Clara Restaurante — Restaurant in Mariscal Sucre

Foodies travel for food. We sought this one out in Quito based on rather critique reports. BUT IT FAILS TO IMPRESS:::: THE FOOD IS AVERAGE, SOME ARE IN FACT DISMAL.

*The major faux pas is the over-saucing, a couple of foods DROWNED IN SAUCE THAT ARE NOT NEEDED. Some sauces a plainly horrid 👎👎👎👎.

The menu is short, usually a good sign of cook/chef mastery. REPUTEDLY, portions are large and everything is shareable.

There’s also a decent cocktails menu and wine list. They are reasonably priced.

🤩 Laminado Jipijapa::: outstanding albacore crude served with outstanding green sauce that compliments the raw tuna slices.

😑 Bone Marrow and Beef Tartar::: an otherwise ver lovely dish.

The tartar is truly exquisite👏👏👏, very distinctive from the usual French Tartar.

BUT THAT DIPPING REDUCTION SAUCE on the marrow plate IS HORRID👎👎👎👎. It tastes like some artificial beef extracted seasoning.

This means the wine reduction is OVER REDUCED leaving a concentrated mixture of salty bitter sweet thick liquid.

🫤 Tomato and Pork Ears::: PROUDLY INTRODUCED AS THEIR SIGNATURE, but the crispy souse/slice ears are MISERABLY SALTY👎👎👎.

Despite the lovely Árbol Tómate Sauce CANNOT RESCUE THE SALTINESS.

And the regular tomato garnish is TOO COLD. Tomatoes MUST NEVER be stored in a fridge.

🫤 Pork Chop::: flavorful meat BUT QUITE FATTY.

Then again, there’s the UNNECESSARY SAUCE THAT IS OILY.

• It’s a drowning pig!!!

Served with Cow Foot Stew that is UNDER SEASONED AND LACKS THE FLAVOR OF BEEF.

• We have tasted better Caldo de Pata, a traditional Ecuatoriano Almuerzo item, in many a Comida Típica*

🫤🫤🫤 Ribeye :::: their priciest in the menu. It’s a very good steak prepared mid-rare.

THEN AGAIN, IT IS DROWNED IN A SAUCE that effectively kills the flavor of the meat.

A precious steak, especially grilled to perfection at mid-rare MUST NEVER EVER BE SWIMMING IN SAUCE.

• If a sauce, a special creation for the steak, would be needed, THEN a tablespoon or a simple drizzle would be sufficient *

SERVICE IS OUTSTANDING. The waiters are knowledgeable of the menu and can make recommendations.

The place itself has a great ambiance. It is however concealed from street view, the entrance is marked by the sign...

If you’re in Quito and can do only one thing, make sure that one thing is dining at Clara.

In my humble opinion, South America is currently experiencing a renaissance in fine dining, with some of the most talented, creative, and innovative chefs and restaurants emerging across the continent.

While Lima, Buenos Aires, and Bogotá often steal the spotlight, Quito is poised to make its mark. There are exceptional people here who will undoubtedly put Ecuador on the map as one of the top dining destinations.

Clara offers elevated dining without any of the stuffy pretentiousness often associated with such establishments. Everyone I interacted with was humble, hardworking, and clearly passionate about what they do.

I can’t imagine giving this restaurant anything less than five stars. The food, service, and ambiance were all exceptional.

To my surprise, for a restaurant of this caliber, I was offered the option to dine à la carte. The only tragedy of my visit was dining alone, which prevented me from sampling more of the menu.

I ordered four courses, all of which I thoroughly enjoyed, but the standout for me was the Laminado Jipijapa. It was an explosion of flavors, with smoked albacore, a Manabí peanut "leche de tigre," and avocado coming together perfectly to hit all the right notes.

Highly...

Listed as one of the best restaurants in Quito this is place is like a hidden gem when it comes to locating it physically. Iykyk. We had some really incredible food but unfortunately I couldn’t take any pics. Amongst all the deliciousness there was something unique which surprised me the most was the dish - ala parilla de lechuga 🥬 con maní 🥜 (grilled lettuce with peanuts) . Now that’s something I didn’t expected. Usually when lechuga (lettuce) comes in contact with heat it gets wilted but in this recipe it stays crisp. We paired all the food with some wine, beer and something new that I tried was Negroni Clara cocktail. If you are in Quito this place is a perfect to unwind after the day and get some...