Gaucho Leeds.

Anyone who knows me knows how much I love steak. But there's nothing worse than a bad steak, which can ruin everything in life. This steak however made everything in life amazing.


This weekend I was taken to Leeds for a surprise little trip. It is very sad to say but I'm one of those Londoners that didn't realise there was anything other than London until I came to University, so much so I didn't even believe I had an accent until I met a few Northeners. But Leeds lived up to all it's expectations. Not only was it my first trip to Leeds but also my first time  sleeping in a four poster bed (I'm a very lucky girl! - definitely not spoilt at all)

After being told that I had to "dress nicely" I was a bit concerned that I would be over dressed - this certainly wasn't the case. My little black dress and heels was the perfect decision; ladies don’t fear that you'll be over dressed, unless of course you go in your biggest ball gown.
Gaucho proved to be a hidden little treasure. After walking straight past it, we finally found it. Walking down into the depths of the basement, we were greeted by a very happy hostess, who lead us toward the candle lit bar which was the perfect excuse for a cocktail! I had a Gran Alvear - Gin, pineapple and sparkling wine. With the deadly cocktail trait of not being able to taste the alcohol, it proved to be very refreshing.

Gran Alvear

We were shown to our table right by the kitchen (so we could see all the action), by a very lovely waitress, who told us our waiter would be a long shortly. We ordered the sausage platter to share, which came with chorizo, chorizo picante (made with picante peppers)  black pudding (morcilla) and grilled red peppers.

Sausage Patter 

While waiting, we were given a little basket of bread, including, flat bread, a rustic brown and a cheesy crusty roll, accompanied with butter and chilli oil dip. The flat bread and crusty rolls were still warm and they all went perfectly with the chilli oil.

Bread Basket

Our waiter brought a wooden board will all the steaks available, including rump, sirloin, ribeye and fillet. All the meat at Gauchos is Argentinian, and that is something that the style of the restaurant tries to recreate.

He explained to us the various ways that they season and cook them, some have been marinated in parsley and garlic for 48 hours, others have been infused with chilli and of course they are all available cooked to how you like it. For me, steak has to be  medium rare, and I think well done steaks are just upsetting.

We both went for medium rare 300g sirloins with peppercorn sauce. Double fried chips and a mixed salad come along with the steak, but we also ordered spinach, sauteed with garlic, olive oil and lemon and sauteed oyster mushrooms with shallots and garlic as well. Everything was perfectly cooked; however the mushrooms were a little tasteless and needed something to give it a little wake up call.

Of course red wine goes perfectly with steak, however I haven't yet found the love for it just yet, so our waiter recommended me a rose, explaining that the fuller bodied the wine is the better it goes with the steak. He recommended the perfect match and so my steak and wine went very happily into my tummy.

If you ever end up taking a trip to Leeds Gaucho would definitely be a place I would recommend, the food and staff are both helpful and keen, without being over the top. It makes a very good night out, but be sure to book, we saw a very sad looking couple get sent away for not booking a table!
http://www.gauchorestaurants.co.uk/