Jeronimo

Having just had dinner at Jeronimo in Lima a couple of months prior to the visit to this new restaurant in Santiago, I was familiar with the concept and the menu.

The décor and ambience are quite different in the two restaurants. The Lima location, which is more of a bar than a restaurant, is more casual and darker. It’s dark like a dungeon. The average age of the patron in Lima is probably less than 30 years of age.

The location, the décor, and everything about the Santiago location is more upscale. And I’d say that the average age of the patron in well over 35 years of age. The décor is more modern and minimalist in Santiago.

But when it comes to the menu, the restaurants are almost identical. That includes the lofty prices in both cities for what amounts to international comfort food.

I find the menu confusing. It’s as if the chef, or whoever created this menu, is putting words unfamiliar to Chileans on the menu to make the dishes seem exotic. The menu reminds me of the guy at the party that keeps dropping names to make himself look “connected”.

And the menu makes it difficult to order. One of the ceviches, for example, is followed with these three words. Mixto, Aguachile (as if that were an ingredient, which it isn’t) and Tostados. What’s that supposed to mean? Shouldn’t the menu indicate the ingredients? What if I’m allergic shellfish? I suppose if the waiters were all well-trained and knew what was in every dish, this lack of specificity wouldn’t be so alarming. But our waiter had no clue what an aguachile was and he couldn’t state with any degree of certainty what all the ingredients were in the ceviche.

This lack of waiter training evidenced itself repeatedly throughout the service. Although the waiters that approached our table were amiable, they all seemed to be running around in a state of chaos. We noticed the same confusion in Lima.

Now, don’t get me wrong. This is a creative menu, and our dishes were well-executed. The food is tasty. It’s interesting.

But the prices are exorbitant for this genre of restaurant. This experience left me with the same doubts I had after visiting nearby 99. And Prosper in Buenos Aires. A meal that confirms that the chef and his sous chefs are talented cooks. But raises questions as to whether they have what it takes to be successful restaurateurs. With less than stellar service and prices that exceed what we’ve paid at the city’s most elegant upscale restaurants, I’m left wondering, “Why is this place so darn popular?”