Tango Sur, not so sure...

I've heard for many months that this was the place for a meat lover, how wrong. After waiting in line for about an hour a half, I was seated at a wobbling table next to a couple that took too much advantage of the byob. The salad was comparable to cafeteria food, and my expensive bottles of wine were left without an ice bucket. What really surprised me was the crappy quality of that meat. For the price of the meal, I at least expected the meat to be cut correctly. All the beef was cut against the grain and half of it was all gristle and fat. Needless to say, I left Tango Sur wishing I'd have just dined at Outback Steakhouse, at least my meat would have been cut right and cost much less.

Barry.

I heard the same thing just last week from a co-worker who used to really like Tango Sur. She said that on multiple occasions lately, the beef just hasn't been up to par. Any others?

For a while, I seemed to be the only dissenting voice on Tango Sur. I see now that others have finally come to their senses

When I was there w/ a friend over the summer, the steaks were just all right, but boy those empanadas are something else!

Well, it's a go-to, sure-thing place for me, but I have not been in a while.

One problem is that it has become wildly popular with both Atkins zombies and South Americans, of which there are more and more in Chicago these days. I will try to stop in for a quality check soon. The wait and the service have always been very authentically Argentine; that is to say, diffident.

But I do have some issues with the meal description. They are largely dead on, but they also quite describe a true Argentine meal.

The funniest comment was about your free salad. While South America is lush with vegetation, you could go for weeks in Brazil, Argentina, Uraguay, without seeing a fresh vegetable on a plate. (Fruit is an alltogether different story.) Out of desperation, I once begged for any kind of green veggie, and the chef came up with probably the most overcooked piece of broccoli I have ever seen. It might have been canned for all I know. "Salad" usually involves boiled or pickled veggies (incl. the ubiquitous marinated white asparagus, hearts of palm, artichoke bottoms) and lots of mayo. Tango makes a passible "golf" salad, which is basically hearts of palm, some olives and tons of 1000 Island a/k/a "golf sauce." So, that freebie salad at TS is little more than a concession to American tatstes. Still, I kind of like it for its earnest simplicity. The cider vinegar on the table cuts the grease of the meats well.

Meat cut against the grain: That's how they do it in Argentina, and at the butcher shop next door, particularly the ribs which, indeed have plenty of cartilage and bone to work around. I do have to say, I've always been more happy with the cheaper domestic cuts than the pricier grass-fed Canadian/Australian/Argentine specials. Just a matter of taste, on my part.

The tenderest steak though, is used for the bife vesuvio, a belly buster at the top of the price list. It's a massive cut of butt steak, I believe, filled with aged provolone [not "white cheddar" as suggested in the report linked below] and spinach, grilled, and doused with a very respectable "Vesuvio" sauce, roasted potatoes on the side. A perfect Chicago dish that highlights parallels between the beef-oriented "Italian-American" of Chicago and the beef-oriented "Italian-American" of Argentina.

I always get the parrillada, which is pretty funky for someone thinking Morton's: ribs cut the "wrong" way (the way they are cut in Korea and every other country, just about), house-made chorizo, morcillas, sweetbreads, and a tail of steak, us. "bife de chorizo." With a cheap malbec, that's living. I'd say if you want to make comparisons, it would be fairer to put this meal up against a Korean BBQ than an American Steakhouse.

Sounds like you won't be back. If you do go, try to track down one of the owners. The guy with a ponytail is very nice and will help out if something seems amiss. I do feel that the staff sometimes focuses on the South American customers (not latin, but specifically folks from Argentina/Uraguay.

Also, they take reservations. I can't remember enjoying any meal after a wait like you described. Regarding wine, white is an afterthought to these folks, unfortunately. The servers certainly would not recgnize your "expensive" bottles of, presumably, white wine. The wine service seems commensurate with the corkage fee here. None. What are these expensive whites that you brought to an Argentine steakhouse, by the way? Other than temperature, how did they work out?

Re "the price of the meal" what was it? The place is absurdly cheap for what you get, in my experience, even compared with Outback.

The bottom line seems to be, Tango Sur is not for everyone. The staff can seem prideful and stubborn, or uncompromising, depending on how you look at it. For example, you are not going to get your steak medium rare, unless you really beg, because that is not how steak is prepared in Argentina.

Gapers Block has a very recent and I think fair assessment of the place here:

http://www.gapersblock.com/airbags/archives/tango_sur/

Until someone can show me a better plate of sausages, ribs and sweetbreads at this price, I'll continue going. The tortilla is great too. The less unusual cuts have always been fine to me, though I don't order them often. Can't say I've ever had anything that sank to the level of "crappy" myself. I hope it was just an off night.


