My partner and I went to celebrate our anniversary once again at El Gaucho and once again had an AMAZING experience. They made custom menus to congratulate us, they decorated the table with actual rose petals, and they also comped our dessert as a thank you for being a consistent customer. I love this place so much! The food is amazing, the cocktails are to die for, and the service is always top notch. I highly recommend dining at El Gaucho! read more

I came in yesterday to celebrate my second wedding anniversary, and not even 30 minutes into our dinner, I found out that our car had been broken into and everything I had was stolen. My ID, social security card, all my credit cards, jewelry, my other phone and my AirPods. The way the staff handled the situation and comforted me meant more than I can put into words. I was beyond grateful for their kindness, care, and compassion during such a stressful and upsetting situation. They packed up all of our food and gave it to us on the house, even brought me a blanket and wrapped it around me to help comfort me. One of the waiters even went with my husband to help look for my bag. If it weren't for him and the valet worker, who I believe was named Jacob, the situation would have been so much harder than it already was. Even before this happened, every time I've come in, the staff has always been so kind, welcoming, and professional. But after yesterday, I have an even deeper appreciation and love for this place. Not only is the food amazing, but the people here truly care about their customers. I will forever be grateful to their entire team for taking such good care of me during a difficult moment. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. read more

This has been one of the worst dining experiences I've had in a while. I came here for an anniversary dinner with my boyfriend where after asking us how many years we've been together, the waiter told us "it was all downhill from here" with a slight "you know what I mean" nod towards my boyfriend when he gave us our drinks. We were so baffled that we couldn't even ask him what he meant before he ran away. I do not go out and spend money to get insulted. We did not see him again. The food here was also way below my expectations. If I am paying these prices for a steakhouse, then I expect the chefs to know how to cook a steak. We ordered all of our meat medium and I received a borderline raw piece of meat. The waiter then proceeds to try to gaslight me telling me their medium is "a cool red" when earlier he said their medium is a "warm pink". He said it was my fault that I didn't enjoy the meat and was upset when I told him to take it back to cook longer. (See attached pictures for reference) The tamari glazed pork was advertised as being so tender you could cut it with a spoon, this is not true. The edge on the pork was extremely thick and tough, making it difficult to cut even with a knife. I also do not recommend the lobster asparagus upcharge, the lobster does not taste fresh, is extremely salty, and you only get two small chunks of it. The restaurant overall had a dark moody vibe, perhaps so you can't see how raw your meat was served to you. The kicker was at the end of our meal, the waiter looked at us and said, " I know you guys will be coming back, so you might as well join our rewards program." ... yeah, we are not coming back. read more

El Gaucho - Steakhouses Near Me - Portland, Oregon

This is a classic place that always provide excellent service and a good meal. I haven't had a bad experience here at all. During this visit, we ordered steak tartare and steak Diablo for our appetizers. We had the Flaming Sword Brochette and rack of lamb. We also had some mushrooms and scalloped potatoes. Everything was done well and we had a good time. read more

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This is our go to restaurant for birthdays and anniversaries. Food is great, ambiance is great, service is amazing! I can go on and on about this place but I won't just book a reservation. Oh yeah ask for the server Alex, you won't be disappointed. read more

El Gaucho - Rhubarb crumble is top tier - Steakhouses Near Me - Portland, Oregon

My wife and I go to El Gaucho once a year for my birthday, and always love the experience. The staff are professionally dressed, trained well, and compensated fairly via the mandatory 20% service charge. The ambiance is dark, luxurious, with live guitar most nights. The steaks are done to perfection, the table-side Caesar salad and cherries jubilee are incredible, and the drinks are strong. My steak was done perfectly, and her pasta with shrimp and scallops was a sleeper. Water and bread are refilled quickly. I never understood the complimentary fruit and cheese platter they give you before dessert, but hey, it too is done well. Diners are dressed from jeans and t-shirt casual to fancy dresses. I wish people were more formal in such a nice venue, but hey, this is Portland. Valet parking is $15, but it's fairly easy to find street parking within a couple blocks. Highly recommended. read more

