South American Sizzle

El Gaucho blazes new territory as a South American steakhouse on Wichita’s west side.

(page 1 of 2)

Steakhouses typically fall under one of two categories: 1) The A-list variety, with white tablecloths and dim lighting, and 2) Western-themed chains like Logan’s Roadhouse and Lone Star. So when a co-worker first told me about El Gaucho Steakhouse (8550 West 21 St. North, 316-440-4030), a new South American-style eatery, it didn’t compute right away. So I decided to check it out for myself.

At first blush, El Gaucho looked like any other steakhouse. A statue of a bucking stallion stood in the parking lot, and benches with wagon wheel-shaped backs sat in the entryway. Inside, the walls were painted with murals of South American cowboys and their horses. The murals had their own clever touches, with real objects—a water pail, barbed wire and pennies—attached to the walls. Then, the differences began to stand out. Salsa music played overhead, and the chef at the back of the open dining room cooked a mountain of meat and vegetables over a large flame.

That afternoon, a co-worker and I were joined by Brian Pierce and Kellie Michaels, hosts of KFDI’s “Mornings with Brian and Kellie.” Who better to check out a steakhouse with than a pair of country station hosts? As we waited on drinks, we perused the menu. It had a mix of familiar choices (ribeye, tenderloin, chicken breast), as well as lesser-known foreign dishes (milanesa, kidney and chorizo). (No surprise: the menu skewed heavily toward carnivores.) While waiting, we dipped bread in a cup of chimichurri sauce, a popular South American dip known as “miracle sauce” by co-owner Monica Sacco because it compliments everything from bread to meat.

We were hungry, so we ordered the Grills for Two, the Gaucho ($33) and the Ranchero ($32). Ten minutes later, out came two overwhelming trays of meat and vegetables. The meal was enough to feed an army. The Gaucho had an 8-ounce tenderloin, pork ribs, chicken breast, chorizos (a Spanish variety of pork sausage), corn on the cob and baked potatoes. The Ranchero had even more of the same: an 8-ounce ribeye, lamb, Argentine grill sausage, a baked potato, green bell pepper and corn on the cob. After taking in the table’s worth of food, we dug in by grazing from each other’s dishes and sampling the mixture of meat and potatoes.

Brian at first shot a wary look as he eyed the lamb and chorizos, but the foreign food quickly grew on all of us. Cooked over an open flame, the meat was all-natural and cooked to perfection. We developed a habit of dipping each bite in the chimichurri sauce. (We even asked for a second cup of it.)

In total, our meal cost $65 for four—a costly lunch but a fair price for such a sizeable portion of food. Given the refreshing menu and colorful environment, we were glad to see El Gaucho join the mix on Wichita’s west side.