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El Federal

4.2 (47 reviews)
PriceyArgentine
Open 10:00 am - 12:00 AM (Next day)

El Federal Photos

Recommended Reviews - El Federal

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Scott B.

We stumbled upon this place as it was very close to our hotel with great reviews. The menu consists of Argentine dishes from all regions of the country. Our server, Nico, was extremely friendly and explained the menu in English and Spanish. He even made some good recommendations for the rest of our short stay in the city. The barbacoa lamb dish was incredible and easily serves two. We also ordered the beet gnocchi and it was great, but also serves two. Wish we had a refrigerator in our hotel room for the leftovers.

Empanadas

Best empanadas we have experienced in BA. The service was attentive and thoughtful! The decor adds to the entire experience. We had our two 6 yo children with us and they LOVED everything!

Oscar C.

Great atmosphere, small boutique type restaurant, very rustic & charming, excellent service. The waitress speaks good English. Many of the patrons spoke English the night we had dinner there. We ate were early by argentine standards but there were still several patrons there already. Bread is delicious. The appetizer was excellent. The menu was small and several items were not available that night. Two tables left before ordering presumably because the menu was limited. The trout my wife ordered was a bit bland but good. The rack of lamb, Patagonia Mia, which is supposed to be their favorite dish was ALL FAT. IMPOSSIBLE TO EAT.

View from my table. Waiting for my food...
Gustavo P.

This is my third time in Buenos Aires and previously my colleagues took me to steak houses... My visit to El Federal was on a Sunday afternoon so the place was really relaxed. The concept is Regional Argentinean Cuisine... What a nice surprise! Very elaborated options on fish, lamb and pork. I had a pork chest cook in the oven covered in a port wine: Excellent!!!!

Best empanadas I've had in Argentina, and I've had a lot. I got one with sweetcorn and two with cheese.
Sana Z.

Best empanadas I've ever had ever! The breadbasket and herbed cheese is awesome. Service is friendly and cool. Decor is chill. Music is mellow, lighting is dim and nice. Wish I found it sooner.

Lemon Curd and brown sugar couli

We stopped in for dinner and the experience was excellent. As we are in Argentina we decided to have both meat dishes. I had the steak and my wife had the lamb. I haven't had such a delicious meal in quite a long time. The fare although quite simple, was cooked so well I had to write this review. The atmosphere in the restaurant is good although it was quiet on the night we were there. Service is excellent and the lemon curd desert I had was in my top 10. A great experience in Buenos Aires!

Cream corn empanadas were amazing. Service was wonderful from Alex. Wine pairings with the house specials were excellent. Highly recommend.

Great choices of dishes. Menu has changed but the flavor's still the same: delicious! Well prepared dishes. Outstanding staff!
Chris M.

So many great restaurants in the area. This is definitely one of them. American Express cardholders you get extra 20% off, why? I don't know but I would take whatever discount there is. Server's outstanding. Even though it doesn't get busy until 8 pm I would still make a reservation just to be on the safe side. 5 stars. 2 thumbs up.

Venison
MT W.

Local Argentinian flavor and regional dishes. We had a degustation set of three empanadas to start - with meat, lamb and cheese. Very fresh, hot and full of stuffing. Provoleta of cabra (goat milk regional grilled cheese) was very rich. Too much of green salad accompanying it, but still delicious. And we tried their Ciervo (which is venison). It was breaded and very very dry and rigid. They served it with some awesome and very tasty sauce, even not sauce; it was kind of separate side dish I'd say - julienne of vegetables (onions and sweet peppers with egg and spices). So, the meat was not perfect, but that their vegetable sauce - was a great invention! Apple pie for dessert was really great. They also offer a degustation menu. Not very large wine selection, and of those that are listed in the wine list, they were out of a decent half. Our server, however, focusing on our inquiries, kindly offered us an alternative which was not on the list. So, if you're just passing by looking for a place for dinner with some local charm and flavor - that might be the one. But don't raise high your expectations. Just a decent food for a reasonable price. And very nice and kind service.

First time here, thought we were going to have a light lunch but when the portion came out it was enormous.
Vernon B.