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Although the tableside salad is standardized, it can still be a hit or miss depending on the server preparing it. I had the best tableside salad here last year, and our waiter even personalized it by adding extra garlic. Unfortunately, things fell short during my most recent visit. The salad this time was very bland and barely garlicky, even though we specifically asked for extra garlic. Last year I didn't get a chance to try their off-menu porterhouse and was planning to order it this time. Unfortunately, they no longer offer it. The only off-menu option now is a sampler of three different cuts for over $100, which isn't worth it to me. I ended up going with the ribeye cooked medium rare as usual, but it was surprisingly chewy this time and even made my gums bleed a bit. One small thing I wish they would change: at other locations, the personalized menu is kept in a plastic sleeve, but here they roll it up and tie it with a ribbon. A common issue I've experienced at El Gaucho most of the time is that when the server pours water, it often drips onto the personalized menu. I hope they can be more careful since it gets messy and ruins something many guests like to keep as a souvenir. There has also been a huge price increase across the menu since my visit last year. read more

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I have never been to such an experience! Absolutely amazing. The service was so unique, from start to finish they made our anniversary so special. Our steaks were delicious, we loved the scallops potatoes, mushrooms were so full of flavor, calamari was one of my most favorite and our drinks were perfection. Our menu had our names on it, such a sweet memento to take home and remember. The staff worked so well together, everything just flowed, it was very impressive. It's a pretty dark environment I'd say but their's live music and it's so nice read more

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El Gaucho has been on our list of Portland Restaurants that we had on our bucket list; we can now officially share what an amazing experience we had. We were celebrating my wife's cousin's birthday. El Gaucho restaurant is located on the street level of The Benson Hotel on SW Broadway. You have the option to valet your car or right across the street you will find a local parking lot or if you are lucky you can search for street parking. As you walk in you are greeted by a door man, the staff we interacted with were over the top friendly and engaging. The interior is swanky with a wood tone, white tablecloths but not stuffy. We were seated quickly. The booth was on the street side wall near the bar area with open seating in the middle of the space, but know that the booth was a snug fit, in our next visit we will see if we can reserve an open table for a little more elbow room. This aside, you are entertained by the staff's theatrics around the old school serving theater, the flaming sword brochette is worth the view. They also had live music that gave that extra touch an ambiance. Our food, wow, you know the saying, you get what you pay for, well it was worth every cent. We ordered the Prawn Linguine, very ample serving of Linguine and very tasteful Prawns, we shared the wedge salad, it was very well prepared, I had the 14oz Peppercorn, New York Steak with a side order of the Wicked Shrimp, large Prawns sautéed in a spicy sauce, (its spicy) so beware, I loved them even with the kick. Our party also ordered the Standard 14oz New York, with sautéed mushrooms and spicy Brussel Sprouts. On top of all of this great food, we enjoyed the garlic toast, its amazingly tasty. We washed it all down with a 2014 Tempranillo-Malbec, a perfect red wine from our family members collection. If you have not experienced El Gaucho, don't wait too long, you are missing out. read more

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I know. I know. ...this is supposedly a steak place. Well guess what.....the lobster was the best I have ever had, EVER. Seriously, amazing. Lobster is easy to over or under cook. Not this place. They made it perfect! Specialty cocktails were served with a a flair which made the price very fair. Service was outstanding and don't miss the cigar bar after dinner. The last place that had that feature was the French Laundry.....and their lobster was not as good lol. read more

El Gaucho - Should have gotten a pic of the lobster but was too busy enjoying it. - Steakhouses Near Me - Portland, Oregon

After a successful Gala Event which brought me to Portland, others and I chose this location to celebrate and what a great overall experience. We made a reservation for a party of 8 initially, but ended up with 6, and we were seated in the bar area at a table. The service was great when it came to welcoming us and getting us situated with cocktails. Most in the group had been here many times before, so they were making sure to showcase the key things they knew I would enjoy. many times before We started with the Caesar salad done tableside along with a variety of cocktails... oh wait, I said that already... haha. We had two choice bottles of wine that were great to complement our mains, as everyone had some type of steak. I opted for the special, which consisted of three steaks that were served Oscar style, Chimichurri style & one with berniquese sauce. All I believe it was 12 ounces total (4 each) and was ideal for me as I was undecided to start. For the sides, we had the Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, and yes, the baked potato. That was actually a surprise because the baked potato was done table-side as well, but all of the ingredients with it elevated the potato beyond expectation. Typically, at other traditional steakhouses, they literally just heat up a potato and slap it on your plate and say go for it with everything on the side... not here!!! We were also celebrating a birthday & continued with additional drinks to keep the vibe going. The only downside was that one of the steaks that was ordered was supposed to be medium, and it came back with very little pink in it. I did appreciate that all the staff were quick to help resolve it and move forward. read more

