Barista Gastrobar🇻🇪 — Restaurant in Setúbal

Not sure why this place has such high reviews - I think it should be more in the realm of 4.2 or 3.8 ish. To be fair, I can be somewhat picky when it comes to food. Ordered pancakes, the classic burger (not pictured) and the assado negro. In order from worst to best: The “classic” burger was… strange. The menu did state that it was a mixed meat burger, but it came off as more of a poor meat substitute burger. The buns were dry and flavorless, as most portuguese bread is. The burger was proportioned oddly, and there was not enough burger patty in relation to bread. There was also too much sauce, and there was no neat way to eat the burger. It just didn’t taste very good, and I would have preferred a burger king whopper. 3/10, especially considering it was 10ish euros.

The assado negro was seasoned relatively well. I only took a bite or two because it wasn’t my order, but it was very, VERY VERY dry. 7/10 seasoning, 2/10 for texture. I had thought that it would be a slow-cooked pork affair, but it seems like they boiled the meat in the sauce and served it to us.

The pancakes were the best part of the meal. I got the milk caramel fondue with no bananas, as one of us was allergic. There were a lot of strawberries, whipped cream, and caramel. Nothing to complain about! But nothing to call home about either. 8/10

I was going to give the place 3 stars, but the food took an hour to come out, so I had to dock a star. What’s incredible is that the pancakes, arguably the fastest item to complete, took an hour and 15 minutes to arrive.

Overall, a decent restaurant? I’m being overly harsh because I don’t think it deserves a 4.9…. I hope the other food is better. The staff was friendly, and the location is...

Beautiful presentation but underwhelming culinary experience…especially considering the steep prices.

We chose this spot because we love Venezuelan food, and the reviews were generally glowing. Unfortunately, we left the meal feeling unsatisfied.

Let’s start with the positives: the passion fruit drink was delightful, the yucca chips were fresh and crispy, and the carne asada was very good (according to my mother). Everything looked delicious, and the presentation was good, but not everything tasted how it looked.

The vegetarian entrees were incredibly underwhelming. The sautéed vegetables were flavorless and were largely composed of rubbery mushrooms. My sister and I ended up removing about half of the ingredients for each of our vegetarian dishes (veggie tacos and veggie plantains). The guacamole was warm and flavorless. My sister requested the veggie tacos without sour cream and her request was not accepted, for an unknown reason.

It’s possible that this restaurant meets expectations when it comes to meat entrees, but doesn’t put the same care and attention into vegetarian dishes. That was our...

Delicious South American food, made by folks from South America who know what they’re doing. Absolutely love this place! They have lots of vegetarian options. The arepas are wonderfully crispy on the outside and the filling is flavorful. The cachapas (“corn pancakes”) are the ultimate comfort food, and loaded with different elements inside. The patacones (green plantains) are generously topped and I liked the little bit of heat from the peppers. The empanaditas are a nice size to share as a starter.

My wife had the ceviche and she was impressed with the different seafood elements (shrimp, white fish, and I think cuttlefish) as well as the other components to offset the acidity and provide texture (sweet potato, corn, and small chips).

It’s an unpretentious place but the presentations are beautiful. The owners and the waiter we had were very friendly too. So many things to try too, both food and drinks, but it’s a place that doesn’t suffer at all from having a wide set of options. Seriously, I just wish I had this place back at home, it’s fantastic and highly recommended if...