Stuffed at Argentina
Been suffering from Acute Cobweb Syndrome all day long on account of the copious amounts of red wine I drank last night while out enjoying a Christmas buffet courtesy of EPI's employer. Actually, 'copious amounts' is probably a bit misleading - the fact is that I normally suffer from cobweb syndrome the day after drinking anything in excess of a single glass of red wine. Sadly, red wine and YT do not mix well. I love it yet it doesn't love me. Sigh. Life's a bitch, and all that. Boo hoo.
Anyway, 'tis the season of the Christmas buffet, meaning every company worth its salt must invite its employees out to at least one. And such is the demand that parties are booked back-to-back at restaurants and in our case we had to arrive promptly at six pm and be out by nine. Fair enough.
This particular buffet was held at Iceland's Bastion of Beef, a restaurant called Argentina, which for about a decade now has been considered one of the classiest joints in town, not to mention one of the most expensive. Hence it was with some anticipation that our YT made her way there last night for the very first time, ready to partake of Argentina in all its glory.
Imagine my surprise, then, to find that the decor was much like a tired old steakhouse in any old suburb of any Western metropolis, all fake Tudor, plaster walls and exposed beams. And boy, was it a tight squeeze in there - the place is in no way designed for a Christmas buffet or parties of 20 or more. People were cramming into a tiny room off to the side to fill their plates, an undertaking which, note bene, was carefully orchestrated by the waitstaff and as such went off without any major disasters, but was still a bit unpleasant.
Be that as it may, the food was very good, although for a Christmas buffet there was only a limited selection of things to choose from - at least compared to some other places at which I've had the privilege of partaking. There was the ubiquitous gravlax and reindeer pate, both of which were excellent, and a pretty good roast beef that nonetheless was a bit tough [as all beef is in Iceland always - guess it must be the absence of tenderizer, which in turn makes it OK]. There was also an excellent Spanish potato salad, and a turkey terrine with wild mushrooms that was very tasty and unusual. Mind you, the whole thing was a bit heavy on the turkey ... probably because turkey is a bit of a fad in Iceland these days, or has been for the last, say, 3-4 years. Adopted from somewhere - probably America [ooh, now I'll get some hyper-sensitive American person in my comments accusing me of saying Iceland picks up all its bad habits from America] - and, like all fads to hit Iceland, it took off at a gallop and virtually everyone followed. Except for YT, because in my North American incarnation I ate enough turkey [and turkey leftovers] to last me until the end of my life and then some, so unlike most of my Icelandic brethren I really cannot get excited about turkey even if my life depended on it. But I digress.
Happily there were alternatives to turkey, like the filet of lamb served as a hot course [also a bit tough, but hey, who's complaining, not me] and then there was the dessert buffet which bizarrely served up chocolate cake [i.e. like a devil's food cake, not French chocolate] which to me seems like a totally ridiculous thing to offer people who have just stuffed themselves at an all-you-can-eat buffet. I mean, one slice is equivalent to a whole meal! Cleverly I sidestepped the cake and went straight for the homemade sorbet, the creme brulee and the chocolate cups with the mango filling [or whatever that was] and boy, those did not disappoint.
Final verdict: Argentina is not a comfortable place for a Christmas buffet, but the food is good, especially if you like turkey. 3.5 stars out of 5.
Afterwards a few of us headed back to a friend's apartment, where some more red wine was consumed and we yacked away until the wee hours of the morning, telling stories and chewing the fat. A very, very nice evening. Very nice.
THE WEATHER GETS FIVE STARS OUT OF FIVE
Because it has been sublime. Finally, a few days of proper winter! Today it was brilliantly sunny and cold, and there's snow on the ground, which is awesome. There was no wind, which just made it so delightful to be outside in the cool, crisp air. The only problem is that there are only about 4.5 hours of daylight in which to enjoy it - but then again, the sky has such a lovely pastel hue for such an extended period. It's all in the perception. Temps currently -5°C [23F] and sunrise was at 11.02 this morning, sunset at 3.36 pm.
Anyway, 'tis the season of the Christmas buffet, meaning every company worth its salt must invite its employees out to at least one. And such is the demand that parties are booked back-to-back at restaurants and in our case we had to arrive promptly at six pm and be out by nine. Fair enough.
This particular buffet was held at Iceland's Bastion of Beef, a restaurant called Argentina, which for about a decade now has been considered one of the classiest joints in town, not to mention one of the most expensive. Hence it was with some anticipation that our YT made her way there last night for the very first time, ready to partake of Argentina in all its glory.
Imagine my surprise, then, to find that the decor was much like a tired old steakhouse in any old suburb of any Western metropolis, all fake Tudor, plaster walls and exposed beams. And boy, was it a tight squeeze in there - the place is in no way designed for a Christmas buffet or parties of 20 or more. People were cramming into a tiny room off to the side to fill their plates, an undertaking which, note bene, was carefully orchestrated by the waitstaff and as such went off without any major disasters, but was still a bit unpleasant.
Be that as it may, the food was very good, although for a Christmas buffet there was only a limited selection of things to choose from - at least compared to some other places at which I've had the privilege of partaking. There was the ubiquitous gravlax and reindeer pate, both of which were excellent, and a pretty good roast beef that nonetheless was a bit tough [as all beef is in Iceland always - guess it must be the absence of tenderizer, which in turn makes it OK]. There was also an excellent Spanish potato salad, and a turkey terrine with wild mushrooms that was very tasty and unusual. Mind you, the whole thing was a bit heavy on the turkey ... probably because turkey is a bit of a fad in Iceland these days, or has been for the last, say, 3-4 years. Adopted from somewhere - probably America [ooh, now I'll get some hyper-sensitive American person in my comments accusing me of saying Iceland picks up all its bad habits from America] - and, like all fads to hit Iceland, it took off at a gallop and virtually everyone followed. Except for YT, because in my North American incarnation I ate enough turkey [and turkey leftovers] to last me until the end of my life and then some, so unlike most of my Icelandic brethren I really cannot get excited about turkey even if my life depended on it. But I digress.
Happily there were alternatives to turkey, like the filet of lamb served as a hot course [also a bit tough, but hey, who's complaining, not me] and then there was the dessert buffet which bizarrely served up chocolate cake [i.e. like a devil's food cake, not French chocolate] which to me seems like a totally ridiculous thing to offer people who have just stuffed themselves at an all-you-can-eat buffet. I mean, one slice is equivalent to a whole meal! Cleverly I sidestepped the cake and went straight for the homemade sorbet, the creme brulee and the chocolate cups with the mango filling [or whatever that was] and boy, those did not disappoint.
Final verdict: Argentina is not a comfortable place for a Christmas buffet, but the food is good, especially if you like turkey. 3.5 stars out of 5.
Afterwards a few of us headed back to a friend's apartment, where some more red wine was consumed and we yacked away until the wee hours of the morning, telling stories and chewing the fat. A very, very nice evening. Very nice.
THE WEATHER GETS FIVE STARS OUT OF FIVE
Because it has been sublime. Finally, a few days of proper winter! Today it was brilliantly sunny and cold, and there's snow on the ground, which is awesome. There was no wind, which just made it so delightful to be outside in the cool, crisp air. The only problem is that there are only about 4.5 hours of daylight in which to enjoy it - but then again, the sky has such a lovely pastel hue for such an extended period. It's all in the perception. Temps currently -5°C [23F] and sunrise was at 11.02 this morning, sunset at 3.36 pm.
Labels: restaurant reviews, Traditions, Yule
posted by Alda at 12:12 AM
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