Thought we woul have a light lunch and ordered the roasted pork, wow the size exceeded my expectations, flavor was absolutely delish ,an A for atmosphere, service excellent. Definitely worth a 2nd or 3rd visit

Holli P.

Amazing food! We had lamb, empanadas, and gnocchi. All amazing! Good wine and desserts.

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9 years ago

The service was a little slow due to the cooking class, but the food was excellent. I will certainly go again next time I'll be in BA.

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9 years ago

Nice, small restaurant with a good eating environment. Empanadas were very good but the Ternera was a disappointment.

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El Federal Reviews in Other Languages

Review Highlights - El Federal

This is my third time in Buenos Aires and previously my colleagues took me to steak houses...

Mentioned in 7 reviews

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Cabaña Las Lilas - The bread and relish plate - you can refuse it, but it's worth eating...

Cabaña Las Lilas

3.9(210 reviews)
1.1 kmPuerto Madero
$$$$

Every Buenos Aires visit deserves a trip is not complete unless you visit Las Lilas for amazing…read moresteak and dining experience. We were in Buenos Aires for a few days prior to our Antartica Trip and asked our concierge at the Sofitel Hotel where we could go for a true Buenas Aires Steak experience. Without any delay he said that we must try Las Lilas. A simple ride over and beautiful location at the site of their redone area along the riverside. Much like every other city is doing. Restaurants. apartments, shops and lots of young people enjoying themselves. We walked inside this beautiful Steakhouse and elected to sit outside where we could enjoy the beautiful view and atmosphere in lovely warm weather. Let me be frank.... Walking into a beautiful Michelin restaurant is pretty much the same around the world. You walk in with a smile and high expectations. Right here in the beginning I will say that the team and service was impeccable from the beginning. Flawless in my opinion. They came over in introduced themselves while bringing us some water, cheesy bread and taking our drink order Appetizers: Three styles of tomatoes. Selection of cheeses from their very complete collection. Main items: 16oz PIcahna steak (shared) Fried Potatoes (shared) Of course the wine was Malbec which paired so perfectly with all the amazing food. I am not going to go through each item other than saying everything was 'over the top' delicious. My friend said to me that once you've had Buenas Aires Beef you'll never forget the amazing flavor. Even through my wife likes her meat more on the well side, it retained the tenderness and unbelievable flavor. There is definitely a reason that a place like this become a Michelin Restaurant. Cabaña Las Lilas is flawless and judging from the look on the faces of the other diners around us.... They thought so too. Please see the pictures I added. Many people shared as the portions are very generous. KUDOS to the team at Cabaña Las Lilas

This was recommended by a local friend and was great. The setting along the waterfront was…read morebeautiful, and the service was attentive and refined. The steaks were high quality and consistently well-prepared. It felt more formal than some neighborhood parrillas. A great choice if you want a scenic, elevated dining experience in Buenos Aires.

Photos
Cabaña Las Lilas - Open kitchen (behind glass)

Open kitchen (behind glass)

Cabaña Las Lilas - T-bone steak

T-bone steak

Cabaña Las Lilas - Kitten view

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Kitten view

La Estancia Asador Criollo

La Estancia Asador Criollo

4.1(79 reviews)
0.9 kmSan Nicolas
$$$

I absolutely love this place. While many of my favorites have come and gone over the years, this…read moreone has stayed and continues to provide great steaks. While this place has been here since 1962, the first time I came was in 1993. I love it here because it is a classic, old-school restaurant, between the decor, the waiters and the grill as you walk in. The service has gone downhill a bit over the last couple of years, but I find that if you connect with your waiter when you finally get him to your table, he will check on you more often. They have a great wine list as well. The steaks are some of the best I have had, and I love that they bring your steak on a steel plate over a charcoal fire- do not let them take the grill- I love putting the fat on there to render away and then ladle it over my steak- so much better than butter! The fries are to die for, as is the Morcilla- so good and creamy- if you like that! I am usually too full for dessert, but I recently had their ice cream- so good and creamy!

