La Parilla Argentina

Large servings of meat (1 lb., 500 g) simply seasoned and cooked to order. Sirloin, Angus beef ribs, chicken, hamburgers for kids. Friendly staff, menus in Spanish or English. Bar service, semi-​decent margaritas.

We were staying at a hotel around the corner from La Parilla Argentina and decided to check it out. It’s across from the Monument to the Revolution, which has gorgeous illuminated fountains that constantly change height and color. So the stroll to the restaurant after dusk is quite pleasant. The neighborhood immediately surrounding the restaurant is clean and safe.
The restaurant itself has a sheltered outdoor dining area, from which you can probably see the fountains I mentioned. It was chilly and rainy the night of our visit, though, so we sat in the main dining room, which was brightly colored and cheery. A full bar is available, and there are television screens throughout.
The service was excellent. The food was OK but nothing special. I ordered the mixed grill, which had a very nice presentation — it came in a mortar like the kind used to make guacamole, with an ornamental sliced banana leaf hanging over the side along with some delicious fresh sliced avocado. It also came with some slices of cheese that the menu indicated would be grilled, but arrived cold. The strips of beef were good, but did not have the char-​grilled taste that is typical of an Argentine parilla. My companion ordered the filet, which was a disappointment. It arrived overdone, and, to our horror, covered in brown gravy like a Midwestern meatloaf.
To be fair, we didn’t order from the center section of the menu, which was «from the grill». Maybe something was lost in the translation as far as what we were expecting. If you’re staying in the neighborhood, La Parilla Argentina is worth a try, but I wouldn’t rate it as a «destination» restaurant based on the meal we had.