Food Review: Fiesta del Asado

Fiesta del Asado is a rare jewel in the city. The upmarket steak house is part of the Birmingham-based Lasan Group, the name behind Nosh + Quaff, Raja Monkey, Izza Pizza and of course Lasan.

The Argentinian steak house, the first to open in Birmingham, has a loyal following and is well known for its steak, all of which is seasoned with their house dry rub and served with fresh chimichurri.

Dining on a Monday night, I was surprised to see that the restaurant was still busy with groups of work colleagues and the occasional couple.

Taking a seat at the front of the restaurant, in the bay window, I started off with a full-bodied glass of Rioja to whet my appetite.

Wanting to save ourselves for mains, my companion ordered a few nibbles including the Jamon iberico de bellota (£6.89) and pimientos del padron (£2.99). The peppers come pan-fried and salted, whilst the jamon came neatly laid out on the plate and is from free-range, acorn fed animals that have been cured for three years minimum.

Onto the main event; the steak. There are so many places to eat steak in the city now, but Fiesta del Asado was indeed an early player on the scene. There's plenty of choice from the smallest steak, the 8oz bavette to the largest, the 20oz marucha sin hueso, taken from the feather muscle, chuck and blade. 

There is even a hearty 40oz steak for sharing, the bife de costilla which comes in at £55.99. 

I opted for the 10oz sirloin as I prefer a leaner cut, whilst my companion opted for a very modest 8oz bavette.  I also added a fried egg, as is traditional, and we ordered a side of fries. 

As I was choosing my steak, the waitress was incredibly helpful when it came to understanding my preferences, and advising based on size and cut. This level of knowledge is something that truly marks an eatery out as specialist, and it's safe to say that the staff here were well versed in cut and cooking.  

What can I tell you about the steak? Well for starters, let's talk about the seasoning. Yes, the steak itself may look plain, but it is in fact full of flavour. Remember that rub I mentioned earlier? Although I couldn't say what's in it, let's just say that it is beyond doubt, one of the tastiest, most flavoursome steaks I have ever eaten. Add to this the fresh chimichurri and that delightful oozing egg, and there is plenty more than just steak going on here.

I would advise ordering a side each at least, as the steak's do come with salad and a little roasted vegetable, but if you have a larger appetite it's well worth adding on the very reasonably prices extras. 

The fries also deserve a special mention, for their delightful seasoning of salt and parsley. These crispy fries were very moreish, and we couldn't stop nibbling on these even after the steak was just a memory.

For desserts, alas there is not much by way of gluten free, so I opted for a double espresso.

What makes Fiesta del Asado stand out? For me it's the service, attentive staff, and unforgettably seasoned steak. Next time, I'm coming back for the bad boy itself, the 40oz bife de costilla, and I may not need any help.

*My meal at Fiesta del Asado was complimentary. 

Event: Gaucho Beef and Malbec Evening

Beef vs Malbec; which is your favourite? Thankfully, I didn't have to pick when I was invited to a beef and Malbec evening at newly opened Birmingham city centre hotspot, Gaucho.

Just around the corner from Colmore Row, Gaucho is a dark and brooding addition to the City dining scene, offering up a sensual serving of wine, beef and of course some lighter options.

Under the inquisitive gaze of our fellow diners, I along with a select group of bloggers was invited into the private dining room to learn a thing or two about steak and Malbec.

Hosted by Phil Crozier, affectionately known as Mr Argentina and Fernando Larroude, Gaucho's in-house beef expert, we were able to try out different cuts of steak, as well as matched wine to go with each cut.

Starting off with a little history of cattle farming in Argentina, Fernando explained how Angus breeding was taken from Scotland to Argentina in 1879, when two cows and one bull were taken over. There are now roughly 30 million Aberdeen Angus in Argentina, all grazing freely in the countryside. 

Next, we learnt that cows are on birth control (!) and that it's better to calf in winter as there is less disease around at this time of year.

Onto the hard stuff, the male cows are castrated at a few months old because this affects the meat, making it more tender, before being slaughtered at 24 months on average.

Interestingly, beef can be dry or wet aged; whilst dry aged beef loses weight, creates a dark crust and a more intense flavour, wet ageing is used when the beef is vacuum packed and sent abroad, thus keeping the meat in its own juices.

As you can see, we were then shown a whole range of beef cuts, presented in anatomically correct order; veggies look away now!

These are; the rib eye, sirloin, the flank at the top, the skirt at the bottom, the fillet which is under the sirloin, the rump cap at the end which is coated in fat, and the rump.

Onto the wine; Argentina is the fifth largest producer of wine in the world, with 85% of produce remaining in the country. Argentinian wine represents just 2% of the UK wine market, however. The first vines were planted in in 1553; seven varieties from France including two white and five red. These vines are the oldest in the world as a disease wiped out Europe's vines. All the wine on the Gaucho wine list is from Argentina, of course.

Back to the beef; we taste tasted a rump vs a fillet, with surprising results. We took the plunge and conducted this test on uncooked beef, topped with chimichurri; and it was delicious! Both cuts were beautiful, even raw, but it was interesting that the rump was more flavoursome than expected.

