There are some Rivalries that will go down in the annals of sports or in this case Culinary history . Best futbol team Boca Juniors or River Plate?? . What country makes the best grilled meats Argentina or Uruguay ?!? At this place you get the best of both countries . I was craving meat !! But specifically like the ones prepared in the trendy neighborhood of Palermo in Buenos Aires , Argentina . Thankfully , this time i could drive right pass Newark Liberty Airport to the neighborhood of Linden and enjoy the mouth watering assortment of meats save the airfare ! I ordered a dish to savor steak , pork , chicken , sausage , ribs . They are flexible to switch out more of one type of meat if you like . I don't eat morcillas. All meats were all equally savory , well seasoned and delicious. . There is outdoor and indoor dining . You can eat at the bar if your eating alone . Sangria which is my achilles heel was okay not the best not the worse . But that drink tends to be best at Iberian places . Would Def go back . It's a neighborhood place best known to locals ,from very diverse countries . read more

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Updated review from a few years ago. Food was good . But prices from some items are ridiculous. For example $4 for a can of soda is way too much . Also the $38 entraña special seems a little steep considering the portion size was small . Giving it 3 stars bc the quality and taste of the food was good . And so was the customer service . But I probably wouldn't go back again . read more

El leno Steakhouse Bar - Bill - Steakhouses Near Me - Elizabeth, New Jersey

The service was so fake. My waitress wasn't attentive. Now the food was so disappointing. I ordered Garlic Shrimp as a appetizer and it tastes like it came from the sea. It wasn't good. My food was cold. Don't even consider this business welcoming. read more

El leno Steakhouse Bar - Wasn't good. I don't recommend it - Steakhouses Near Me - Elizabeth, New Jersey

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I recently went to have dinner at "El Leño Steakhouse Bar & Grill", The restaurant offers inventive takes on traditional Uruguayan cuisine, including parrillada. The ambiance was calming and ok with a somewhat historic building and antique decor. On the other hand, the service was not that great, They have tables available for us to seat, but we still had to wait a lot to be seated. One of the reasons could have been the lack of waitresses/personnel. I recommend that they hire a food runner. Other than that, the food was delicious and is was worth the wait and awkwardness. read more

El leno Steakhouse Bar - Steakhouses Near Me - Elizabeth, New Jersey

Zero stars if possible. Wife and I entered through rear door as we did many times in the past. We used the bathroom before entering. My wife advised me one stall in the women's bathroom was clogged, and the other door was taped shut. I told her to use the males bathroom, and I would stay at the door holding it shut. Suddenly, an employed barged in yelling a women can't use the males bathroom. I attempted to explain 5g3 situation, and he refue read more

fantastic Uruguayan restaurant. authentic dishes that taste home cooked. If you love meat, this will be the place for you as a Uruguayan traditional meal includes grilling steaks- which you will find plenty of choices for! We hosted a large dinner party and the service was exceptional and now we come as regulars. read more

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I didn't like the food here at all. I had a tray of steak, I believe provolone cheese was on the ham,eggs, with fries, potato salad, and salad . My fiancé had garlic shrimp I believe with mash potatoes all was flavorless. I thought it was have been in some type of garlic scampi sauce but when I got home I realized it's just dry shrimp. read more

Not quite what I was expecting. Food is overall "okay". Lacks flavors and definitely the prices are way too expensive. Giving 3 starts because of customers service wad great and the deserts were yummy. read more

El leno Steakhouse Bar - Flan, icecream - Steakhouses Near Me - Elizabeth, New Jersey

Small but fabulous. 2 of us shared the mixed grill ($48) which was huge and delicious, took half of it home. Grilled salmon was mid $20s, generous portion & well done. Tiramisu was also large & very good. We went around 5 on a Sunday afternoon - busy so reservations are recommended. Very nice server. Like many places they've had to raise their prices so know that when you look at their menu online. Will be back soon! read more

Just moved into the neighborhood. It was cold and I was craving soup. Ordered vegetable soup for takeout. Found like bugs floating in it

Big portions, good and attentive service. Can be a little noisy but overall a good experience. You have a bar too to sit at, many screens with different channels on. read more

It's cozy they had a good assortment of options on the menu. Haven't tried everything test but calamari was cooked perfect and with the option of two dipping sauces both were very good for dinner had the steak it was cooked as request was seasoned perfectly the side rice and beans were as expected also was well seasoned drink were not heavy nor light over all great place to have dinner read more

We were looking for a steakhouse but Uruguayan or Argentinian style. We made a good choice. Our first time here and it was a good experience. The place is clean, new and cozy the decor, the wooden bathrooms. We ordered a grilled parrillada, with russian salad and mixed salad was very good. the meat in its point, and the seasoning very good, warm bread with a very good garlic and parsley butter. The service is good and our waitress was kind. We ordered a very good peach sangria. For dessert an express and a flan very well made. We will surely return, we liked it a lot. It is family atmosphere and orderly. Nos gusto mucho el lugar, ordenado, limpio, de buen gusto. La parrillada estuvo muy buena, la carne en su punto y con la sazón correcta, la sangria de durazno rica. La atención amable y buena. Seguro volveremos. Continúen así. read more

