The Pleasures of Fine Cuisine

The City of Neuquén has experienced a huge growth in the last few years and consequently it has incorporated gourmet restaurants to its wide array of gastronomic venues. The old precepts of traditional cuisine have been broken in order to give way to Patagonian flavors, which may be combined with other flavors from international cuisine, thus creating a certain distinction at the tables of Neuquén. We visited three venues in order to learn more about them. One is housed by one of the most famed wineries in the area. Gourmet Grape After a long tour around the vineyards owned by the Schroeder family in San Patricio del Chañar, we made ourselves comfortable at the light restaurant called Saurus, willing to enjoy its menu and the magnificent view of its vineyards. The decoration invites customers to taste a quiet, relaxed meal without any haste. Featuring a varied and simple cuisine, with distinctive details, it also boasts an original wine list.

We chose some vegetables with croutons as a starter while we were waiting for the main course. For the latter, we were advised to taste a marinated rabbit with prawns accompanied by sugar-coated shallot and risotto de quinoa. This creation of Saurus's cuisine was a true finding we accompanied with wine specially selected by the sommelier. Saurus offers a very neat assistance, quality of ingredients and a very special atmosphere to gather the whole family, hold social events or corporate meetings. The South Also Exists Restaurant Sur is part of the well-known hotel Amucan, which has been operating for over 30 years in the downtown area. It features a cozy decoration and its gastronomic proposal promises Patagonian specialties and homemade pasta. We accepted the recommendation to taste moquehue trout, the traditional local fish that is usually served with mushrooms and steamed vegetables. Also, a special dish of black ravioli filled with salmon and accompanied with shrimp sauce. While we were waiting for the dishes to be served, we shared a tray of assorted regional smoked products, including cheese, trout and venison, along with olives, cold cuts and home baked bread. The menu included good red meat and poultry with very appropriate sauces and classic desserts such as tiramisu or chocolate and lemon mousse. The wines made at NQN winery are at the top of the list, which is completed with other traditional national wineries. The good assistance guarantees that customers will come back. Let's Make a Point The invitation to visit Punto Blanco Restaurant made it possible for our dream to come true: to eat a splendid site where experienced cuisine is prepared by a chef that has been in the business for over 20 years. We found our table and went through the menu to choose our dish among the varied selection of simple proposals with refined touches. We made up our minds for an attractive tagliatta, which consists in chicken medallions resting on a base of arugula and cheese and some grilled vegetables. The next course consisted in some grilled lamb ribs, a healthy way to taste this traditional and exquisite meat from Argentinian Patagonia, served with a barbecue sauce with a pinch of garlic and fresh rosemary. The excellent presentation of both dishes gave evidence of a very neat cuisine also accompanied by a good wine list. This is an ideal site to plan a family lunch or a business dinner and let ourselves be tempted by what the chef recommends.