Was brought here by a friend as they knew I was a foodie and wanted to show me their favorite tapas…read morespot Downtown in the Fashion Distric for an early birthday celebration. Cute building with lovely patio seating: from the trailing hanging pothos plants, Spanish tiles, to relaxing latin-house music the vibes were welcoming. I'm not much of a drinker though, when asked if I wanted to make my pina colada a "float" I thought incorrectly about ice cream. It was graciously explained that you take an additional shot of rum and float it on top of the drink or mix in to make it extra boozy. The pina colada is top notch they hollow out a real pineapple to make the drink and it's the size of your face! The watermelon cocktail was delicious and there is also a mezcal option. Tasted like if a watermelon aqua Fresca was combined with a margarita, there is a hint of salt that brings out the fruit sweetness. We special ordered a bunch of different proteins and vegetables at half portions to make a feast: Aguachile- Light refreshing starter, kanpachi perfectly marinated and great for the summer heat. Crispy potato- Phenomenally done fingerling potatoes. Whipped beans- Carnitas on top made this dish. Fried chicken tacos- Found the chicken slightly on the dry side, if there was a creamy/thicker sauce would be even better... nothing wrong with flavor, good mild heat. I did enjoy the fresh shredded cabbage and carrots, reminded me of bahn mi. Empanadas- Loved the acidity of the sauce that cut through the fattiness of the ground meat. Light shell. Crispy Squash flower- Delicate crunch, like an angelic version of a jalapeno popper. Lamb chops- Definition of "treat-yourself" luxurious meat lollipops. Celery salad- Simple dish but the lemon flavor and tartness really helped break up the richness of other dishes. Churros- Light crunch and small, petite dessert. The thin caramel sauce is addicting. Fine dining, for those special occasions or if you just want to splurge for a morale boost highly recommend this restaurant. Valet parking or park across the street or around the corner in a lot for $5-10.

We've probably been to Dama two dozen times. It's one of our regular spots and we love it…read more First of all the service is always great. The staff are lovely humans who really seem to care about their customers. We have some faves on the menu. The bean dip is fabulous and I'm addicted to the baby gem salad. They have recently amped up the filling in the delicious crispy squash blossoms and I love the acidity and heat. The fish is also a hit in my books. One dish that doesn't work for me is the lamb chops, which is a shame since it's my favorite protein. I've ordered them multiple times with clear instructions on temperature and have found them overcooked and tough. The beef tostada was just ok. Whilst I loved the pickled veg on the side, the beef was underseasoned. It wasn't bad - just not up to the standard of other dishes. The vibe in the place is welcoming and the restaurant is nicely appointed. We will continue to be regulars and it's really worth trying if you haven't been yet.

The food was delicious. Drinks and arepas were good. Jose was great! Great service and atmosphere.read more

This place has been on my hit list for a while, and it did not disappoint. I will return to this…read moreplace. We got the 2 lunch special plates: Chicken, Chicarron, and the loaded Yucca fries. WOW. The fries alone could have been lunch. The yucca was perfectly fried, and they did not skimp on the toppings. WORTH every penny and calorie. The Chicarron was perfectly crispy-fied. Plantano was perfect. Pickled onions were beautifully tart. This could have fed 2 people. Parking. Street and paid lots. The lot next to the Quarter KBbq place is a great deal ($5 all day before 3pm) We came for lunch, and happened upon a World Cup match. Seating is comprised of solid wooden tables and high backed benches;I felt like I was in church as everyone sat facing the same direction, all eyes up on the screen. LOCALS- PRO-TIP. Make A Day Of It. Go to a Kspa in the morning, come here for lunch/ happy hour.

