Anytime my mother comes to visit she wants to go somewhere new and trendy so I took her to El Matador, along with my sister and my father on Saturday night.

El Matador did not disappoint. Everything was amazing. We are country people who know a lot about what to do with unusual cuts of meat, so we were very impressed with the beef shin. The mixed platter for two, along with plenty of sides, fed all four of us handsomely. The broad beans and the patatas bravas were especially good. I would also recommend the flan and the churros for dessert. Our waiters were knowledgeable and charming.

El Matador was also good value for money. Our meal and drinks for four cost around $200.

Myself and two friends dined here last night. The place was packed when I arrived just before 7pm. As you can’t book tables, we did have an hour wait before we were seated (I was told it would be 45 mins to an hour when I arrived).
As we had a bit of a wait we checked to see if we could sit anywhere and have drinks/nibbles to while the time away, and yes we were told we could go down the back near the bar. However, the bar area was packed, with some hardy souls sitting outside in the courtyard. We stood for approximately 20 mins before some stools were freed up. However, the service at the bar was poor, with no recognition from the bar staff until another 20 mins had passed (my cocktail was delicious though). No-one offered to take our order for tapas while we waited. We finally got our table and ordered quickly, as we were hungry by this point. We had the Fugazza first up, which was delicious and eaten quickly! We then ordered the steak plate, along with 3 tapas as sides – patatas bravas, grilled mushrooms, and the beetroot. Everything was delicious. Three girls ate all the steak that was put in front of us!
Two of us then had the pancakes for dessert, which were smaller than anticipated but a good size for us – having just eaten all that steak… The ice-cream was a nice accompaniment.
The wait staff were attentive once we had sat at our table, and one waiter in particular was happy and friendly.
I will be back, but will arrive a little earlier next time.

I actually really enjoyed this experience. The staff was great. The atmosphere was great. The food was average. Loved the beef but the chicken and Lamb were tough. Had the best dessert ever with the caramel filled pancakes. Yum. So a lot of good a bit of bad.

We visited El Matador for the first time on 20/04/13. We will return. 8pm Saturday night and the place was packed. A civilised drink at the well stocked bar, good service and great filling food. Reasonably priced. Not cheap. But great fresh tasty quality. Thoroughly recommend this venue. Retro feel-almost like you were a back street tapas bar in Sth American. hard to believe only opened this year. We will return.

Very yummy pancakes with fruit and dulche de leche!

Both of our meals were nicely presented. I liked my hot chocolate as well.

The decor was pretty neat, would recommend and go back there myself

Dined here twice this week. Had tapas for dinner and thought the food was great and the service excellent, very helpful staff. As it was a lovely evening in Wellington sat in the outside area, although the decor isn’t pretty it, it proved an excellent talking point. Went back for Saturday lunch, once again chose to sit outside and it was very sheltered and warm. This time had main courses, once again tasty dishes and service was again perfect, both the young lady and the gentleman very friendly. Would definitely return again.

After two previous and unhappy attempts at eating here (firstly when we had a booking during Wellington on a Plate, and arrived to find the cafe closed, secondly when we phoned and were told that they didn’t take bookings then arrived to be told that they were “fully booked”), we did persevere – and are glad we did. This time we arrived as the doors opened at 9am for breakfast. Our waitress was especially friendly and helpful, the coffee good (they use Havana beans), food nice, prices okay, and the overall experience relaxing.

Went there one night with my husband mainly because of the reputation.
We were sitting outside, my husband had a really nice view of the rubbish bins … ! The steak was great but nothing amazing. And asking you credit card to open a table is weird. Arrived early, didn’t have my credit card so couldn’t get a glass of wine while waiting for my husband. Really inappropriate.
Disappointing experience.

Went here last night to use the entertainment voucher and also because my partner could not resist a place that boasted a “mixed meat platter for two”. We were certainly not disappointed – the tapas plates were fantastic (my favourite was the chipotle octopus dish!) and the meat platter was excellent. Really good value and the chef clearly knows a thing or two about meat. Everything was cooked to perfection and tasted delicious! We will definitely be back.

