RESTAURANTE 1921: A LOVELY DINNER IN ONE OF MONTEVIDEO’S MOST ICONIC BUILDINGS
The Cost - $57 per person (plus taxes back if you use a foreign credit card)
The Atmosphere – The interior of Restaurante 1921 is simply stunning. The beautiful round domed room sits inside of the Sofitel Montevideo, one of the top, if not the top, hotels in Uruguay’s capital. In fact, the restaurant’s name is derived from the year that the hotel first opened. The room has undergone some updating and modernizing since then, but the old world charm and luxury still remain. If you arrive at the restaurant before dark, you’ll have wonderful views of the Rio de La Plata and if you happen to be there after dark, the contemporary chandeliers will provide the light. With an atmosphere like that, a restaurant could easily choose to be white glove, white tablecloth, and incredibly stuffy. But Restaurante 1921 didn’t choose that path, instead going with a more comfortable, relaxed dining experience with prices that are surprisingly reasonable given the setting. You’ll be fine if you wear smart casual attire to dinner though you could certainly put on more formal attire if you’re celebrating something special. Reservations are recommended.
Argentine-Japanese chef Maximiliano Matsumoto leads the kitchen at Restaurante 1921 and brings with him experience and knowledge that helps shape his menu that incorporates local and regional cuisine while mixing in international techniques and flavors. The chef places a strong emphasis on sustainability, sourcing local products including meats with zero carbon emission certification. This modern approach really creates a much welcomed juxtaposition when sitting in such a historic dining room.
The Order – Terrina de Foie, Okonomiyaki de Mollejas, Pesca del Dia, Ojo de Bife, and Chocolate y Menta.
The Great – The best dish of the evening was the Ojo de Bife. A very popular and common cut of meat in Uruguay, the rib eye was prepared in an uncommon way with the three strips of meat being topped with a sesame bearnaise sauce. How about that for incorporating French cooking techniques and Japanese influences. The steak was ordered “jugoso” which is about medium rare and was flavorful and tender with a nice quantity of fat. Served with grilled lettuce and pickled radish, this was a winner.
The two appetizers that were ordered, the Okonomiyaki de Mollejas and the Terrina de Foie, also received our Great rating. The chef used a lot of features of the typical okonomiyaki, the traditional Japanese teppanyaki, but then gave it a local flare by adding mollejas (sweetbreads) as the protein on top of the wheat cake. The sweetbreads were excellently prepared through their frying in a clarified butter and were absolutely delicious, especially with the Japanese mayo and the okonomiyaki sauce on top. The cake below the sweetbreads resembled the texture of a hashbrown and was a nice addition to the very enjoyable dish that I’d order again in a heartbeat.
The foie gras terrine was made using chicken liver from free range chickens. It was plated with roasted peaches and served alongside an adorable brioche. The terrine was quite nice and had the texture of a pâte; it combined well with the roasted peaches which added a freshness and subtle sweetness to the savory dish. The brioche is fluffy and was a very good choice as the bread for this excellent appetizer.
The Good – The Pesca del Dia (fish of the day) was a corvina rubia, a local fish that is typical of the Southeast Atlantic Ocean. But the fish wasn’t prepared in a typical manner for the region – it was slow-cooked in vinegar, olive oil, and salt to resemble a pickling of the fish. The corvina was plated with a yellow pepper sauce and served with a squid ink rice, which was my favorite part of this dish. The squid ink hardened during cooking to give the rice a nice, crunchy shell. The flavor was on point and the texture was really fun. The fish preparation may not have been my favorite, but I could easily see someone who loves pickled fish going crazy over this dish.
The last item of the meal was the only dessert ordered, the Chocolate y Menta. It consisted of a dark chocolate mousse with a homemade mint ice cream with chocolate crumble on top. The creaminess of the mint ice cream was impressive, and the mousse was solid. The crumble wasn’t my favorite, but it did add a crunch to the dessert that was definitely big enough to share.
The Verdict – The meal at Restuarante 1921 was really lovely and throughout the meal I couldn’t stop appreciating two things: the incredible setting and the excellent job that Chef Matsumoto incorporating regional and international aspects into each one of his dishes. Apart from that, I also thought the meal was very fairly priced given that each person ordered an appetizer and an entrée and split a dessert. When you factor in the quality of the food, the service, and the rest of the dining experience, you should absolutely add Restaurante 1921 to your list of restaurants to visit in Montevideo, especially if you are looking for a spot for a romantic dinner or to celebrate a special occasion.
Restaurante 1921
Rambla República de México 6451, 11500 Montevideo, Departamento de Montevideo, Uruguay