Lovely spot to take over the old Jane's Beach…read more The tuna tostada and the corn were my personal favorites. We truly loved all the food, my one comment is the pupusa was a little too oily from the cheese, but that just me. Didn't stop me from enjoying all the food. I HIGHLY recommend a date night here. 5/5

Came here for a friend's birthday dinner and it was mediocre. Most of the staff were friendly…read more(host, bartender, our server) but one in particular (she may have been a manager or supervisor) left us feeling put off by her comment as soon as we were seated. She told us there was a fee for outside food (my friend got baked goods as part of her gift) and my friend let her know we weren't going to eat any of it there and then it was fine. This restaurant doesn't allow for any modifications which is clearly stated on their menu but to not allow choosing how the steak is cooked is crazy. They said they couldn't do well done? Like what? This is a standard practice to ask how one wants their steak. It wasn't even that great! I ended up just eating tostones and those were great and large but overall, not worth it! Plenty of better options!

My family and I decided to stop by Encanto Restaurant while in the area. We took a rideshare there…read more The restaurant is nice. It's has a large bar area with natural light that comes in through the windows. They also have a lot of seating. When we walked in we were greeted right away by the host. He asked if we had reservations. We replied with a no. He took a few minutes and the said that he could seat us. He took us to a booth in the corner and then told us that our waiter would be taking care of us soon. He asked us if we wanted anything to drink. We told him water and he brought us some water fairly quickly. Then another person showed up and he told us that they would take care of us the rest of the evening. Our waiter was very friendly and did an excellent job all evening. After looking at the menu we decided what we wanted. We started with the guacamole chips and salsa. The chips were okay. They were lightly seasoned with salt. The guacamole was fresh and the salsas were tasty. I preferred the green salsa as the red salsa was spicier. For my main meal I ordered the Quesadilla filled with skirt steak, pico, avocado, salsa, and crema. The quesadilla was delicious. I've never had a quesadilla like this. It was rolled up and looked like an egg roll. The steak was very tasty with a lot of flavor and the other ingredients were fresh. It was so good. For my side I ordered the rice and beans. The beans were good and had flavor. The rice was perfectly cooked. Combined the rice and beans had flavor and were very filling. Overall Encanto was a very nice restaurant. The bar area is large, the seating was comfortable, the service was very good and the food was delicious.

Came here on a Saturday night, and it wasn't too busy. We did have a reservation, but there were…read moreabout five or so tables open at any given time. Got the guava margarita with Mezcal , which was pretty good! Definite recommend. But then got the Branzino, $48 with nothing with it so $7 for rice & it was a miss. How do you serve fish with no sides? Especially if I'm paying $48. Service was good for our waiter, but the people bringing out the food were a bit rushed - especially on dessert. He literally just put the plate down, poured the sauce and then left in the span of two seconds. Vibe was good if you're coming for an intimate but quiet place -- however considering the price we wouldn't come back. My husband did say the steak fajitas were pretty good but expensive for the price . The quality was good, but the flavor wasn't amazing. Desserts (flan, chocolate cake) were pretty good.

Food is so really tasty, the portions were enormous and the service is outstanding. The ambiance is…read moreno frills. Straight forward and to the point... excellent quality food. We went with the cheese bread and the mixed plate. You could have fed 4 grown men. This is where you appreciate true to ethnicity food. No messing...no pretending and no nonsense. I don't think I could have bought the ingredients, seasoned and cooked this for any less than what we paid. The table next to us ordered the fried fish...as full as I was...I wanted to taste that fish. La Finda Antioquena, thank you for a great experience. We will recommend this place and WE WILL DEFINITELY COME BACK. I would give it 10 stars if I could.

To begin the service is horrible. Nobody I mean we had two different people come up to our table…read moreand neither of them greeted us. The woman (Sandra) who came up to our table was to ask us to move to a smaller table. Mind you we sat there so we could watch the World Cup game as we waited and ate. She was so rude about it!!! Then the waiter to finally came to take our order was also rude. Didn't greet us, they lack manners. I liked one of the empanadas but they have a different name, other than that their food was bland tasteless. I came here with a Colombian friend who wanted to try Colombian food in LA she liked her plate but it was the most simple thing you could order, steak rice and beans. Would never go back here ever... oh also the place was filthy they should keep their tables and floors clean come on.

