Balvanera

Came back again and had the olives, cauliflower, and beet salad in addition to ordering the skirt steak and malbec again. Balvanera once again proved itself amazing, and everything was just as delicious as the first time.

Loved this place. Appetizers were small for the price and not enough for our group of four. Empanadas were $ 14 and super tiny.
Sangria was very good. Not the strongest but good nevertheless.
Ribeyes were seasoned wonderfully and the addition of roasted garlic was PERFECT! The sauces were incredible + the fries were divine.
Food is well worth the cost, restaurant is super nice and the ambiance is incredible. My group really enjoyed their visit! Would definitely come back.

Excellent spot: the scallops and octopus appetizers were delicious; truffle oil forced us to order bread for dipping, which came fresh and toasted. Followed with skirt steak, which was cooked to order and well-prepared…juicy, tender, and subtly seasoned. Desserts came in the form of torrejas and ricotta, both sprinkled with fresh berries… simple but delicious, brought together by the dulce de leche

Severely over priced, but something about this place makes you feel relaxed. The food is good, nothing «special» but the service is A1! And the atmosphere is so tranquil.

Phenomenal place with amazing food. I’ve been here about 3 times now and the food, wine, and service have been great every time.
Wine/​beer list: Good number of wines by the glass, and some really good beers on tap (try the Goose Island Matilda).
Sangria: Delicious and not too sweet. Some places make their sangria like juice, but here it’s nice and strong with lots of fruit.
Empanadas: DOPE. The sweet corn ones are out of this world. The boyf, an avowed corn hater, LOVES these. I suspect he does not, in fact, hate corn.
Assorted veggies: Their veggie plates to share are delicious. The roasted carrots are really delicious, offset with a creamy yogurt sauce and pepitas. The cauliflower is incredible. The salads are also delicious.
Steak: If you’re coming to an Argentinean place, you’ve gotta get the steak. We’ve had both the strip steak and the rib eye, and both were super delicious.
Come here, order some wine, and slather everything you eat in their amazing, super garlicky chimicurri. Oooh yeah.

Ok, coming from an Argentine family, I am a tough critic but this place is pretty great. Nice spacious restaurant with a nice ambiance (lights just a tad bright however — the only thing that bothered me!) I got the skirt steak with salad, empanadas (fried and filled with hand minced meat — TO DIE FOR) and the chorizo. We went for a special occasion (anniversary dinner) and they finished the meal with complimentary champagne! What a nice touch. I also unlocked the Unilocal free flan dessert which was great.

I was a little apprehensive about going to this Argentinian restaurant — you know, being a vegan and all — but I looked at the menu and there were some vegan and vegetarian (in a pinch) options so I joined my friends on a BYOB Monday for dinner. Glad I did. I had the cauliflower and rice croquettes, Remolachas (roasted beets, blackberries, avocado, horseradish) and Setas Salteadas (mushrooms with poached egg and truffle butter). All three dishes were quite tasty with the horseradish sauce on the beets being the most memorable ingredient. (Wait, the egg was also delicious and the Croquetas.) A friend had the Brussells sprouts and pancetta. He liked it but we both thought there’d be a lot more Brussells sprouts than were on the plate. There are also a bunch of other veggie dishes I wanted to try. (I appreciate that they have these on the menu.) Of course there’s steak and meat up the wazoo but you’ll have to find out how they taste from another reviewer.

With reasonable prices and great food, this place deserves a strong four. There was a hiccup with my reservation. I called and made one for 8:00. I ended up needing to push to 9:00, which they could accommodate, but the hostess told me that I had no reservation on file, which was strange.
I arrived before the other half of my party and was seated at the bar with a delightful glass of Malbec. Before she arrived, they seated me at my table. I enjoyed the anchovy entrée. The main event, the bone in ribeye, did not disappoint. While I have had better cuts at steakhouses uptown, this one was pretty good. I finished the whole thing along with some more Malbec.
I would like to return and try more of the items on the menu.

Incredible service, food, and ambience! Recommendations: the grass-​fed ribeye, anchovy appetizer, and the burrata. It was a good amount of food for two.
Service — our server was extremely friendly and helpful, recommending us the most delicious wine to pair with our steak! We also ran 30 min late to our reservation and they were very kind when we called to let them know and very accommodating when we finally arrived.
Food — we chose the restaurant to try and relive a bit of our recent trip to Argentina and we were very happy! The steak was one of the best we’ve had in NYC. The wine list is also fantastic with several very good options at reasonable price points.
Ambience — as you can see from the photo, the lighting is dark/​romantic. They do a great job with table placement; remarkably, we didn’t feel as squashed in as we normally do in NYC restaurants! Plus, they were able to accommodate a very large group in the middle of the restaurant by creating one long table (~15+ guests). I love restaurants that are so flexible — good for groups, dates, and catching up with friends.
We’ll be keeping this one on the top of our list of NYC recommendations for sure!