PS, another place for a good, cheap, South American steak in pleasant surroundings is Mi Ciudad/Cuenca, on Irving. Much better free salad, too.

My only experience there was completely mediocre. I never undertood the hype.

I lived in that neigborhood in 98 for awhile. Every single person raved about Tango Sur. Some friends were over and wanted to try it. I ate
outside and thought it was completely awful. I've eaten in a lot of funky
places all over the world, nothing was worse than the mystery meat
served there.

Dave M

Three folks went there one time each, knowing that it is wildly popular, and all were not just disappointed, but seem to have been genuinely pissed off by the place.

Worst food anywhere in the entire world? That sounds pretty bad.

Before anyone takes this the wrong way, I'm not dissing anyone's experience. I'm sure the food sucked, was mediocre, mystery meat, shoe leather, etc. No doubt, the meat at Outback could be better on any given Sunday. I simply attempted to temper the one-liner, one meal pans with what I hoped was a thoughtful and fair survey of my dozens of meals there over the years, and thought that someone with a similar range of experience (whoever the Gapers Block person is) was worth noting. Peace.

My one liner wasn't thought provoking enough? How dare you!!




2 Qualifications:

In odd timing, on a non-food message board I frequent, 3 different people are proclaiming their love for Tango Sur.

I like Outback's filet more than some local steak/chop houses.

Thanks for keeping it light. I really can't say that I "love" Tango Sur. I have been there many times over the years because it's close to home, BYOB and used to be easy to get into. It's also an essentially mom & pop neighborhood place. The family has been there forever, unlike say the new Coldstone Creamery that looks ready to open next door.

It might just be that a cheap steak isn't the greatest culinary goal. That's why I end up with the variety meats at such places and I'm rarely disappointed. But I do think that the South Americans do more with less than others with cheap meat.

Hey, speaking of the neighborhood and the various fortunes of the kitchens (Cullen's and Blue Bayou, used to be solid, now abysmal; Strega Nona, never good except drink specials; Neybour's small chef-owned bar, with quixotically good food that really doesn't matter), let me vouch in a big way for the relatively new cook at Ginger's on Ashland. The Irish Breakfast and the fish n chips are really consistently very good these days. The sausages and rashers are particularly better than any I've had in Chicago and some attention is paid to the lesser items, incl. the stewed tomato and beans n toast.

^that neighborhood is slowly losing it's soul. Too many chains and over-priced boutiques.

Shame about Cullen's and Blue Bayou. I've enjoyed both those places, but haven't been in a while.

My last time at Tango Sur was pretty interesting -

For starters, we had a reservation - but it was a large party. (About 15 people, total.) We still ended up waiting about thirty minutes, but it was a pleasant enough evening, so we didn't mind. (We just waited on the sidewalk.)

As far as BYOB service, they were incredibly accommodating considering the aforementioned corkage fee. We had probably a half dozen bottles of wine (all reds) and beer as well. They brought utensils, glasses (stemware for the wine, standard glasses for the beer), ice buckets for the beer - anything we could have wanted.

It was a loud room, but we were a loud group that was drinking - we fit right in. The empanadas are awesome, as mentioned. As far as the food goes, I sincerely can't recall what I ordered. It was one of the large entrees meant to be shared, that came on a heated platter with a puddle of chimichurri and some potato preparation for ~$30 if memory serves. I shared this with a friend, and she and I each took food home as well. I sampled a few other entrees that friends at the table had, and I don't recall trying anything that I didn't really enjoy.

If I'd gone expecting grain fed beef, I'd probably have been disappointed. Yes, the texture, flavor and seasoning of the meat was different from what I'd expected - but that was precisely what I was looking for. (As an aside I'm not sure where the meat actually came from - as we weren't importing beef from Argentina or Canada at that point in time - due to concerns of hoof & mouth and BSE at that point in time.)

I like the place enough, I guess I'll have to go back to see if it's as good as I remember. I haven't been there in about a year as I never about going in advance, and it's insane on weekends without a reservation.

I don't have any new info to add, just some older but positive experience. I was there several times - all when the place was still young and had good service and very good food even though the place was jumping.

I particularly liked one of the Argentine cuts that was shaped vaguely like an american football. Chewy and tasty.

It's perfectly possible that success or time (or both) have affected the quality. If so, it's too bad. It contributed some real culinary character to the strip when it was good.

mrbarolo wrote:I don't have any new info to add, just some older but positive experience. I was there several times - all when the place was still young and had good service and very good food even though the place was jumping.