El leno Steakhouse Bar - Steakhouses Near Me - Elizabeth, New Jersey

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As a frequent visitor I am writing this review to thank the staff and the owner for the excellent service they provide! We are 8 guys from the tri -state area & from Uruguay who meet up every couple of months & our annual Christmas dinner. Unanimously we always choose this place to host our get togethers. The food is authentic cuisine from our country, its like being home if only a for a short visit. We all average a 2 hour drive to get there, but so worth it! This place is a hidden gem, affordable, quality food, delicious, & the service is top notch. I highly recommend parrillada, this is table top barbecue that comes loaded with assorted meats always cooked to perfection! read more

The food is good. They give you a lot. The service is great. The only bad thing is that there is no parking. The picahna, chorizo, plantains Rice and beans and the potato salad were all good dishes. read more

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I don't recommend the mixed grill. The beef ribs were all fat, there was mostly chicken and no skirt steak. I have it a three, because the service was good but don't waste your money on the parrillada. read more

Absolutely one of the best restaurant experiences I have ever had. The food was abundant and delicious. The atmosphere was perfect. But the service was better than I have ever received. It felt like leaving family when it was time to go. A new favorite that is not close enough for comfort. We had the mixed grill, provaletta, and Russian potato salad. The mixed grill was a variety of meats all cooked perfectly. The provaletta was loaded with olives and bacon and made every other provaletta pale in comparison. The Russian salad was moist and seasoned perfectly. We ordered the grill for two and could not believe the amount of food we received for the price. read more

Prices are ridiculous. Four dollars for a can of soda and the quantity of food you get for the price is not with the trip.

We went there for dinner with the family and found the staff to be welcoming and friendly. The food was delicious, I had the beef ribs and my wife had vegetable soup and salad. The ribs were cooked perfectly and my wife really enjoyed the soup. We will be back. read more

Just opened and I love it! Nice fun atmosphere, nice decor. This area reallly starting to have lots of good food around. They will work out the kinks but I will come back here Food 3 out of 5 Value 4 out of 5 read more

Had a really terrible experience here today! Waitress came over with menus and we ordered mixed grilled meat with rice and beans. I forgot to mention we did order an appetizer that was not cooked properly. Anyway, we probably waited about an hour for the entree and everything wad BURNT. We told the waitress and she said "You order this, ,correct?" She was so Rude! My friend and I said yes but not burnt. Didn't offer to remake the dish or try to give a discount. You couldn't even chew the meat. Also, the amount of flies flying around nonstop is insane. I would avoid coming here at all cost. Left hungry and spent 55 dollars on the food! read more

Loved their food! I had paella, hubby had the steak dinner, sis had their chicken everything was delicious! Goid drinks

Es impecable la atención y la comida hecha al momento ! Un lugar muy cálido y lindo para disfrutar de la buena comida en Familia .

I had high hopes for El Leno, as there are not many places like it of its kind. From the same owners of Pizzeria Montevideo, El Leno brings Uruguayan cuisine in the form of a cocktail bar and asado steakhouse. I ordered the chivito al pan with a fried egg, which in a crudely English translation on the menu is called "Supreme Steak Sandwich." What I received was a roll with chicken breast, ham, hardboiled egg, cheese, olive, lettuce, tomatoes. In addition, I was charged $2 for tap water. I perhaps am due for a return trip to try the parillada and see how their meats fare. read more

I ordered lobster and seafood in green sauce, it looked like MOP water and didn't taste any better...the worst meal I ever wasted money on...DO NOT EAT HERE!!!! read more

Made a reservation, and even though the lady was a little cold (rude)...the waiters were great. The food was good and the price was right. Will be coming back again. read more

