We were so happy with the food, the staff and the vibe here that we came back with friends a few days later. We were blown away again by the experience: The steak dishes (short ribs the first night and NY strip the second) were cooked to perfection by Nora on her amazing wood-fired grill. The whole fish was AMAZING and had to by pried away from one of our friend who kept saying "I usually don't LIKE fish!" We're locals, and we thinks this is the best restaurant right now on AK. Go now before it's "discovered."
Brigitte J.
Was exciting to try this place out but walked away disappointed. The location is great. They took over the old Zinque. Roasted carrots were good to BUT their menu was a bit confusing to read with select times food was available, they didn't have appetizers, the waiter charged me twice for additional drinks I didn't have and then came back with the fixed receipt and it still had errors. I ordered the pork and it was underwhelming. Too expensive for a thin slice of breaded pork - $35? Also the menu didn't look Argentine AT ALL. I forgot they were categorized as that. Nothing screamed Argentina cuisine. It was also my friends birthday so I asked for a candle or something special when dessert came. They didn't do anything and the person who brought it out didn't even mention a birthday but just dropped it off on our table. Overall. Wouldn't go again. Was not worth the bill. Pretty disappointed. It had a lot of potential.
Hanna
Good wine and ambiance. Great first date spot or happy hour with coworkers. Wine is really good, especially orange house wine. Good is just ok. Will come back to drink but probably not to dine!
Chef Ryan made our night. There were a few mistakes and misunderstanding when we ordered a GF meal, but Ryan came out and personally rescued the situation with his service and lovely food.
Matt
The menu for the evening is just RIDICULOUS !!!! No choice and quite expensive. Furthermore they were out of some products while it was 7:30PM. We left the restaurant without eating.
Brittany H.
I'm gonna be generous and give it a 2.5-3 stars and here's why. I would not come back for the food. The portions were ginormous or not at all what I'd thought it would be. No hint of Argentine whatsoever, but we didn't order any meat so maybe we ordered wrong. However, everything that came out was underwhelming. It could have been partially solved if they just seasoned it with salt I might have bumped this up to 3 stars. Fresh ingredients and I can tidally tell it's obviously inspired by La and the abundance of fresh vegetables here. I get the concept I really do--but overall lacked major execution. Some of the flavors combos didn't make sense either. The sunchokes was the memorable dish for me. Everything else was lackluster. Please adjust because I love the concept and your natural wine list. Now onto the wine--- I'd come back for sippin' on the vino. The list has an extensive natural wine selection and we found a gamay in France and it was excellent. How natural delicious wine should taste like. Easy 4-5 stars. If they had smaller plates or cheese and charcuterie- then I'd come back just to do lite bites and plentiful wine galore. They do have an outdoor patio---for those looking for outdoor dining. I'd love to give this wine bar + resto another shot but feel like they have to work out some kinks first.
Bro D.
Steak entre was served ice cold, asked the server if it was intentional and he said no it's supposed to be hot and then walked away from the table without offering any remedy to this. The sad looking sweet potato appetizer was 3 small pieces of sweet potato with a handful of lettuce dropped on top of it. grilled mushroom app was ok, but the flavors didn't really make sense or seem to complement each other. nothing on the menu reminded me of any food I ate in Argentina. would not recommend.
njd51
The wine list contained listings that were marked "sold out". We wanted a bottle of Sancerre but were told it was also sold out and then 5 minutes later they found some. The young waiter had no idea about the wines or many of the food ingredients. the 2nd bottle of wine (which we liked) hadn't been chilled in anticipation of our ordering more (we were a group of 4) The chicken was dry and bland. The bread was a joke, $9 for one hard chunk of bread to be shared by 4 people. The dipping sauce was pleasant but overall presented horribly. The appetizers were good, some of us liked the sunchokes, but it wasn't unanimous. The pea tendril salad was good but the sauce on the bottom wasn't really accessible to the dish, and this is when good bread would have been appreciated. The lentils were good but were a bit on the cool side. I'm a sticky toffee fan but the others at the table weren't impressed. Our dirty dishes sat in front of us for too long and I had to ask two people to come clear the table. This place has potential but it needs a professional to come in and straighten out the staff. It's new so maybe that will happen soon.
Lauren W.
