A fine Argentinian export

A simply decorated Argentinian restaurant in Hackney, featuring a parrilla (grill) imported from the home country, is blessedly straightforward in intent - a meal based on meats cooked over charcoal.

Santa Maria Del Buen Ayre - a tribute to the original name of Argentina's capital city - adds its particular ethnicity to a burgeoning group of restaurants in Broadway Market, including the excellent South-American Armadillo.

The hub of the restaurant, which is painted a restful shade of primrose yellow, is the fire tended by chef Cacho Gomez, who is Argentinian but of Irish extraction. A small oscillating fan labours to keep him cool while he grills steaks, chorizos, pork ribs, kidneys and sweetbreads over the coals, raising and lowering as necessary the suspended metal grill.

Acknowledgement of vegetarians or, anyway, non-meat fanciers is the offer of a brochette of halloumi cheese and vegetables served with houmus or grilled aubergine with tomato, mozzarella and Parmesan, a sort of parmigiano.

We started dinner with Serrano ham partnered with palm hearts and a rosy mayonnaise; crisp, hot empanadas (like pasties) with good fillings, one of spicy chicken, one of spinach and white cheese; and grilled Provolone cheese, which was not a success as it resembled two discs of melted plastic.

We then shared one of the grilled meat assemblies, Parrillada Buen Ayre, which includes Argentine-style pork sausage, excellent black pudding, sweetbread, short rib and flank steak. Kidney was unavailable that night.

The various meats are served on a little standing grill with a bowl of chimichurri sauce made of garlic, peppers, oregano, parsley, oil and lemon juice. They are carefully cooked, but the combination is slightly overwhelming for anyone not a rampant carnivore.

Steaks can be ordered individually and they are very good value, eg, 10oz Argentine rib-eye steak with peppers and garnish for £12. The salad gesture we made, a side order of Criolla (lettuce, tomato, onion) at £3, featured that abomination of the lettuce world - lollo rosso. The one dessert tried was a classic flan (crème caramel), its soft sweetness intensified by a squiggle of fudgy dulce de leche.

Another fine export of Argentina is the sort of red wine that can take on a gaucho's grasp of meat. The Malbec grape has the requisite muscle and we enjoyed the Norton Barrel Select 2002 (a very good year) at the reasonable restaurant price of £16.50. Norton Malbec 2004 is £12.95 and there is plenty more South American and Spanish on the drinks list - where the highest wine price is £24 - including an Argentinian cider. Staff are laid-back, friendly and accommodating.

Buen Ayre
Broadway Market, London, E8 4QJ