Meat & Potatoes Santiago

Dinner @ El Novillero, Santiago, Chile -- The well-lit and warming entrance pulls you from the dark Central District streets.

You descend into the restaurant amid a glow of wine bottles and chalkboard menus.

The smell of freshly grilled meat hits your nose - beef, chicken, pork - the taste of backyard cooking without BBQ sauce.

Immediately the world is calm and a good meal awaits.

I order Pisco Sour for an aperitif. It's strong and does something to the palette. Smacks you awake from siesta. Next, I order a bottle of Chilean wine - Santa Digna, Cabernet Sauvignon, 2009 a Fair Trade product approved by the IMO.

The waiter, a quiet man who smells like cooking wine, smiles in approval at the choice.

For a starter I order salami. It arrives on a wood plate, toothpicked and served with toasted baguette.

Pour some olive oil and balsamic.

The TV screams GOAL!!!!!!!!!!!!! as an obscure game of football entertains the nearly empty restaurant.

I dig in. The salami is mild, not spicy rather an earthy aftertaste - an autumn forest bed where a pig was cured.  After a few bites, I ponder why I'm almost alone in this establishment.

I've joined only a few other diners this evening, which would usually be a bad thing but it's early and my siesta at 3 p.m. left me hungry by 6. Also, the few around me look like silent partners, patrons of the finest quality, hurried yet invested men, well-dressed talking rapido over plates licked clean and empty glasses of wine.

I continue to combine the fatty slices of salami with toasted baguette and dip into the olive oil/balsamic mixture. Perfecto. Sip the vino.

The main dish arrives: Entrecote - T-Bone steak and mashed potatoes. No garnish. Just a plate with a cooked piece of meat. Medium. Mashed potatoes trailing behind on a second plate - no pretension necessary. Meat and Potatoes.

I thank my waiter and smile like a kid on Easter-candy crack and dig in.

Smokey. Tender. Big. Not Texas BIG.  Who needs a John Candy heart attack?

There's nothing here you don't need and more or less - comfort food perfecto for a lonesome traveler.

The Cabernet Sauvignon watches me finish the T-Bone. I drink like Hemingway before a bullfight.

I feel transported to a childhood home. A blue-collar vibe fills the cave at Novillero. Maybe it's the wine or the waiters who maticulously set tables around me anticipating the evening rush?

No worries. This is a good place to eat.

-aclintonb

Dinner @ El Novillero (1155 Moneda Street) no website.  Easily found from Hotel Plaza San Francisco.  Ask the staff - they recommended the excellent T-Bone!

Check out fotos on PicPlz they're really good.