Extremely overpriced. I went with a group of 6 people- very diverse group and we were ALL in agreeance that the food was not worth the price. The servings were so small- literally. I could have eaten 7+ dishes by myself easily. Those dishes are not meant for sharing. Most of the dishes are tasty- eggplant, sunchokes, bread with the dipping sauce etc... all yummy but avoid the ribeye bc it was fatty and tough, like beef jerky drizzled in oil. Service was good but they were overwhelmed and most of them were new. Overall, they were all really nice and tried to be as attentive to our needs as they could. Expect to spend around $100/person on food if you want to leave feeling satisfied. Easy street parking close by. Nice ambiance, but won't be back unless they change portion sizes or reduce price.
T X.
Amazing food. We especially loved the rib eye and sunchokes. Lovely outdoor dining area with soft lighting and the festive Argentinian music created a great vibe. Solid customer service with a nice personal touch. Will come again!
A quaint location for a date night. The service was excellent. What I liked most about the restaurant was the menu. It was a break from traditional dishes and allowed me to try some creative flavors that I had not experienced before. The portion sizes were designed to support intimate conversations, just right -- keeping the focus on the flavors, company and relationships. I'm definitely adding Varro to my list of restaurants to come back to every once in a while to see what other flavors I can try from this very well thought out menu.
Sandy B.
The worst restaurant I've been to in Venice. Service was completely overwhelmed. Food was overpriced and most dishes were awful, except for the roasted chicken. Advertised as Argentinian but the menu doesn't really match that at all.
Lacking portions, inadequate recommendations for party size and frankly just unique sound on dishes. I'm into trying new things but this place is just nothing special and better for a date.
Bill
steak entre was served ice cold, asked the server if it was intentional and he said no it's supposed to be hot and then walked away from the table without offering any remedy to this. The sad looking sweet potato appetizer was 3 small pieces of sweet potato with a handful of lettuce dropped on top of it. grilled mushroom app was ok, but the flavors didn't really make sense or seem to complement each other. nothing on the menu reminded me of any food I ate in Argentina. would not recommend.
VictoriaG
My husband and I are omnivores who enjoy innovative flavor combinations; our daughter and her boyfriend are mostly gluten-free vegans who appreciate the health benefits of avoiding foods that are sweet, heavy, or oily. Varro is that rare restaurant where the four of us can all eat very happily -- sharing most of the dishes! -- with no one sacrificing any of the elements that are important to them. The food is terrific by any standard and it's an outstanding addition to our shortlist of favorite restaurants.
We were so happy with the food, the staff and the vibe here that we came back with friends a few days later. We were blown away again by the experience: The steak dishes (short ribs the first night and NY strip the second) were cooked to perfection by Nora on her amazing wood-fired grill. The whole fish was AMAZING and had to by pried away from one of our friend who kept saying "I usually don't LIKE fish!" We're locals, and we thinks this is the best restaurant right now on AK. Go now before it's "discovered."
Was exciting to try this place out but walked away disappointed. The location is great. They took over the old Zinque. Roasted carrots were good to BUT their menu was a bit confusing to read with select times food was available, they didn't have appetizers, the waiter charged me twice for additional drinks I didn't have and then came back with the fixed receipt and it still had errors. I ordered the pork and it was underwhelming. Too expensive for a thin slice of breaded pork - $35? Also the menu didn't look Argentine AT ALL. I forgot they were categorized as that. Nothing screamed Argentina cuisine. It was also my friends birthday so I asked for a candle or something special when dessert came. They didn't do anything and the person who brought it out didn't even mention a birthday but just dropped it off on our table. Overall. Wouldn't go again. Was not worth the bill. Pretty disappointed. It had a lot of potential.
Good wine and ambiance. Great first date spot or happy hour with coworkers. Wine is really good, especially orange house wine. Good is just ok. Will come back to drink but probably not to dine!
Chef Ryan made our night. There were a few mistakes and misunderstanding when we ordered a GF meal, but Ryan came out and personally rescued the situation with his service and lovely food.
The menu for the evening is just RIDICULOUS !!!! No choice and quite expensive. Furthermore they were out of some products while it was 7:30PM. We left the restaurant without eating.