Our next taste test was conducted on cooked meat, where we tried picanha, skirt and flank. Apparently, flank is the most popular cut of in Argentina, and I can see why. Although I've never tried this particular cut before, I can say for certain that I would happily order this again on my next visit.

We were then able to try even more cuts, including rump, fillet, sirloin and rib eye. By this point, we were pretty much in steak heaven. We also matched the beef to the Malbec, pairing the rump with a Aniello Mainque Rio Negro 2015/16, the fillet with Finca Sophenia Anti Synthesis Uco Valley Mendoza 2014, the sirloin with Luigi Bosca DOC Vistalba 2014 and the rib eye with Colome Lote Especial El Arenal, Payogasta Salta 2014.

For me, as much as I love all steak, it was interesting to see how much more flavoursome these cuts were at gaucho than at other restaurants. Personally, I usually prefer a less fatty cut, which can sometimes dry out easier than say a rib eye. However, at Gaucho, every cut was delicious, flavoursome and moist; this was steak perfection.

The wine matching was also interesting, as we learnt that the fattier the steak, the more tannin needed in the wine to balance it out.

Finally, after a brief sojourn to mix and mingle with our fellow guests, we were also able to try the most delicious chocolate truffle matched to a Port style Malbec; Malamado Malbec. This was a sweet, liqueur wine that I am dying to try again.

What's the verdict on Gaucho? Great food, great wine and an even better atmosphere make Gaucho a welcome addition to Birmingham. By day, Gaucho will do well with the Colmore Row crowd, whilst by night, I can't think of anywhere better for a naughty date. 

*With thanks to Gaucho and Rewired PR for hosting the Beef and Malbec masterclass.

Event: Cafe Rouge Secret Steak Supper Club

Cafe Rouge is one of my go-to spots for dining. As naughty as the menu can be, I try to pick a steak with salad if I'm in need of a treat.

I was recently invited down to try out the new Autumn menu at Cafe Rouge at The Mailbox as part of their Secret Steak Supper Club series.

Greeted with fizz and canapés, I held out on these as I knew we were in for an evening of dining.

Sitting down at the long banqueting style table, I sat down next to the lovely Sian Victoria and her mum, and we spent the evening talking all things blogging.

After an introduction to the Supper Club, we were invited to choose a starter from the menu before the team from Matthew Clark came around to go through the wine list.

I ordered the Pate, with gluten free bread, my mum ordered the same but not gluten free, and Sian had the Crevettes.

My pate was perfection; a huge portion that was more than enough to cover the two small slices of gluten free toast it was served with, alongside some fabulous spiced apple and pear chutney.

Sian's prawns were large and meaty and had really beautiful colour too.

Next, we were educated a little in wine, with the team explaining that all the wines were picked to be easy drinking styles. We were able to try three reds; a malbec, merlot and cabernet, and these were all native to south France.

By now, it was time for steak tasting! We gathered round to try cuts of sirloin, fillet and cote de boeuf, alongside dauphinoise potatoes, green beans, and more sauces than you can shake a stick at.

Cote de Boeuf

Fillet

Sauces

Dauphinoise Potatoes

There was a mad rush for the steak and many approving sounds coming from the assembled audience! Thankfully, I was able to try all three steaks as well as some of the fabulous sauces. I love any kind of steak, but I have to say it was a rare treat to try the fillet; a perfectly pink piece of perfection. 

As for the sauces, if you haven't been ordering them you've been missing out. There are six sauces o accompany steaks on the menu including bordelaise gravy with bone marrow, beef dripping Merlot gravy, snails and garlic butter (I didn't try that one!), peppercorn, Bearnaise and Roquefort. Most of these are gluten free too.

After all this, we were still only halfway through and went back to our seats to order our mains. I went for the Confit de Canard, as it's something I wouldn't usually try. Mine was served without the cherry or orange sauce, as I assume this is not gluten free, but it did come with gluten free dauphinoise potatoes (shock!) and green beans. My duck was beautiful, crispy on the outside, but a rare indulgence. The dauphinoise potatoes were divine, however, and I will definitely be ordering these again.

I also tried some further sides for extra vitamins, including the Spinach and Green Beans.

My mum opted for another steak and Sian went for the tart.

I did of course steal a few chips, and I adore the crispy french fries served at Cafe Rouge.

If you thought we were skipping dessert, you'd be wrong, and we did manage to try some of the desserts thanks to a mini sharing platter. This contained the Rum Baba, Tarte au Citron, Creme Brulee and Tart aux Pommes.

Incredibly, the Creme Brulee and Tarte au Citron are both gluten free, and it was a real pleasure to enjoy the lemon tart as it's so rare to find this made gluten free.

The whole supper club experience was really fun and friendly, a great way to meet people and socialise, and a good opportunity to try out new dishes.

I'd really recommend trying out the new autumn menu, especially for any gluten free readers as there was plenty of choice, and the main menu itself is marked G or GO to indicate dishes that are gluten free or can be made gluten free.

*Thank you to the team at Cafe Rouge for inviting us to dine complimentary.