Don Mario evokes an old school, no frills steakhouse that focuses on preparing steaks perfectly, pairing them with great wines, and little else. We went to many other restaurants in Mendoza and elsewhere that were much nicer and fancier, but my wife and I probably agree that Don Mario served us our finest steaks for all of our meals in Argentina (and we ate a LOT of steak).
I'm skeptical of places with primarily English menus, and so I asked for the dining and drink menus in Spanish to make sure I knew what we were ordering and how much they cost. We ordered 600 grams of ribeye and ordered it rare to medium rare. Most of our steaks in Argentina tended to be overcooked, but this one was cooked sizzlingly bloodily perfect. I didn't tell my wife that the empanadas we ordered were "entrails" and onions, but she absolutely loved them and the melted mozzarella cheese with prosciutto. The wine menu was reasonably diverse and fairly affordable given the favorable exchange rate we experienced during our visit.
The server was knowledgeable, friendly and helpful in facilitating our order as well as presenting and serving the food to us. We were stuffed, but the steak was so good that we refused to waste a single bite of the ribeye. We definitely felt like we received an amazing value for our meal, even if the restaurant itself is a touch on the sterile side lacking in much character. Fine with me as long as you nail my steak. They seem very accomodating if you don't speak Spanish. We parked outside the restaurant and it wasn't exactly clear, but it seemed as if someone attempted to collect money for watching our rental car that was in my vision the entire time we were dining. Didn't appreciate that. Overall, can't recommend Don Mario highly enough. This was our first proper steak dinner in Argentina and it set the tone for an amazing visit. I would give anything to be able to visit Don Mario's every Friday and pay those prices for the incredible steak and vino. read more