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We came here as an anniversary celebration. To start, our table was set up nicely with rose petals and a card. Our waitress was extremely helpful with selecting a good wine and was personable, having good conversation while preparing our table-side Caesar salad. However, at some point she stopped coming around and we ended up dining for 2 hours. Other than that, the food was amazing. We ordered the steak trio, scallops, crab Mac and cheese, table-side Caesar, and cheesecake. Everything was amazing and the ambiance was unbeatable! read more

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Went back again with same couple from 12/13 poor experience. Much better this time around. Ian was great as our waiter and the manager stopped by to assist with service and ensure everything was going well. We were seated promptly on arrival and experienced no delays in the service. Food was delish! One minor glitch, which also happened last time. We ordered the Zuccardi Concerto and received a different bottle of Zuccardi. We returned the first bottle (un opened) and received the correct bottle with dinner. read more

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We've been coming here for years but in the past 8 months something seems to have changed. The bar staff aren't nearly as friendly and the service is much slower. Even the man checking people in was flat out rude. This was not something we'd ever experienced in the past. Tonight it took well over an hour to get our first course. Trying to get water was a sport. Two and a half hours later we were done and we only ordered 2 courses-skipped the cheese plate and bread. It made us very sad as it's been one of our favorite places for years. I really hope that things change. We are going to give it a break and go back in 6 months. I hope in 6 months they have their act together again. It's a lot of money for such a negative experience. read more

We celebrated our wedding anniversary at El Gaucho and it was amazing! They went over an above to make our special dinner even more special. The food, service, and atmosphere was perfect. We will definitely be back to celebrate more special occasions. read more

On a whim, we decided to alter our dinner plans, shop for some suitable clothes, and make reservations at El Gaucho toward the end of a hiking trip around the Pacific NW. It was also our third anniversary week! We initially made an 8pm reservation for a Friday but were able to arrive around 7pm. The hostesses were very accommodating and after a quick drink at the bar, where I had a properly iced and garnished old fashioned ($20), we were seated in a private back room. They had live music in the main dining area and it was a lively atmosphere, we were happy to sit in an area where conversation was more possible. Our server did a comprehensive job of acclimating us to the menu and specials while also suggesting some personal favorites. We had scouted out the menu online beforehand, so we knew what we wanted! We started with the tableside filet mignon tartare, which is seasoned, mixed, and egged before your very eyes. I added a bit of horseradish and enjoyed the dish! The spicy crab bisque, while not especially spicy, came with some nice chunks of crab and tasted great. We split the 18 ounce Canadian lobster tail which was deshelled at the table and cut into two portions with drawn butter. Expensive at $125 but so delicious! My wife had the petite 6oz filet and asparagus and enjoyed them both. I ordered the bone in ribeye Pittsburgh style and got exactly what I ordered! The char tasted great. We powered through to dessert where we shared a slice of strawberry rhubarb cheesecake with an outstanding sauce and crust. We also received a fruit and cheese plate as a part of the course. The dessert was also comped due to our anniversary. We were given a congratulations card and some rose petals strewn across the table to celebrate our anniversary as well. All in all, a great experience! The tip was figured into our final tally, with an option for additional gratuity but our server made it clear that the auto grat was present. If I had to find a "room for improvement" it would maybe be the yukon gold mashed potatoes, they could use some embedded skins or additional flavoring like garlic. read more