I particularly liked one of the Argentine cuts that was shaped vaguely like an american football. Chewy and tasty.

It's perfectly possible that success or time (or both) have affected the quality. If so, it's too bad. It contributed some real culinary character to the strip when it was good.

Is chewy a quality you look for in your steak? Not me. The steaks I had in Argentina were not tough and chewy at all...just tender and full of flavor. I couldn't even get through the Argentine beef I had at Tango Sur.

Like JeffB, I have eaten at Tango Sur many times because I live nearby. I never have been disappointed. I've also never eaten there when they are super busy because I won't wait anyplace for very long, there are plenty of other places to eat around there. I've always found the steak to be tender and tasty. If I would criticize anything, I might say it's overseasoned, but I accept that's their style.

One great thing about Chicago or any big city is that restaurants don't have to try to be all things to all people. They can do their one thing and people who like that one thing will go there and people who don't, won't. I don't think it's fair to criticize a place because you don't happen to like what they do there. Of course, you don't know that until you go.

It's also possible they were having a bad night or are having some problems recently, but count me among the people who have always liked the place.

I agree with Cowdery and JeffB that it isn't fair to criticize a restaurant for doing things differently than you like. If you didn't like dim sum, would you criticize Shui Wah for being a dim sum restaurant?

I haven't had a bad experience at Tango Sur yet. I was just there Saturday and yes, it was a very busy night. (I usually go at off-peak hours, but my BF made the plans because he knows I like it there, even though he doesn't eat red meat... how could I say no? ) They wouldn't let us make a reservation, but let us put our names on the list over the phone. Service is leisurely. The wait is long because they're not going to rush you out the door when you've finished eating, even if there are people waiting for your table. Once I was there on a slow night and they didn't mind opening another bottle of wine for us after we had finished our meal.

As for the wine, I'm sure they would be happy to bring you an ice bucket if you ask. They're not the most attentive servers, but they're accommodating.

cowdery wrote:Like JeffB, I have eaten at Tango Sur many times because I live nearby. I never have been disappointed. I've also never eaten there when they are super busy because I won't wait anyplace for very long, there are plenty of other places to eat around there. I've always found the steak to be tender and tasty. If I would criticize anything, I might say it's overseasoned, but I accept that's their style.

Heading there tonight - they won't have a problem if I bring a bottle of bourbon, will they? My wife never thinks its appropriate, and frankly, I'd rather be drinking bourbon than wine with my steak.

Thought you'd be the appropriate guy to ask

Thanks in advance...

p.s.- if anyone has thoughts in general on bringing spirts to a BYO, please let me know. I have brought along bourbon to places like Leo's and Thai BYO's - just not sure if there is an attitude against it at the nicer BYO's.

Sorry I didn't check the board earlier, but of course I endorse your decision. I find myself drinking bourbon with meals more often. For me, the key is to dilute it down to about the same alcohol level and flavor intensity as wine. I call it "brown zinfandel." Why? The ever-popular white zinfandel is zinfandel but it isn't white, my brown zinfandel is brown but it isn't zinfandel. Seems fair.

Anyway, just tonight I took some Very Old Barton BIB, poured about three ounces into a 12 ounce glass and filled the rest with cool water. Perfect!

I mentioned this in another thread too. "Brown zinfandel" is good with any grilled meats and anything spicy. It actually tastes a little like unsweetened ice tea.

Next time I think I'll add a twist of lemon.

This is not really new. People have long drunk "whiskey and water," sometimes even as diluted as I'm talking about.

I know this will seem like blasphemy to some people, but don't knock it if you haven't tried it.

I was at Tango Sur with AB last friday. He didn't end up bringing bourbon...wonder why, chickened out? .

Anyway, the wait was rediculous, but we got a group of Empanadas and the tableside mixed grill. The chimichurri sauce is fabulous and frankly irrespective of the quality of the meat, you could pour this on some fresh roadkill and the quality would improve.

Empanadas were some of the best I have had in awhile save for Maxwell St and various cuban establishments.

That being said, the grill: the sweetbreads were generous and tasty. They were clearly not young thymus glands mind you, but pretty tasty. The beef short ribs and the flank steak were well seasoned and marinated. While a cut like a short rib is always better after a braise, I was pretty happy. The chorizo was less than spicy and nothing to write home about. The blood sausage was texturally really runny and very bland.

I had a good time. On the other hand waiting and eating in that environment feels like a drive through Lincoln park on a busy afternoon. Too much bustle and jostle and bump and run.