Wanted Argentinian BBQ and this restaurant was near our hotel and had good reviews so we stopped in…read morefor lunch. Thank goodness for Goggle Translate, we were able to fully understand the menu and communicate with our waiter. The restaurant is very authentic and has an open grilling area for client viewing. Order ribs and the wife ordered chicken. The meals came with fries. Both meals were excellent. They accepted credit cards.

Photos
La Estancia Asador Criollo - Overall view from entry

Overall view from entry

La Estancia Asador Criollo - Giant Meat Platter

Giant Meat Platter

La Estancia Asador Criollo

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Siga la Vaca - Yummy

Siga la Vaca

3.4(67 reviews)
2.6 kmPuerto Madero
$$$

Disappointing service, maybe because it was Monday night. Waitress disappeared after bringing…read moredrinks, had to find someone else to bring us the bill. Table next door had someone that passed out drunk and nobody came to help. Disappointing food- missing many of the advertised meat cuts (entrana, vacio, etc). Meat was poor quality. Charged double the price than advertised online... check before sitting down at a table. Very disappointing experience.

Food: salad bar is descent and fresh, sadly our meat left…read moreus with disappointments. Our meat's temperatures were rather cold and 2 out of 3 cuts were overcooked. Service: when servers are wanting to serve you but refrained from it and have to ask the Manager if ok to do so, that's bad management so we don't blame the servers for leaving us waiting for our one and only server to help us. Server was surprised because we tip more than their 10% standard (again, not their fault the service wasn't good enough, we saw him while waiting our turn, he was hustling several tables alone). Manager seemed busy, she stood near our table but never asked us if we were taken care of or not, nobody picked up our pile of plates near the border of our table ready to go and two different servers asked her if they could help us but she preferred to call our server who had his hands full and turned to see her to listen to her while putting a hard to watch fake smile ... the poor guy! We just really wanted to pay and leave. Ambiance: servers seemed overwhelmed, we didn't get the teamwork feeling like in most places. Price: we paid in cash so with the current exchange rate this was cheap but by local standards we could've spent the same amount or less somewhere else and have a better result than this no doubt. I really hope that if you're reading this and still decided to come that you have better luck than we did. We heard from a handful of people we asked recommending this place so I didn't read any of the reviews. Lesson learned!

Photos
Siga la Vaca - This is where you get your meat. All you can eat! Some pieces are small but you can always get more

This is where you get your meat. All you can eat! Some pieces are small but you can always get more

Siga la Vaca - Chocolate volcano

Chocolate volcano

Siga la Vaca - Exchange rate at 620ARS (Florida 700ARS)

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Exchange rate at 620ARS (Florida 700ARS)

La Brigada - Ribeye and filet

La Brigada

3.8(141 reviews)
2.5 kmSan Telmo
$$$

This is the exact definition of a tourist trap. While there is so much hype about this place and…read morethe decor is really cool, the moment we set foot in this place, it was an off-putting experience. We came here so my husband could try the steak so tender, it's ceremoniously cut with a spoon. I'm not a big time meat eater, so I had the provolneta (too salty and charred) and some pasta with tomato sauce. The food was okay, but the prices were ridiculous. We skipped desert, partly because the prices on the deserts were more than some of the entrees. A big red flag. One of the things we did not appreciate was this awkward moment when it seemed like they were trying to give us alcohol we didn't order. Neither my husband or I drinks, so we had to explain that we didn't want it. The spaghetti I ordered was bare bones pasta with tomato sauce. I was really expecting a more elevated dish for the prices we paid. My husband said his steak was good, but definitely not worth the hype this place has. While the soccer memorabilia was fun to look at, the weirdness of the meal and this constant feeling that we were going to be charged for things we didn't want or the surreptitious way the desert was more expensive than some entrees really kept us on our guard. I would steer clear of this place. We had many enjoyable and wonderful dining experiences in BA and this one was a total outlier. Not worth the stress for sure.

The food was disappointing, the chorizo steak was extremely chewy. Also a lot of blood…read more The waiter was trying to edge us in to getting wine even though we did not want it. Very noisy and the family behind us was talking loudly.

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La Brigada - The view from our table

The view from our table

La Brigada
La Brigada - View from our table

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View from our table

El Federal - argentine - Updated May 2026

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