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I've walked by El Gaucho for decades, but had never visited. Since I was staying at The Benson Hotel next door, thought we'd take a taste! El Gaucho is a serious steak house, very festive and busy. The service was really good, the food varied. As an example, the french onion soup was the best ever, the mac and cheese with crab was average. The key lime pie was killer and so was the garlic bread. The prices are up there and you can even buy drinks that cost $150, so El Gaucho is a little expensive. The 20% service charge, surprising. But El Gaucho is a perfect place for a special event or occasion. read more

we had the most amazing experience exceptional service food ambiance our first time to the city loved our waiter we where so looked after thank you Tina from Lumby British Columbia Canada read more

We had a reservation in the evening for a birthday celebration. They poured some rose petals on the table which was nice and had live music too :) The service was pretty good except for the fact that it took almost an hour for our food to come out :( The food itself was not bad but I personally believe it was very overpriced. I had the Steak El Gaucho and for a second I thought it didn't have lobster at all since the pieces were so tiny. It was decent, but not worth $93. For dessert, we ordered sorbet which ended up being on the house since they originally told us it was going to be pineapple flavored, but it turned out to be raspberry orange, so that was a kind gesture from them. Overall, it's not too bad if you're going for a special occasion and want a nice sit down restaurant. read more

Great food, but a little sparse understandable because of the economy, but when you can actually see each individual seafood, and count it?! with the price we pay?! Service was ok not great. I say that because for a fine dining restaurant service is what we pay for and when you have a seasoned server who expects a huge tip because he works in a fancy restaurant, well that would explain the lower rating. You can tell when employees are working just for a paycheck! Or an automatic 20% tip read more

Absolutely phenomenal food, drinks, and Service. Took my wife here for our anniversary dinner, and it did not disappoint. Host greeted us saying "Happy Anniversary". Our table had a card from the staff wishing us a happy anniversary with rose pedals around it. Brandon are server was awesome. Went over the menu and made his personal suggestions which were appreciated. Everything was just perfect. For appetizers we did the oysters, scallops, and the table side Filet Mignon tartar. Entrees we did the Chateaubriand- the 2 person tenderloin meal table side service, with loaded baked potatoes, asparagus, and grill tomatoes. We also order a side of Risotto which was also very good. The tenderloin melted in your mouth. Everything was just delicious!! Definitely spendy spot, but worth the experience you get. read more

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A special anniversary dinner was made into a magical evening with live music for romantic ambiance, incredible wines, quality NY steaks, attentive and friendly service by Mason. From the valet opening my car door to greet me, to the cookies added into our togo bag, our anniversary dinner was a special occasion because of El Gaucho Portland. Thank you. read more

Really fantastic experience. We were seated promptly, the server was very friendly and knowledgeable. The food came out perfectly timed, and the suggested wine pairings were on point. I've dined here many times, and am always pleased to with the quality of food and service. It remains my favorite steakhouse in Portland. read more

El Gaucho - Seared Tuna Seared Yellowfin Tuna - Steakhouses Near Me - Portland, Oregon

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I heard about El Gaucho when I moved to town. The classic, downtown, fine dining, table side, top quality steak house! Upon arrival, it feels like the kind of place that would make you wear a sport coat or jacket to enter. However, I saw a guy in a white, Hawaii T-shirt. We were asked if we would be following our dinner with time in the smoking lounge, tempting - but we did not. Top notch service with exceptional attentiveness. The table side Caesar salad was a highlight. I opted for the Steak el Gaucho, sauce on the side (smart decision). While I enjoyed it, the lobster was a little overcooked and the steak was not the best I've had. Overall, a delicious meal made better by the experience. Prices are reflective of the service more than the quality. read more

El Gaucho - Steak El Gaucho (sauce on side) - Steakhouses Near Me - Portland, Oregon

Went for my daughter's college graduation. Table side Caesar was fun. Steak a tad too rare in the middle for medium. Brussels were overly seasoned. Scalloped potatoes were on point. Service of course 5 stars but for $500 for 3 people expected food to be a tad better read more

Went for dinner with my family . The restaurant is great. Everything from ambience to service was excellent. Only complaints are the long wait time without having a reservation, and the prices. Definitely one of the most expensive restaurants I have been to. read more

