Portobello mushroom chivito. Yea, it’s just not the same, that’s why you should definitely order the corn empanadas. Freshly filled and fried, at two to a plate at $ 8, it’s not Empanada Mama prices, but seeing the delicately crimped edges makes the experience more homemade and not mass-​produced.

I was first introduced to Couscous in Paris France. This led me to Hotel Mansour in Casablanca, to Jemaa El Fnna in Marakesh and finally to the culinary capital of Morocco, Fes, specifically to Maison Bleue and Palais Jamai. At every stop, I think I scored a better couscous. But who knew that a little unassuming place in NYC’s LES, Charrua, will finally redefine this dish. The Pesto Couscous served as a side to the Salmon at Charrua is not the classical couscous, but has the potential of making all Moroccans envious. I can go back again and again just for the couscous.
But Charrua is not about Couscous, but an exposure to Uruguayan Beef. Sure Japan has a premium Beef too, but the best Beef as we commonly know it in USA is from Uruguay. The Uruguayan Beef is delicious because the cattle is raised free range and grass fed, just try the grilled skirt steak at Charrua and you will be convinced.

It was the BYOB that had me try it out and the fantastic Uruguayan and Latin American dishes that keep me coming back for more!
Super affordable date spot — also great for group dinners (make a reservation).
Lovely owners and staff! Always very friendly — though I do speak Spanish so that may influence a bit.
Highly recommended to try out!

When I saw the place I thought it was cute, they had nice house music and thought the vibe was nice, BYOB, not bad. Then we ordered food and it was a mess. They never brought our appetizer and I got the wrong meal and decided to give me something else because they didn’t have what I ordered. I was hungry and decided to eat it. Food was very basic — nothing out of the ordinary. The waiter gave us a free dessert for the mistake. The service was very poor. I wouldn’t go back there.

Delicious food, friendly staff, cozy décor, affordable prices.
The meat was on point! (Believe me, I’m Brazilian…)

Came in late on Tuesday. Got treated to live music. Wait staff is charming — a bit loose at times, but it’s all part of the ambiance. Split croquettes and the platter/​water crest with my wife and it was perfect. Very affordable. BYOB was great.
PRO TIP: Deli on the corner does not have the coldest fridge. Hit up KGB or different bodega for your booze.

Hoy por primera ves fui a este lugar y la verda que Es el mejor Chivito que comi en New York un lugar que lo recomiendo muy Bueno!!!

We live across the street and finally tried Charrua. It was a really nice experience from start to finish. The owner and his staff are incredibly kind. We ordered the sampler platter (which had the chicken, steak, chorizo and empanadas). And also ordered the seasonal mojito salad (jicama, watermelon, mint, etc.) Everything was tasty and it’s also great that it’s BYOB. Not sure if it’ll always be that way or just until they get their liquor license (the spot has only been for about 5 months if memory serves me).
At first I rarely saw it packed but these days, it seems to be super busy, though when we went on a Tuesday night at 8pm, we didn’t have a problem getting a table. Glad their business is picking up!

I was looking for a quick bite to eat after work.
My original stop was Beauty & Essex however I was not dressed for that.
So I decided on having some Uruguayan food, and this is where I landed.
Décor was okay, I was greeted and seated but no one mentioned the specials and none were posted.
I ordered the parillada for two, per menu to share between two. It was more of a sampler platter.
The steak lacked flavor and the chicken milanesa was oily. The empanadas so so but better than the steak. The chorizo was acceptable. I left feeling like I wasted my time and calories for the day :(!!!

I’ve been curious about this spot since it opened. I enjoy the décor. It looks like a very comfy wine bar/​parlor. Service was excellent. Though I wished the food was more flavorful.
I ordered the following:
Croquet app– You can choose between ham and cheese; or mushrooms; or a mix of both. The ham and cheese croquets were better.
Sharing platter– It’s a decent entrée-​sized portion for one person. For two people, it’s closer to a few appetizers. Comes with skirt steak, empanadas, chorizo and chicken cutlet. The steak wasn’t that flavorful even with the sauce. I wasn’t a fan of the tuna empanada. It was a bit dry. (Though I’m usually not a fan of canned tuna) My mom loved the corn empanada and ordered seconds. The chorizo was the best part of the sharing platter. It had a nice savory flavor with a little bit of spice. The chicken cutlet was expertly fried and had a great crunchy texture without an oily feel. Sadly, it wasn’t well seasoned and was a bit bland.
Beef empanadas– Probably my favorite of the empanadas that I tried.
The place shows a lot of promise. I liked the décor and service. The ham and cheese croquet and chorizo were great. Though it also had a few misses with the skirt steak and bland chicken cutlets.

Nice place for a quiet dinner night.
The menu is not as extensive as you would imagine but the choices are what we expected: milanesas, chivitos and empanadas.
The milanesas are one of the best (for the price) in Manhattan and the dish is pretty big for the average milanesa. Great flavor and the right tenderness.
The chivitos are OK, also a generous dish but I prefer the one from Tabare.
It’s a BYOB restaurant so that’s a huge plus. The only problem was the fried smell from the kitchen that infested the whole place and I had to pay for the dry cleaner since I couldn’t get the smell out of my coat for days. That’s why I’m giving it 3 stars.
Next time I return I’ll put 4 stars if they fix the odor issue.