El Gaucho Inca Steakhouse - Seafood - Pasta — Restaurant in Fort Myers

Craving some ceviche, we decided to try El Gaucho Inca in Fort Myers. Upon entering it seemed authentic enough with the flags of Peru and Argentina in the entrance. The restaurant is aesthetically pleasing with decorations form those countries adorning the walls. The menu was large and had several authentic sounding items. The prices, however, were high. For example, the octopus appetizer was $40 ($65 with lobster) and their Tomahawk steak was as high as $119. Yes, you read that right. We decided to try the octopus. (for that price it must be amazing). It was good, cooked perfectly and seasoned well. $40 worth? Maybe. However, the ceviche that we originally came for was a big disappointment. To the best of my knowledge and memory, authentic Peruvian tiger milk ceviche does NOT contain mayonnaise, but theirs did. It was served with fried calamari which would have been ok but it was cold by the time we got it. The “traditional Peruvian” ceviche was also disappointing with a very limited amount of seafood in a mostly bland and flavorless liquid adorned by a mountain of Peruvian corn, both soft and crunchy. Although the shrimp and pieces of calamari were identifiable, we were never able to determine what the flavorless chunks of "mystery" fish were. We had a youngster with us who opted for the spaguetti (yes, that is how they spelled it on the menu). The sauce was bland and the meatballs seem to be the kind you buy from a grocery store freezer. Horrible. There was no grated cheese to be found anywhere. (Well, to be fair, I guess you shouldn’t be ordering pasta in a Peruvian restaurant in the first place, or they should not be offering it to be more precise). On the positive side, the Picanha (Top Sirloin Corner) was very good and the portion was appropriate, and somewhat more reasonably priced at $30 for 14 oz. It was prepared as requested and we were satisfied with the steak. In fact it would have been the highlight of the dinner except the sweet plantains that were served with it were burned and inedible. The service was…bizarre, with one person receiving their meal and the rest waiting for 10-15 minutes to be served the same dish. Not sure why they would do that, but it created an awkward situation at the table since in our family we normally do not eat until everyone is served. The last disappointment was their adding a tip to the check. Personally I detest this practice. Having owned a restaurant in the past, I know that wait staff rely on tips for their income so even when the service is not up to my standards (as in this case) I will always give them the benefit of the doubt and tip substantially more then the 18% they choose to add to the check, HOWEVER, if they are so presumptions as to tell me how much I MUST tip, the so be it, and that is all they will get from me. In summation, I would suggest that if you do try El Gaucho Inca, expect to spend a lot of money, stay clear of everything but the steaks and don’t expect too much staff attention. If you go with that understanding, then the only disappointment you may experience will be in your...

WORST SERVICE EVER!!! Story Time: So myself and 7 of my close friends decided to try this restaurant for my birthday. My friend attempted to call days prior to set a reservation, the host informed her we didn't need one. We arrived, we're sat in about 10 minutes, fine. Once we sat down, it took probably 15-20 minutes for anyone to come take our drink orders. Water didn't arrive until after another 10 minutes rolled around. After 30 minutes, the entire table still hadn't received their drinks! My boss literally had to walk over to the bar to get our last 2 wines! Now, 2 waitresses come to take our dinner orders, we even skipped appetizers and ordered out 2nd round of drinks at the same time to make things move more smoothly. About an hour rolls by, they are bringing out plates one at a time. As time passes, myself and one of my other friends realize they are no longer bringing out plates, and WE NEVER GOT OUR FOOD! To make this story even better, the waitress NEVER came back to the table, so no refills, but wait there's more! In the mean time the kitchen had closed, and when she finally finally return to our table, literally told my friend and I that we just couldn't order anything else , and pretty much on a forced liquid diet because the kitchen had closed. 10 minutes later they came back and said they can make my dinner, but not my friends. By this time, everyone else had finished eating, I told them I didn't want the meal, and wasn't going to pay for it. At this time I'm 🤬 so I walk outside. They placed a Togo box with "my food" in it (I say this because the order wasn't even correct), and said it was of no charge. After another 30 minutes go past, they finally bring us our bill, which was not split despite clarifying this from the beginning. Then another 20 minutes or so go by, and we finally receive the split tabs. They had the AUDACITY to still make my friend and I, who never received our dinner, pay for our drinks (4 drinks in total) despite the ridiculously horrible service, and of course gratuity was already added. From the couple of folks who did receive their food, said it was good, just hope you actually get yours if you...

First off, we had a group of 17 this evening celebrating my birthday. The service struggled all evening. It took nearly 15 mins for a waitress to take the drink order and that was confusing as two waitresses worked opposed and they didn't seem to communicate. For example, when members of the party ordered "sweet tea" they were brought "green tea". I received my alcoholic beverage however the person next to me, who ordered Sangria, didn't receive her drink until right before our food was served even after several requests. Secondly, several of us placed orders for appetizers and main course at the same time. Well, we waited & waited & waited for appetizers which seemed to take forever. When the food begin to be served ....it was our main course!!! When we inquired about our appetizers the waitresses stated, "..no one ordered any." Really??? There was 6 appetizers ordered at my end of the table alone. Obviously, we told the waitress to forget it as our main course dinner was now on the table. Thirdly, the group was very patient, and we waited for simple items such as utensils, soy sauce, black beans, etc. Honestly, I was very disappointed with how unorganized and the manner which we were served. We had to ask repeatedly for items, items never arrived, and we had to get the waitresses attention. Additionally, when we were almost finished with our meal.....the waitresses wanted to begin clearing the table. We weren't finished!! I was asked twice..."can I remove your plate?" My boyfriend was still enjoying his salad and dinner together, the waitress actually touch the salad bowl stating, "I'll remove this". The manner in which she grabbed the bowl, her thumb was on the inside of the bowl......now, who is going to finish their food after someone sticks their finger in it!!!! Overall, it was a disappointing evening especially when the table was paying well over $800. Service was a challenge!! Due to the service, returning will be challenging for all of us! SO BEWARE!! One more notable mistake.... my margarita was served in an old fashion glass!!!...