I ate here Saturday night with my wife and friends. This was my first experience at an El Gaucho. They have other restaurants in other Pacific Northwest cities (so I'm told). It's a dimly lit restaurant with an open live fire kitchen. Nice interior design and atmosphere. They had a keyboard player playing Spanish and contemporary music that enhanced the atmosphere of our dining experience. Service: Michael was our server. He was fun, helpful, and a very good professional waiter. We started with a bottle of sparkling wine from a local Oregon winery. El Gaucho has a decent wine list with one or two sommeliers working. One of the somm's helped us select the sparkling wine to start, and a bottle of California cab for dinner. The restaurant serves a complimentary yummy warm garlic bread (5/5). This bread is addictive. We ordered soups and salads for our starters. I had the French onion soup (5/5). Savory and rich onion forward broth. Crunchy croutons that progressively got soft as they soaked up the broth. Lots of gooey cheese. It was a perfect start to my meal. My wife and friends also enjoyed their bisque and salads. For my entree I ordered the top sirloin with a 2oz portion of seared fois gras on top plus their peppercorn sauce (5/5). The steak was cooked to the correct temperature. The combination of textures and flavors together was amazing. For a side I got the frites (5/5) to share with my wife. They were crispy, salty, and perfect. We had a wonderful dinner at El Gaucho's. I would highly recommend this steakhouse when dining in downtown Portland. read more

Ate here for a holiday party. The server was very charismatic and created a great experience. The food was "okay" for me, as I am a vegetarian. Everyone who ordered steak was pleased. They do prepare things a bit more rare, so ask for a bit more well done than you expect. read more

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I'm in nice steakhouses probably once a week. I was excited to try El Gaucho for the first time in Portland. My thoughts below but in short, disappointed for the money. Service and ambience - very good and lives up to their reputation Hendricks Martini slightly dirty w blue cheese olives - spot on Wedge - light on toppings, esp bacon, and too heavy on blue cheese Steak - ribeye had little marbling, hard time believing it was really Prime. They didn't trim the leathery outer layer off after dry aging. The combination of little marbling and leaving the outer layer made the steak meh. Ordered Medium Rare and it was on very low side of Medium Rare, which was perfect for me. I assume the sear and then oven finish to temp. Brussel Sprouts - good flavor but very over fried Wine list - Very good overall bottle selection but by glass limited was far too limited Cigar Lounge - I certainly appreciate a nice steakhouse having a cigar lounge. Nice selection of cigars/spirits, good service. TVs to watch the game. I do wish that it was a traditional lounge instead of full dining service. The servers coming in and out constantly, and making table side items, made it feel more like a restaurant in which you can smoke a cigar. read more

I was super excited to try this restaurant and was quite underwhelmed. My wife and I came here and splurged and I regret it, but there were a couple highlights. The tableside bread was great, their oysters with tartar sauce was great. The other sauce that came with the oysters was not good. We also ordered the escargot, which the raw garlic flavor overtook the entirety of the dish, it was just too much. We ordered the cesar salad, which was mediocre, i've had better cesar dressing from a bottle. Also had the crab cakes, and the crab was overcooked and rubbery. Then we ordered the steak diane, which was cooked well, but the sauce it came with was not good. The bourbon taste was too strong and overpowering. We got corn and crab mac and cheese as a side, corn was good, the mac and cheese was flavorless. We then had the mudcake which was fine, and vanilla ice cream with caramel sauce. I did not know they charge 3 dollars to drizzle some caramel on the ice cream, which is ridiculous. They then do an automatic 20% service fee, so our total bill was over $400. Our meal was not worth $400. Food is too mediocre for the amount they charge. The way they charge is also sneaky. When we ordered the cesar salad we ordered just the 1, but that's not an option apparently. Because its tableside its 1 per person, so we ended up paying for 2. Same thing with the sneaky 3 dollar caramel sauce. read more

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Our waiter Mason made my wife and me feel like a king and queen from the moment we sat down. His attention to detail was on another level, checking on us at the perfect times, anticipating what we needed before we even asked, and treating us with genuine hospitality. He turned a simple dinner into an unforgettable experience and played a huge part in making my wife's birthday absolutely perfect. We couldn't have asked for a better waiter. Honestly, I would drive 2.5 hours from Tacoma, WA to Portland Oregon any day of the week just to experience Mason level of service again. read more