Really enjoyable lunch meal – friendly staff.
The tapas was served nice and promptly and the mains came after we’d had a good chance to chat and digest and not too quickly. The charcoal taste of the chorizo and beef was superb. While they preferred to serve the beef rare they were happy to cook it a bit more for one of the party who’s pregnant.
Will definitely come back here.

Wow this experience was horrible and the reason I visited was because of the reputation that proceeded Ernesto – a joint I frequented as often as my wallet would allow.

Firstly, we were greeted by a very rude waitress, even trying to get her attention while she was punching numbers into the till seemed a mission. That was OK, they were pretty busy and had a group of 20 or so down the back.

When it came to ordering, most of the table ordered the Eggs Benedict, a favourite amongst my family. I ordered the vege breakfast with a side of smoked salmon (wanting a slightly bigger meal). The waitress who took our order was quite hostile, there may have been a language barrier or something of the like, but we seemed to be causing her great inconvenience by our menu inquiries, she made us feel very uncomfortable. My family ordered some coffees, I ordered an OJ.

My mothers flat white was appalling – terrible art on top, no care taken, it was a cappuccino, not a flat white and I’m afraid the coffee, when I tasted it, was over roasted/burnt/carbony… And I don’t think this was all the baristas fault, I’ve never actually had a good Havana coffee.

Our meals took some time to arrive, this was OK though, we’re reasonable folk and appreciated that they were busy and happily accepted the apologies from the wait staff when they did arrive, however, our meals were very disappointing.

Of all the 4 Benedict’s that were consumed, the eggs on all were over cooked, hard inside. My additional side of salmon, of which I paid $6 for, was a slither no bigger than my thumb and my sister, who had ordered the Benedict, didn’t get the smoked salmon, but was instead salmon gravlax, which frankly has no place on an eggs benedict plate IMO. When my sister asked the waitress about the salmon, she was greeted, not with an apology rather an excuse as to how they’d run out. This may seem trivial, but my sister went here because ofMore the benedict.

$135 for 5 people – fairly reasonable price I thought, but not when the food and service were so bad. I wouldn’t say I wouldn’t ever go back, bad experiences happen sure, but it’s all about the recovery, which other than a gradual apology, lacked somewhat.

Excited for a new restaurant on the scene, we went to El Matador for Saturday brunch. Seated quickly and the sweet waitress gave us menus.. but that’s the best I can say about it. Around 20 minutes after ordering the eggs benedict with salmon I was told the salmon was all out and they could offer bacon instead (the morcilla and ham options were also out). I asked to change to the pancakes with dulce de leche and after around 30 mins it was brought out. The pancakes were tough and stodgy, the bacon way way overcooked that it was hard to chew and, unbelievably, it came with a side of hollandaise on the side! My partner also asked for no black pudding and of course black pudding was on the plate. Asked for a pot of tea and when asked for an extra cup to share it, it came filled with boiling water. Food and service both average, such a shame as with the beautiful interior it could be great! We won’t be back.

Stopped by for quick tapas the other day and I had wonderful time at this restaurant.

Very friendly good service and very unique menu. Their Argentinian tapas menu are excellent-especially grilled provolone!

I’d love to go back for proper dinner sometime.

Tapas were delicious, and meat platter was enormous!

Meat was extremely tender and while it was seasoned very well; though due to the large portion size, it did get a bit bland after a few bites. (I think our order was missing chimichurri?)

We were looking forward more Argentinean music to match the setting, rather than a top-40 play-list, and it was a bit of a cringe having to Anglicize the Spanish on the menu so the kiwi wait staff could understand

But these are minor points for what I hope will be a great additional to the Wellington restaurant scene!

would love for them to offer choripan!!

Parilla meat platter was amazing.

Defs worth your 45bucks for two people!
The chicken, oh the chicken was so tender and the lamb was pretty amazing, melt in your mouth kinda amazing.

They kinda need to work on the steak pieces but other than that, it was pretty good.

Came here when it first opened as I love parrilla.

Ordered some delicious items of the menu (both tapas and mains). Must admit the serving sizes were way to small for the price we paid. (it was a couple of mouthfuls) – unsure whethere the serving sizes have changed or not.

Must say its not the same as the parrilla that you get in south america, but close to it.

you can easily spend a lot of $$ without knowing..