One steak out of 12 entrees. Just one was the star of this dinner and even THAT was under seasoned. Dry chicken, dry basillo, A dinner party for my grandmother and grandfather. Complete reservations and granted we were a bit lat with our arrival. They still should have had snapper, and various items that they ended up missing during our dinner. The order was big but for now I will focus on the argentine steakhouse specialties which, for this restaurant, was the rib eye, the mixed grill, and the salmon I had. I wouldn't dare get dessert, especially after this kind of service. Ordering drinks. A big pitcher of sangria which was incredibly sweet, nearly a syrup consistency. Then a bottle of Malbec which was quite strong, nearly obliterating any flavor that came into contact with me during the meal. Then the meal started... So we started with shrimp, garlic shrimp that can in a diner style boat which usually holds hash browns or small sides of bacon and sausage. Sprinkled with that New Orleans style parsley because, why not? The calamari was the typical fried rounds that usually come in a steakhouse type order with a small cup of marinara and lemon. The shrimp was bland. The presentation was colorful but the small shrimps that were used made it look like the dish was going to be fed to small turtles. The garlic flavor was delicately fused into the orange sauce that it was swimming in. The the calamari was crispy yet rubbery and over cooked. This was the foreshadowing that we should have paid attention to, but we decided to go through hell anyway. The whole order for 12 people took 1 hour and 50 minutes. I understand that we are a group of people but, we made reservations and this should not have been nearly this long. Salads, frozen veg sides, mashed potatoes(beautifully piped, to say the least), stale potato wedges they like to call "baked potato", bland potato salad, and a lovely rice with peas that actually had a great bite to them. All became sides to our main dishes which were... A ribeye, one cooked rare and another we thought was cooked medium but actually looked like it was cooked three days ago and served to my father. The rare streak was under seasoned, but was cooked absolutely perfectly. Juicy, with great texture. The mixed grill ended up random. The morcilla, the argentine sausage were all flavorful, and moist. The chicken and basillo were both more dry than the hottest part on an ashy man in the middle of the Arizona desert. My salmon was over cooked, hard and bland. Served over a bed of salad and orange fruit twists. While the service was great and the ladies really took care of the table(which was why I gave this review an extra star). The food really effected the restaurant in the worst way possible. Long waiting times, bland food, and over cooked meals riddle my table for my special event. Highly doubting we will ever return here again, unless I am invited back to celebrate a new chef. read more

I like the vibe and the food here is awesome. So much food. Make sure to go with a group of friends. Because the serving is a lot!!!!!!This is really a great chill spot. One of my faves read more

Yelp stated that the establishment was open until 12am on Sunday. Arrived at 10pm to have a grilled steak to find out the kitchen was closed. Not the best first impression. Head waiter was nice enough to apologize. read more

Poor customer service Needs improvement in food quality Over priced I went to visit for the first time since it had opened not so long ago... I was expecting a big welcome being that they are new but I didn't even get a hello... nothing but blank stares... food didn't taste good and way over priced for it's quality and location read more

Not great and expensive. They have to do a better job in customer service. Very rude and short when making a reservation over the phone. The grill was mediocre. Sorry guys. read more

Great meat great services, love coming here, its always good, I been here 4 times already and its been great!!! Well recomended!!! Price is also good! read more

Exellelent service and the food was Delicious defenitley going back had a great time

After reading all the reviews I wanted to try this place. I went with my family last night and unfortunately it was packed. A very nice guy came to us and apologize for not having a table and advice us to call any other day before we go so they can reserve a table for us. And now I literally just spoke with a woman on the phone and asked if today is a busy day because I was planning to go and was wondering if I should make a reservation or not, she was rude and not professional at all saying that they don't take reservations for the same day it has to be 24 hours in advance, I explained what happened the night before and what the guy told me about calling before, she told me she was the owner and she's telling me that I can't make a reservation today with this bad attitude. This is so bad that you as the owner talk to people this way. Idk if you were having a bad day or were busy, but I'm sorry that's not the way you talk to a customer. You really need to learn to respect new customers. This is sad and I was just calling for some information. I don't want to imagine being there. Disappointed but unfortunately it's hard to find good service around this area. Sad read more

Great food! Great ambiance, and the owner was super courteous!! I can't wait to go there again!

After seeing the commercial, I was anxious to try it. Went at about 4 pm on a Saturday. Not a lot of people and we were seated right away. I found the prices to be higher than normal for that area. First we were served hot bread with a butter & parsley spread and chimichurri sauce, which were good. The restaurant specialized in Parrillada so that's what we ordered. It came with 2 sides and there was a large selection of sides. The ripe plantains, yellow rice and red beans were good. The portion of Parrillada for 2 was large and impressive but unfortunately the meat was very tough and had very little flavor if any and the chicken was extremely dry; couldn't eat it. Other things worthy of mention: if you want water with your meal, you'll have to pay $2 for a small bottle (ridiculous). The staff was friendly and helpful, but we were constantly reminding them of things they had forgotten. Your bill comes in a leather billfold that shows the AmEx logo all over the place, but they don't take AmEx (go figure). Lastly and most importantly, one of the staff was drying utensils that had apparently just been washed right next to where we were sitting and while they were chatting, she removed a rice from in between one of the prongs of a fork and simply continued drying it and put it with the other clean utensils. She also dropped a couple of knives and forks that landed on the floor. She probably didn't realize we were watching, but she simply picked them up, dried them off and again, put them back with the clean ones. One would think they would simply put them back in the dishwasher, nope. I'm glad I went, but I would never go again. Employees need to be properly trained on how to handle food and the proper way to clean utensils and such especially in the public arena. read more