El Gaucho - Steakhouses Near Me - Portland, Oregon

Had the most unforgettable experience at this magical place for my birthday. Best birthday dinner to date!!! The amount of care we received and service was just stellar!!!! We ordered the seafood tower which we forgot to take a photo of but it was so amazing and what really caught me was the oysters so of course I had to get a half dozen more! The steak was so perfectly prepared you can taste that quality. I am drooling and dreaming of it now. I am beyond happy to have celebrated here because there was nothing that could have been better! read more

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Great service.. Great hospitality.... The food was amazing, calamari, asparagus, sweet, roasted corn and potatoes was ordered and was very good.. The ambience was really good the vibes, dark, sexy. This place is a staple steakhouse in Portland. read more

El Gaucho - Menu - Steakhouses Near Me - Portland, Oregon

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Delicious and big servings. Couldn't have been happier. My steak was cooked perfectly and the twice baked potato hit all the right taste buds. read more

Mmm mmm, EL 'effin' Gaucho is more like it! I'm gonna start by saying that my lasting impression of this steakhouse was simply thinking, "Whoa! When the scallops taste as soft and as tender as the steak, then that's perfection!" Here's the gist: :: Location & Parking :: At the corner of Broadway and Harvey Milk St, in the heart of downtown. You're gonna need to whip out that Parking Kitty app to find street parking. We did find parking at a small garage across Broadway, but it might be safer to park on the street versus a garage in my opinion. Just realize you're in the heart of downtown. ::: Dining & Atmosphere ::: White table cloth dining. It's like your typical steakhouse experience; Low lighting, but not super low to where you can't see the menu. Just right. Wine flowing, but I didn't see your common wine refrigeration display. I only saw big wine bottles around the tables, but also not a big deal. Happy patrons dressed to the nines, but also dressed comfortably. You can come here wearing a t-shirt, but you'll stand out as the odd one. Everything else appeared pretty clean. Even with a restroom break, I'd say it was fairly clean inside as well. :::: Starters, Steak & Service :::: My party wanted to share a few sides. So we did the Gaucho Mac n Cheese ($14) and mmm mmm what a great starter indeed. Loved the toasted bread crumbs on top. We tried the Grilled Sweet Corn ($14) which was also a pleasant honeyed sweet choice. And finally we gave the good ol' fashioned Yukon Gold Mashed Potatoes ($14) a try, and yeah "light and lovely!" I'm not a fan of the "Lets add some seasoning to mashed potatoes" type. They kept it basic, and the side itself was truly golden! As for me, I kept eyeing the French Onion Soup ($16), so I'm glad I gave it a try. It wasn't overly salty and the cheesiness level was just full of stretchy ropy fun! The way it should be. Since I've never been here, I did their signature plate, the Steak El Gaucho ($89). An 8oz aged filet with Maine lobster medallion on top covered with this creamy bearnaise sauce. And of course an asparagus companion. I had the steak medium-rare, took one bite, and ugggh heaven! Grilled perfectly! Honestly, I could do without the toppings which were also delectable, but the filet was one of the best I've ever had in a long time. My friend ordered a side of scallops, and I had one with my steak. And man, that tenderness comparison just topped it all! Finally, with service. Maaan, I cannot thank Mathisen enough. He was serious when I asked him snooty question, but also hospitable when I threw stupid 'dad jokes' at him. He made an excellent wine pairing to go with my steak, and he definitely kept our party entertained. Mathisen deserves a promotion. He brings a lot to the table! (: hehe :) At the end of our dinner, we were also greeted by Gillian, the manager. She too was very courteous and another reason why we plan to come back someday. Thank you Mathisen and Gillian, it was a pleasure dining here. read more

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Called in late on a Wednesday and was able to reserve a table for our 15th wedding anniversary. The place was very busy but they had saved a very nice and I might add large booth for just the two of us. The meal was to die for! Steaks perfectly done, they gladly split the wedge salad for us, the roasted squash side was superb and the service was excellent. The staff is professional yet personable and the attention to detail is amazing. They even printed us a personalized menu surrounded by rose petals!! El Gaucho is one of my all time favorites and highly recommended!! read more