Nice first visit for me and an old friend of mine Sheri. Sheri is a meat and potatoes, kind of gal…read moreand so this place fit the bill. We both had the ribeye steak, Sheri had to Costillo and I had the Gaucho. We both loved our steak as they were both tender and flavorful. For the Gaucho, I really enjoyed the Anaheim pepper and other accoutrements and we'll get this the next time as well. The meal includes two sides. We both had mashed potatoes and I had a salad and she had asparagus. We had a server in training who was very attentive as well as the supervising server. We sat in the patio, which was nice. There was plenty of room very nice ambience. Relatively easy street parking. It was a nice visit for both of us. We will be back for sure.

LALAs had us fooled at first bite and the service quickly followed…read more.. The very first thing our server asked wasn't what we wanted to drink or if we'd ever been there before--it was, "Are you guys here to watch the game?" We immediately told him, "No, we're here for the food." Looking back, that should've been the first warning sign. They brought out fresh bread with chimichurri, and honestly, it was delicious. It got us excited because we thought- maybe this place really did deserve the hype. That excitement lasted about five minutes. We asked our server what everyone comes here for, and without hesitation he said the skirt steak. Since we wanted to try their specialty- meats, we ordered the Plato Mixto, one of their premium platters. It came with skirt steak, New York steak, Argentine "Italian" sausage, half a chicken, and sweetbreads. It's already one of the most expensive items on the menu, yet they still upcharge an extra $4 per side, if you want one of the "premium" sides. At that price, you'd expect everything to be included and quality to be exceptional. For the sides, we chose the grilled veggies, which the server said included eggplant, zucchini, tomato, onions, mushrooms - basic veggie mix and LALAs Potatoes, described as "Mashed Potatoes & Carrots." We figured that meant mashed potatoes served with carrots, or maybe mashed potatoes with pieces of carrot mixed in. Instead, it was one orange puree--mashed potatoes blended together with carrots. No flavor. If that's what you're serving, just describe it that way. The menu there was very misleading. Then came the sweetbreads. We had to ask our server twice what they actually were because he couldn't explain it clearly. Eventually he described them as "lymph nodes." Whether that's technically accurate or not, that's probably not what anyone expects to hear after taking a bite. Then we actually started eating. The Argentine sausage had a strange, almost spoiled flavor. When we mentioned it, instead of acknowledging our concern, our server doubled down and told us it was supposed to taste "rancid." I've eaten authentic Argentine food before. This wasn't it. It tasted like bad meat. The steaks were no better. We ordered medium rare, but the skirt steak was practically purple raw in the middle. Beyond that, both steaks were unbelievably tough. Every bite was a workout. For a restaurant that's supposed to specialize in grilled meats, that's inexcusable. Very low quality red meat. The chicken didn't save the meal either. I've had incredible pollo a la brasa and grilled chicken from plenty of places. This wasn't even close. It was bland, dry, and completely forgettable. When our server came back and asked how everything was, we were honest. We told him we really weren't enjoying the food. Instead of apologizing, offering another option, or trying to make things right, he doubled down again. "That's my favorite thing on the menu." Okay...and? Then he told us to squeeze a bunch of lemon over everything and brought us what felt like half a bottle of Tabasco. Think about that for a second. If the solution to your signature meats is to drown them in lemon and hot sauce just to make them edible, that's not a customer problem--that's a kitchen problem. By that point, it all clicked. The first thing he cared about was whether we were there to watch the game. We told him we came for the food, but the entire experience felt like the food was an afterthought. The service wasn't interested in listening to our concerns, only defending them. This place may be great if you're looking for drinks, sports on TV, and somewhere to hang out. But if you're coming because you've heard this is the place for authentic Argentine meats, prepare to be disappointed. The meats were tough. The sausage tasted off. The menu descriptions were misleading. The service felt more like a used car salesman trying to convince us our experience was wrong than someone who genuinely cared whether we enjoyed our meal. I don't write reviews to tear places down. I write them to help other people spend their money wisely. In this case...save yours. There's far better places to try authentic Argentine cuisine, this is not it, would not return.