This is a great place for groups. The staff is very accommodating and attentive. The restaurant is spaced very comfortably and it is a very inviting space. Also, free flan for checking in!
The boquerones ($ 6), setas salteadas (mushrooms $ 17), and the sweetbreads ($ 16) were my favorite dishes. I would definitely go back to try more of the meats. The skirt steak ($ 36 for the large portion) was huge and cooked well but could have been seasoned better.
The farfalle ($ 18) was not memorable. I would also skip the fries ($ 5), empanadas ($ 8) and the octopus ($ 18). The octopus was chewy and could have used more salt.

Pretty much got everything on the «para compartir» section (had to ask our waiter what this means. it means «to share»). I do not have a bad thing to say about any of the dishes. We originally did not intend on ordering the octopus dish however our waiter suggested we get it as he said it was the most popular and I am so glad we listened to him, easily my favorite dish of everything we ordered. The empanadas were delicious as well — they have corn and beef and you have the option of ordering one of each so I’d recommend that since they were both amazing. The scallops were also great, very interestingly presented and prepared. Lastly, the service was amazing! we ordered a bottle of wine and when we were finished with our bottle, our server poured us all a last glass on him. Wonderful service, great food!

Great tapas place, great for a date.
Empandas Caseras — you can choose between the sweet corn and the corn beef, or you can mix and match (each plate comes with two empanadas). Tried the sweet corn, it was alright, but probably wouldn’t order again. (³⁄₅)
Pulpo de Playa (octopus) — was very good. good texture, flavor and crunch on the outside. Would definitely order this again. (⁵⁄₅)
Setas Salteadas — market mushrooms, these were good sauteed with egg (yolk intact). (⁴⁄₅)
Ancho (Rib eye) Grass Fed — good portion size, shareable. The meat initially felt a bit tough /​dry, but this is resolved when you eat with the sauce that comes out. Preferred it with the Chimichurri sauce (green). Also comes with a side plate of fries which were pipping hot, and nice and crunchy. Overall the steak was good… (3.5÷5) not sure if I would order again.
We were two people, ordered 3 tapas, and one steak to share. We were pretty full… we could have one with 2 tapas instead of 3 and would have been ok with the steak. Overall this was a great meal would be down to come back. Next time, we would probably just stick with the tapas! There were some that we wanted to try that had ran out.

A delightful little Argentine restaurant in LES. Went with a friend and we got the beef empanadas with chorizo to start. Very yummy! For main courses we split the Milanesa and the skirt steak. The skirt steak was cooked perfectly and the chimichurri was delicious. Thoroughly enjoyed the French fries and complimentary flan that I got with my Unilocal check-​in. Service was wonderful!

Came here for brunch w my gfs and it was so yummy! We were seated almost right away without a rsvp (Sunday around 2:30ish PM). There were a few (3 – 4) occupied tables. Our waiter was friendly and attentive.
The brunch dishes were abt $ 15 – 17 (dont quite remember) and it comes with 2 drinks (one alcoholic either sangria/​mimosa and the other is non alcoholic). My sister and son shared a burger, i had the clasico w poached eggs, one of my gf had a sandwich and the other had a steak. We ordered a side of blood sausage (the best!!! I had it when i was in Argentina and have been cravin it since!) and empanadas!
My dish was super good. The poached eggs were cooked jus right, with a side of salad and slices of crispy thick cut bacon.
I really enjoyed the beef empanada, the corn isnt for everyone becos the cheese they use is slightly stronger. My gfs enjoyed their dishes and my sis let me try some of the burger, cooked nicely and tasty (chimichurri marinade).
I really enjoyed the blood sausage but was hopin for more than 1 pc. It was served with pesto tomato and greens. I could have like 3 of those!!!
Overall, great brunch and definitely will come back!

Made reservations on open table for a Christmas Day Dinner for me and the old man. We arrived a half hour early and we were seated immediately regardless. We opened up with the burrata and some empanadas which both were great. Then we both got ribeyes. The beef is grass fed and dry age, imported from Uruguay and man you can taste the difference. Had mine medium and it was exactly how I imagined a perfectly cooked ribeye to be. Flan con Dulce de Leche? Why not. Check the wine list to get some of the best picks from Argentina, Uruguay, and Chile.
Fernando Navas and his staff made us feel at home with exceptional, friendly service. Really loved the cozy ambiance in this place. Like many of the other Unilocalers report, this place transports you to Buenos Aires. I’ll enjoy coming back. Highly recommended!

