KenScale: 8.25/10 After our wonderful trip to Patagonia, my wife Jun and I returned to Buenos Aires. We had one last night to spend in the city so I needed to figure out where to dine. Buenos Aires has no shortage of restaurants worth visiting but one restaurant that caught my eye was Proper, which was only five minutes away from the hotel we were staying at. I was certainly intrigued by the setting of the restaurant, located inside what was formerly a mechanic's workshop to supposedly give that Brooklyn-like industrial vibe, with most of the dishes coming from the giant oven at the kitchen. While I heard the restaurant doesn't take reservations, knowing that Argentinians tend to have dinner pretty late, I didn't think we would need to wait for a table. How wrong I was! When we got to the restaurant, there was already a huge line of both locals and tourists waiting for the door to open. When the restaurant finally opened, we couldn't slide into the first group and therefore had to wait over 90 minutes. Unlike New York City where you can leave your name down for text message, you actually have to be physically present at the entrance or risk losing your spot. Many of the people who were waitlisted stuck around near the entrance, ordering a glass of wine or a bottle of beer to socialize with their companions. I guess that's the charm of dining experience in Argentina; for impatient New Yorkers like Jun (who was already not feeling well after she got back from Ushuaia) and I, the wait was quite a painful experience. So was Proper worth all that trouble? There is no denying that the food at Proper is quite good. Due to the aforementioned oven, many of the kitchens coming out from the kitchen have attractively smoky flavor. For appetizer, the roasted beans puree with sesame and fried fruits was a good dish to start, particularly as spread for sourdough bread you have to separately order. The shishito peppers with salt flower were also decent. My favorite dish at Proper was definitely the pork flank with onion, preserved lemon and spring onion. The texture of the pork was impeccable and the flavor was not too juiced up. The meat was even better, however, thanks to the side dish that we ordered. At the time of our meal, I couldn't think of a combo as good as the pork flank with tomatoes (with extra virgin olive oil, burnt onion and oregano on top); the citrusy flavor of the tomato worked beautifully with the smoky pork that I felt bad that Jun was not able to enjoy this because of her condition. Having talked about all the delicious dishes coming from the restaurant, in my mind the waiting experience at Proper still weighed on our experience. I really wished there were a reservation system at the restaurant that could've saved our trouble. If we were twenty-somethings who had all the energy in the world, we might've been able to take the waiting experience better, but we had recently made a pact that we will not kill ourselves over waiting for unbearable amount of time at a restaurant. The wine list at Proper is another strength at the restaurant, with a bottle of Malbec from Mendoza that nicely complemented the pork I mentioned above. The dark, industrial décor of the restaurant is another charming element of the dining experience here, although the noise could get a little out of control during the peak hours. Proper has a lot of elements that Jun and I would've normally liked, but it also confirmed that comfort has increasingly become a key element in our dining experience these days. I recommend checking out the restaurant if you are willing to risk potentially long wait time if you don't get there 30 minutes before its opening. read more

See all

I am so surprised by the poor rating this restaurant has received. It has to be one of the best places I've eaten on my trip to BA. The cons - arrive early and even then be prepared to wait at least an hour. The place can also get a bit smoky and you will definitely leave smelling like smoke (wood fire smoke, not cigarettes). The pros - the food is A-mazing!!! To start we had the most delicious sourdough bread I have ever eaten and cottage cheese dip with flavors perfectly blended together. Next we had calamari with broccoli and an aioli sauce that tasted like pretzels - weird but delicious nonetheless. Next we had a chicken dish that was mouth watering good - the chicken was so tender and juicy with bold flavor and paired with a refreshing salad (sorry no picture it was so good I forgot to take one). Finally, by a strong recommendation from the waiter we had the flan. Now I am not usually a big flan person but SHUT THE FRONT DOOR - that is the best thing I have ever eaten. Delicious would be an understatement. The flan is definitely a must try. In addition to the food the service was also good. The hostess served us drinks while we waited for our table and the wait staff was friendly, helpful and attentive. I would definitely go back here for another great meal! read more

See all

Bad attitude Really not worth to go on a place that they belive you have a privilege to be there.... This kind of place usually fall hard in time... They really need a balm of humility. read more

I'm like so torn..... Half bc I feel the need to correct this wrong where the restaurant is rated 3.5 bc honestly THIS IS ONE OF THE BEST RESTAURANTS I HAVE EVER ATE AT. and I eat a lot. Half bc I don't want to leave a review bc I don't want even more people to find out about this gem. This restaurant is amazing tapas. So many, we ordered 10 plates and everything was amazing. Burrata / eggplant, pulpo, sweetbread (in argentina, this is always a must), the off the menu rib eye (best meat i've has in argentina so far), delicious yellow tail, fish in octopus sauce.... Literally. Everything. Was. Fantastic. AND DONT FORGET THE FLAN!!!!!!! It is the best flan in Argentina. So creamy, dulce de leche literally IN THE FLAN. Came with 4 other people, had two bottles of wine, and more courses to count and it came out to be around $40 a person. This meal would have easily cost me $100+ in San Francisco. Love you Proper, I'll be back many many many times. Legit end quote of the night "how many tapas do you think i could eat if I came by myself"? LMFAO read more

Great food, wine and service. Small place so recommend getting there early but very hip vibe and everything was delicious. read more