El Gaucho - Personalized menu for the 15th Wedding Anniversary!! - Steakhouses Near Me - Portland, Oregon

Absolutely the best service I've ever had at a restaurant in my entire life. The whole place runs like a well-oiled machine - you have tuxedoed servers racing around the restaurant without ever bumping into anything or looking stressed, delicately reaching over your table to place utensils in exactly the right place or delicately pick up a piece of food that's fallen off a plate. There's an open kitchen in the back where you can watch the cooks at work, and there was a live guitarist playing in a Spanish style. I was there celebrating my mom's birthday and they presented us with a birthday card signed by the staff and custom-printed menus with her name on them. Our waiter was super-friendly and attentive to all our needs, and even personally escorted mom to the restroom when she needed to find it. They made sure our water glasses never ran empty. We both chose to dress up for the occasion, but there's no official dress code, so feel free to come as you desire. It was a packed house on a Friday night so it was a bit of a wait for our food, but everything was piping hot and delicious when it was delivered to our table. We both started with French onion soup, which was topped with bread and a thick layer of broiled cheese. The soup itself was extremely rich and the onions were delicate and delicious. Mom had a lobster tail which they de-shelled and plated for her at the table. I had a filet mignon with grilled prawns, and for sides we split an order of mashed potatoes which were so rich they didn't need any gravy or sauce, a plate of sauteed mushrooms and onions which were absolutely delicious, and some steamed asparagus with lemon butter. After the main course they served us a complimentary platter of fruit and crackers and cheese, and our dessert (cherries jubilee over vanilla ice cream) was flambeed at tableside, which made an impressive show. The only thing stopping me from giving them five stars is that I ordered my filet mignon medium and it came out much rarer than I'd typically expect medium to be. I suspect they deliberately undercook the steaks because if a customer sends it back, it's easier to fix an undercooked steak than an overcooked one. Nonetheless, I'd highly recommend this place if you're willing to drop a few hundred dollars on a special occasion well worth remembering. read more

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was running late to a reservation and was able to push it back an hour with no problem. there was beautiful live music and our service was extremely kind! the diablo tenderloin was a bit too smoky for my taste but the tenderloin was cooked perfectly, as was the crab mac and cheese which was amazingggg!!!! i also got the prawn linguine, the prawn was cooked perfectly, not my favorite but worth the try. read more

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This place is so good that I wish I hadnt given out 5 star reviews to other places! As it is, Id give El Gaucho 6 stars. To me, this was the best classy restaurant we've tried so far in PDX. The ambience is upscale. We chose to dress up a little bit but you dont have to. We saw plenty of people in shorts and polo shirts. The server we had was very friendly and attentive. We felt very well taken care of. The food came out quickly and was done to perfection. I had the A5 Miyazaki Wagyu New York and it was literally the best steak I've ever had. My wife had the filet and it was the 2nd best steak we've ever tasted LOL. What I really loved was the fact it was served with a pinch of salt and there was actually salt and pepper at the table. America has developed a salt phobia and it's gotten to a point where we feel like we need to bring salt with us to restaurants. The wine list was amazing and the prices for the bottles werent nearly as inflated as I would have imagined. Same goes for the liquors. Be warned you get bread with your meal and some little after-dinner thing too - fruit and cheese? I cant remember. We were VERY full by the time we left. Yes, the price of that dinner was high, but we were treating ourselves and felt very happy with the experience. We are looking forward to going back and trying additional menu items. read more

First of all, the restaurant is really dark, they provide live music and the table is very close to each other. The service is good and the server is quick response which is nice, but as I am dinning alone, I am not sure why he help me to order a full side of corn instead of half portion. Regarding the food. I feel quite disappointing. It is not the amazing with the price and not really special. The table side salad or steak request minimum order for two. So I ordered the Diablo(may spell it wrongly) as appetizer, it is not special only spicy. The bread is quite okay which the garlic and butter taste just the balance. The steak is the El Gaucho aged signature steak, the sauce is a little too salty and the steak itself is soso. (The side of corn is nice though) The cocktail is quite nice but the glass is sticky when it came to my table. I will not really recommend to you according to the price but what you get is totally not worth, included the service charge it cost me near 200 for one person with only one cocktail that night. read more

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