We came to Balvanera for New Year’s Eve after more or less randomly choosing this place because of their ability to host the 7 of us, their menu, their reviews and their NYE formula (spend 85/​person on food and drinks).
We arrived and got seated immediately. Place was crowded but our table was waiting for us. Our waitress was Val, very friendly in the beginning and, as the evening progressed, she just turned out to be absolutely lovely. We ordered their special drink to start, 6 appetizers, some wine for dinner and we all got the «churrasquito».
ALL the appetizers were absolutely delicious. We got the pulpo, luckily 2 servings because it just melted in your mouth. The croquetas, delicious. The cold meats and cheese plate, delicious and very nicely put together and selected by the chef. The carrots, amazing (and I had second thoughts about that one, who orders carrots on NYE…). The beets, so tasty and nice. The provoleta cheese, so flavorful.
After that we got the meats. We had three rare, three medium rare and one medium. We all liked our meat even though some were not entirely sure if they had received the temperature they had asked for. I am not a huge expert on meat, so I find it a bit difficult at times to exactly establish whether it’s more rare or more medium rare, especially with a thin cut like we got. But nonetheless the meat was like butter in your mouth. The menu said 8oz, I have a feeling the portions were generous. The chimichurri was fine.
We didn’t have desserts, midnight hit, the ball dropped and we toasted with the free champagne to a happy 2016.
I spoke to the chef who was very nice and approachable and congratulated him. You could tell that he really tries to please his clients and that he was happy he had succeeded.
Some reviews say the service is rather on the slower side, I found it to be adequate, especially on a rather complicated night like NYE. We’ll have to see when we return on a normal week or weekend night. That said, I am not a huge fan of the fast paced, often to me pushy, service in some Manhattan restaurants.
My husband and I we’ll definitely be back for more, I hear they have a nice brunch and we’ll try that one as well.

Needed a last-​minute dinner reservation for a party of 8. OpenTable only allows you to make reservations for up to 6 here, but I called in the day of, and the hostess happily obliged. Fresh off a trip to Buenos Aires and seeing the rave reviews here, I was curious to see how Balvanera would fare against the actual restaurants of Argentina. The décor and layout of the place was pretty standard for a smaller restaurant in New York. They have a bar in the back, with a bunch of shelving strictly for wine.
Our party took a while to all arrive, so in the meantime we ordered a bunch of plates to share. We went with the scallop crudo, pulpo de playa (octopus), 3 orders of the empanadas, and the burrata. Clear winner here was the pulpo and the beef empanadas. The pulpo was just the right tenderness, with a slight crispy texture on the outside, and the beef empanadas were deep-​fried, but not too greasy, and provided for a nice overall crispiness. The beer and wine list isn’t very extensive, but the offerings that they do have were all pretty great. I got a Goose Island Matilda, which is
I ordered the 16oz skirt steak, medium rare (ya gotta), and it was quite delicious. Cooked perfectly, the meat had a nice blend of fat, and came accompanied with a small salad and a bowl of fries. Was able to try some of the ribeye as well, which was incredibly flavorful, and not quite as fatty as you might think a ribeye would be.
Service was definitely on the slower side, not too dissimilar from the very laid-​back vibes of restaurants in Argentina. Not sure if they were trying to emulate that type of vibe, or if they were just being slow, but nonetheless, chalk one up for authenticity, eh? I kid, I kid. It wasn’t actually that bad, but considering that frenetic New York pace you see at most restaurants, it’s easy to get impatient. Anyways, the prices are expensive for the portions, but they do tout quality and the meat being grass-​fed and free range, so I guess I can’t quite complain too much.
Overall, the food is quality, and the overall ambiance is pretty nice, both for an intimate night, or in our case, a large party. That being said, you’ll need to budget some extra time for the slower service, and in the realm of steaks, I think I would still prefer a straight-​up steakhouse at those prices. However, I wouldn’t be opposed to returning for a casual meal in the near future.

Best of the best!!! Charm, class and great food…
I have been here twice and both times have lived the food

Lovely place. Came here on a rainy Thursday night and it was quiet. The restaurant is dim and romantic and our waitress was super sweet.
The food is pricey for the small portions but excellent. Also they must really like blackberries here because they were in half the dishes we ordered. We tried:
Red wine sangria: it comes with blackberries which I was very excited about.
Burrata ($ 16): amazing creamy rich burrata with persimmon, almonds and arugula. Must try if you like cheese. Must try even if you don’t.
Patatas ($ 5): crispy potatoes with garlic aioli… nothing not to like over here. Small plate but so good.
Remolachas ($ 10): roasted beets with blackberries, avocado and horseradish. I don’t care for beets but it was ok.
Pulpo a la plancha ($ 18): one of the best octopus (octopi?) I’ve ever had. Fresh, smokey, tender and crispy.
Flan (free if you check in!!!): comes with some amazing dulce de leche and. wait for it.blackberries. Delicious end to the meal.
This was a light and satisfying meal but I’ll be back to try one of those famous skirt steaks one of these days.

I love this place! Brunch for $ 19 is not too shabby! It includes an entrée, your choice of alcoholic beverage, and unlimited coffee.
The atmosphere of the establishment is beautiful, with lots of light coming through the windows and the service is incredible. Also, they give you complementary bread!
I ended up ordering the Choripan and I loved it. You get two halves of delicious chorizo on a toasted bun smothered with chimichuri. I used to eat Choripan all the time so it was nice to finally find a place that does a decent job at making it! The meal also comes with fries. It’s an incredible amount of food and more than a person can eat, but every bite is worth it.
I recommend the red wine sangria. It’s almost like juice, dangerous… but delicious! And the coffee is always so on point. Overall, amazing place, highly recommend!