This place has seemingly made it onto everyone's list of hottest new places, favorites, must-dos, etc. The setting is industrial chic (not a personal fave, but fine), they don't take reservations, it's a first come, first served melee for a table when they open the doors at 8pm, and a lineup waiting after the tables are full (which happened by about 8:30). Service is efficient and friendly, and all the waiters seem to be at least moderately fluent in English for those who don't speak Spanish. The menu is a mix of a dozen more or less tapas type plates, in three price range blocks of 75, 95, and 155 pesos, plus a foursome of "main courses". Bread, quite good sourdough bread, is available for 40. A plate with a rectangle of butter and 7 or 8 anchovies straight from a jar, runs 75. I'm not going to go into an analysis of each dish (a whole lot of acidity). There were four of us, two chefs, two craft beer brewmasters, one of whom co-owns a restaurant with the other chef. We ordered 9 of the 12 tapas plates, three from each range, and two from the four "main" courses. The general consensus was "interesting". Not said with much enthusiasm. It reminds me of back when molecular gastronomy was the hot new thing and people would go and be confronted by a confusing array of foams and gels and powders that didn't taste all that great, and come away gushing about how fascinating the meal had been, not wanting to admit that they "didn't get it", and secretly wishing they'd gone for pizza. Proper is also expensive for rather small portions. After 9 tapas plates and two "main courses" (one was a "bacon chop" on a plate, with no accompaniments at 320 pesos) and a bottle of wine, we paid the bill (with tip, 2400 pesos), and walked three blocks over to Cosi mi Piace and had pizza. read more

Delicious, well crafted and unique tapas. Best meal in Buenos Aires. Highly recommend the asparagus large plate and the eggplant smaller plate. Portions are small but the prices reflect that and it was fun to try a bunch of different dishes. read more

Proper - Steakhouses Near Me - Buenos Aires, C

Omg! Just got back from Proper and I cannot wait to write a review. From the concept to its translation, everything is spot on. Its more of a tapas/wood grill place than a stealhouse. We came here on a weekday night and the restaurant had a short wait. Soon after we were seated in a table close to the open air kitchen with a food fired oven at its core. Its tapas style food and uses fresh local and seasonal ingredients. We got all fhe vegetarian dishes on the menu (except the fresh cottage cheese) and everytbing was perfect! The sourdough is warm but rested enough and is a perfect accompaniment for the bean dip we got to start. It comes with a sweet date chutney of sorts on top with a lemon mint dill salad. The salad was one of the best things i've had in Buenos Aires till now. The next was shishito peppers followed by burnt zucchini with celery and pistachios. The peppers were perfect sith fleur de sel on top and the zucchini had multiple textures of celery with it which gave it a very different flavor profile. Then we got our entree of eggplant with a yogurt straciatella cheese sauce and basil along with the tomatoes with onions n basil. The eggplant was my friends favorite and we ordered a second one. It was creamy and tangy and was just pure delicious. The tomatoes were chunks of heirloom tomatoes drizzled with the best quality EVOO and finished with a generous helping of fried onions. Next was my favorite dish of the night: blacked potatoes with mustard, onions and egg. OMG, we had to get another portion as we couldnt get over the flavor. The tangy yet strong mustard and the creamy potatoe and slightly sweet onion, all came together as the best thing ever! To finish it all, we got out fennel salad with orange dressing at the last. For desserts we got the dulce de leche flan: there is a reason this dish doesnt leave the menu as its pur delicousness. The flavor of dulce de leche comes through and it is not overtly sweet or heavy. We even got the chocolate with cherries and hazelnuts. The cherries were tart cherries which gave it a nice zing and the mouse was more of a whipped ganache which made it rich yet light. The kitchen is right there and you can see all the chefs at the work. Its in an old auto repair shop and with the focus on food, the interiors dont need a lot. They even have the cutest sparkling water bottles With chargers and nozzles to get your own fizzy water without having to open a fresh bottle everytime. The wine list is decent size and as with every Buenos Aires restaurant, is mostly by the bottle. We got the glass option of the malbec blend and it did complement my entire meal well. A must visit! read more

Extremely unfriendly. I checked in and was told it would be an hour. Fine, not bad for a hot restaurant, so I waited. They never offered me a drink, while they offered all other parties. Then, after 90 minutes I checked in and was told "we don't like to sit singles." Got it. So I just left. But if they only want to serve parties, they should say so. Also, I was KILLED BY MOSQUITOES standing there waiting. The food must be amazing or they just spend a lot on publicists. read more

Went here on the advice of a local and it's been the best meal we've had since we arrived in the city two months ago. Great service and great ingredients cooked very simply. Aim to visit again before we leave BA. read more

The only saving grace was the carrot hummus - delicious and unique. Besides that, all the food was incredibly oily and greasy. The calamari was flavorless and the achicoria (chicory) was hard to chew. We ordered 7 small plates and 1 big plate and all 4 of us left hungry. It just didn't feel like we were getting what we paid for. On a positive note, the atmosphere was cool - very industrial chic. read more

Unfriendly and noisy. I ordered a glass of wine and the waiter poured half glass. When I pointed it out he just said that is a glass for us. The food was not good as it used to be. We ordered 4 dishes for two, plus bread and nothing tasty. A real shame. Go elsewhere. read more

My best meal in BA for sure. Great service, awesome mint topping with my steak, great service, the wine never stopped!

Superb, original and tasteful food. Getting an array of small and larger plates to share is fun. My group, however, was rushed through dinner. This is not like other Argentine restaurants where a meal is an all-night affair. The waiters want you in and out quickly! read more

Very good hidden restaurant. Typical argentinan cuisine. The carrot houmous and all The typical argentian tapas are awesome.

We had a great time at Proper! Staff was enthusiastic in explaining the menu and concept for the restaurant. Ordering small plates allowed us to try dishes that we would have been reluctant to order had they been a main course. And the large plates were phenomenal; best steak and pork we had in Buenos Aires. The wine servings were generous. We were in Buenos Aires for a month so a great measure of our opinion of Proper is that we visited it 3 times!! read more