I did feel that I was being pushed out the resturant after we had our mains….

Great evening here last night. Nice atmosphere, great staff. The smell of the Parilla (grill) is great, although being wood-fired you do end up smelling like you have been standing over the BBQ at the end of the night

We didn’t have a booking, but were told it would be about 45 minutes. Left our name, went for a drink , and 45 minutes later we actually had a table – great when what they tell you is actually correct.

Good wine list being an Argentinian place you have to go for the Malbec.

The Paridilla (meat platter) was pretty good. A mix of flank steak, beef short-rib, sweetbreads, Lamb, sausage, lamb, black pudding and chicken for 2 (with a very mild chimchurri). The meat could have done with some more seasoning/salt, and the chimcurri was not as flavoursome as some I have had. The main took quite a while to come out – almost an hour I think, but the atmosphere was so nice that this was fine.

We are carnivorous in the extreme, but could not finish it.

Nice tapas, grilled provolone, and some great broad beans with bacon and cream, and lovely grilled asparagus (something so simple can be great).

Overall a great night if you like meat (and who doesn’t?). Great wine and beer list, good menu, great atmosphere. Recommended.

I went there tonight with my partner and the service was fantastic the food was devine, left saying lets come back with some friends. I had the sirloin steak with a spinach salad and my partner had four different Tapas which were all great. Well recommend.

No No No on SO many levels they got it wrong !! Went there with husband for dinner and wont be returning. We ordered a large meat platter with two salads. Thinking that it would be slow cooked and falling off the bone was a mistake. In my opinion if something is slow cooked it is hard to get it wrong, however, WRONG it was!!. It was tough and so hard to chew. I was absolutely gobsmacked to see the chicken on the plate and thoroughly insulted that any cook, let alone a chef would actually “plate it up”. I wanted to say something but my husband said that we will just vote with our feet and not come back. The service was lacking in professionalism. Once we were seated and our order was taken we got no further attention….no one came back to our table within a few minutes of receiving our meals to ask how they were ?. When they finally came to clear plates I mentioned that the chicken…which was still sitting on the plate, was extremely dry…it was not only obviously visually massacred but surpassed the visual exponentially in dryness. He did not apologise nor comment and cleared our plates and left. 10 minutes later when he returned to clear the rest, he said absolutely nothing, just took what was left on the table and left. The cold air coming in every time the door opened was most unpleasant but understandable. The decor was interesting and amusing but a bit overly contrived to appear battered and beaten up. The food was expensive and I could not help wondering how many customers will walk and talk and never return. Now for the positive…the overhead lighting was amazing, I loved it, but you cant eat it.

I am rating El Matador 5 stars because the tapas were absolutely delicious! I am salivating just thinking about it. We ordered about 3 tapas per person but all shared, and there was plenty for everyone. They had run out of the leg of lamb and the single portion of lamb, but it didn’t matter as there was so many delicious things to choose from, and it is good to know they are getting their meat so fresh that they run out. Will be going back as much as possible!! Yum!

We went here last night, had to wait over an hour for a table but the wait staff could not be more helpful, cheerful and fun. They were approachable and kept us informed about the status of our table requirements. Our waiter was fantastic, very funny and good to have a laugh with. Pleased he enjoyed his job. Food was great, service fantastic and a bonus was I was given a cup of the caramel to take away with a promise of the recipe. It was great well worth it. Thanks for a great evening.

We liked this place – great atmosphere and interesting food. Went early on a Saturday (6pm) as we had a table of five and it’s always a bit tricky if you can’t book. Proved to be a good idea as it filled up fast.

We have just enjoyed a fantastic meal at el matador.the service was excellent,we were waited on immediately by a lovely waitress,our food arrived in a timely manner and was delicious.we took our Colombian exchange student there for his birthday and he was impressed with the food,the atmosphere and the service.el matador also went over and above to ensure that we had a great evening.i recommend the empanadas both vegetarian and meat and also the chimichurri.

We came here for the burger for Wellington on a Plate. Really enjoyed it, tasty, and decided to order more food, and enjoyed the wine we order. Lovely feel to the place, and it was full up. Thinking of going back.