I'm gonna be generous and give it a 2.5-3 stars and here's why. I would not come back for the food. The portions were ginormous or not at all what I'd thought it would be. No hint of Argentine whatsoever, but we didn't order any meat so maybe we ordered wrong. However, everything that came out was underwhelming. It could have been partially solved if they just seasoned it with salt I might have bumped this up to 3 stars. Fresh ingredients and I can tidally tell it's obviously inspired by La and the abundance of fresh vegetables here. I get the concept I really do--but overall lacked major execution. Some of the flavors combos didn't make sense either. The sunchokes was the memorable dish for me. Everything else was lackluster. Please adjust because I love the concept and your natural wine list. Now onto the wine--- I'd come back for sippin' on the vino. The list has an extensive natural wine selection and we found a gamay in France and it was excellent. How natural delicious wine should taste like. Easy 4-5 stars. If they had smaller plates or cheese and charcuterie- then I'd come back just to do lite bites and plentiful wine galore. They do have an outdoor patio---for those looking for outdoor dining. I'd love to give this wine bar + resto another shot but feel like they have to work out some kinks first.
Steak entre was served ice cold, asked the server if it was intentional and he said no it's supposed to be hot and then walked away from the table without offering any remedy to this. The sad looking sweet potato appetizer was 3 small pieces of sweet potato with a handful of lettuce dropped on top of it. grilled mushroom app was ok, but the flavors didn't really make sense or seem to complement each other. nothing on the menu reminded me of any food I ate in Argentina. would not recommend.
The wine list contained listings that were marked "sold out". We wanted a bottle of Sancerre but were told it was also sold out and then 5 minutes later they found some. The young waiter had no idea about the wines or many of the food ingredients. the 2nd bottle of wine (which we liked) hadn't been chilled in anticipation of our ordering more (we were a group of 4) The chicken was dry and bland. The bread was a joke, $9 for one hard chunk of bread to be shared by 4 people. The dipping sauce was pleasant but overall presented horribly. The appetizers were good, some of us liked the sunchokes, but it wasn't unanimous. The pea tendril salad was good but the sauce on the bottom wasn't really accessible to the dish, and this is when good bread would have been appreciated. The lentils were good but were a bit on the cool side. I'm a sticky toffee fan but the others at the table weren't impressed. Our dirty dishes sat in front of us for too long and I had to ask two people to come clear the table. This place has potential but it needs a professional to come in and straighten out the staff. It's new so maybe that will happen soon.
Extremely overpriced. I went with a group of 6 people- very diverse group and we were ALL in agreeance that the food was not worth the price. The servings were so small- literally. I could have eaten 7+ dishes by myself easily. Those dishes are not meant for sharing. Most of the dishes are tasty- eggplant, sunchokes, bread with the dipping sauce etc... all yummy but avoid the ribeye bc it was fatty and tough, like beef jerky drizzled in oil. Service was good but they were overwhelmed and most of them were new. Overall, they were all really nice and tried to be as attentive to our needs as they could. Expect to spend around $100/person on food if you want to leave feeling satisfied. Easy street parking close by. Nice ambiance, but won't be back unless they change portion sizes or reduce price.
Amazing food. We especially loved the rib eye and sunchokes. Lovely outdoor dining area with soft lighting and the festive Argentinian music created a great vibe. Solid customer service with a nice personal touch. Will come again!
Restaurantji Recommends
A quaint location for a date night. The service was excellent. What I liked most about the restaurant was the menu. It was a break from traditional dishes and allowed me to try some creative flavors that I had not experienced before. The portion sizes were designed to support intimate conversations, just right -- keeping the focus on the flavors, company and relationships. I'm definitely adding Varro to my list of restaurants to come back to every once in a while to see what other flavors I can try from this very well thought out menu.
The worst restaurant I've been to in Venice. Service was completely overwhelmed. Food was overpriced and most dishes were awful, except for the roasted chicken. Advertised as Argentinian but the menu doesn't really match that at all.
Lacking portions, inadequate recommendations for party size and frankly just unique sound on dishes. I'm into trying new things but this place is just nothing special and better for a date.
steak entre was served ice cold, asked the server if it was intentional and he said no it's supposed to be hot and then walked away from the table without offering any remedy to this. The sad looking sweet potato appetizer was 3 small pieces of sweet potato with a handful of lettuce dropped on top of it. grilled mushroom app was ok, but the flavors didn't really make sense or seem to complement each other. nothing on the menu reminded me of any food I ate in Argentina. would not recommend.
My husband and I are omnivores who enjoy innovative flavor combinations; our daughter and her boyfriend are mostly gluten-free vegans who appreciate the health benefits of avoiding foods that are sweet, heavy, or oily. Varro is that rare restaurant where the four of us can all eat very happily -- sharing most of the dishes! -- with no one sacrificing any of the elements that are important to them. The food is terrific by any standard and it's an outstanding addition to our shortlist of favorite restaurants.