I have just returned from a meal at El Matador and unfortunately was very disappointed. We arrived at 6pm and were shown to a table straight away and the waitress came over pretty quickly which was good. However whether she was new or just new to the technology being used for orders I don’t know but seemed to take a while to take the actual order, so much so that I joked with my friend whether we’d actually get what we ordered!
Our drinks and entrees came quickly and although the food wasn’t that great it was agreeable. The main was a different story; we waited nearly an hour and had to ask more than once if it was coming soon. Mine arrived and was not what I ordered so I went to check and the waitress had taken it down wrong. The chef did offer to change to what I’d asked for but after the already long wait I chose to stick with what I’d got. Unfortunately this was not to my taste, although my friend really enjoyed her dish. My friend then chose to order a desert and ordered churros and hot chocolate which she thought would come together but had to wait at least 20 minutes between the drink and the churros coming out. She did thoroughly enjoy it though when it finally did arrive – again after asking for it!
I had heard mixed reviews from this restaurant and was very much looking forward to trying it but unfortunately I do not think I will be returning and would probably not recommend it.
They also need to do something about that door…..

Great decor but unfortunately the service was lacking.

We arrived about 6pm on a Friday night to have a drink and tapas. We took a table in the window but when we told the waitress there was just two of us we were told quite abruptly that we couldn’t sit there, we asked to sit at another table across the room (which was set for two) and were told we couldn’t sit there either (in case a group of 4 came in and they needed to push the tables together). So were seated at a table in the draught of the door which was really cold. The door doesn’t shut properly so I had to keep getting up to shut it.

Had a nice glass of red and then went to order some empanadas but were told we couldn’t order them because they were reserved for Wellington on a Plate customers…I know restaurants reserve tables but reserved food is a new one!

A couple were seated at the table for two that we wanted which didn’t impress me. But the nice table for four in the window remained empty for a time even though the restaurant filled up…until David Burton (Dom Post food reviewer) was seated there with his companion…yes a table for two!
By this stage I was cold (from the draught), hungry (from lack of empanadas) and fuming (from the double standards). We had a word to the manager who offered some waffly story about a table for 4 changing their reservation just after we came in which is why we couldn’t sit there….uh huh…

You get one chance at a good impression. We won’t be going back.

I’ve been twice for the scrambled eggs on toast and once for wine, and enjoyed all three visits. The location is great and so is the interior, friendly efficient service. They do need to fix their front door though as it can be quite drafty if you sit in the front part. I do not recommend their evening tapas meal though. :/

I was advised by a friend to check out El Matador. Good central location in Cuba Street, near my hotel. Great decor – understated but surely “designed” to look like that. Little bar heaters scattered around were quite quaint. Interesting wine list and a good selection of international and craft beers. I was surprised by the affordable prices! About $10 per main dish less than Auckland. I had a steak with beetroot side. Very good. Will be back. Wholeheartedly recommend!

Hey it looked great and the staff were really friendly but it took almost an hour for our Tapas to come and yes, slow cooked lamb should fall off the bone. It didn’t. No empanadas, they’d run out. We suspected the kitchen was understaffed. Promising, but definitely room for improvement.

I still think this is the coolest little place in Cuba St! My second visit was with some friends last Saturday. We came in for Tapas and Drinks. The manager recommended us a really good Argentinean wine and we had a great time. The place was buzzing and the vibe is so relaxed and fun. Thank you Matador…Ole!

We visited El Matador on Sunday 5 August on the recommendation of recent publicity. Unfortunately the hype did not match the service and food quality we were expecting. We waited 1 hour to receive our main course. Three of us had the slow cooked lamb. While it was tasty the lamb was tough and there could have been more of it. It was obvious the lamb had not been slow cooked as it did not have any of the qualities of slow cooking. The price at $29 was also too expensive for the size and quality of the dish. The fourth member of the group had steak. While it was better value for money and tasty, the steak was not as hot as it should have been. We won’t be returning.

I have come here because I’ve heard the place is fantastic. I understand this is the second day they have been open, I was greeted by a lovely lady and the place is so friendly with decor that suits the atmosphere. I have just devoured the Spanish omlette most pleasing and very reasonably priced. I will definetly be back again and letting everyone I know how awesome this place is. Top marks all round.