Casa Higueras, a ‘nostalgia chic’ hotel as they describe themselve accurately, is the home of Restaurante Montealegre. The restaurant’s terrace with its amazing view on Cerro Cordillera and the port is inviting,  but the interior restaurant design is an eye-catcher as well. Tastful, warm and sophisticated without being ‘too posh’ is how we would describe the restaurant.

We were offered a subtle ceviche appetizer to get in the mood and we chose Caldillo del Congrio del Puerto (congrio in a fish stock) and Sopa de Osobucco y Merlot as starters. The mildly but perfectly fried congrio was served with a soft and tasty broth, while the osobucco soup had a stronger but balanced taste, topped off with a delicious merlot aroma. The only minor setback were the almost raw potatoes in the Caldillo. As a main dish we had a veal steak, perfectely fried to the desired point, with an original asparagus and almond risotto. We also had lightly fried congrio with a sweet fruit sauce, a strange but surprisingly sublime combination.  For dessert, after making the very difficult choice, we went for the orange ice cream with mango and papaya, a refreshing and not overly sweet finish to a perfect meal. The dishes are all creative in composition as well as in presentation, and the setting is amazing. So what about the price? The hotel is very ‘high end’ but the restaurant is surprisingly accessible. Price-quality here is unbeatable: main courses are around CLP 7.000  and starters around CLP 4.000 . Everything was taken care of into detail and the service was excellent. I recomend all future waiters to learn the business here. And the same for young cooks with gourmet ambitions !

Restaurant MonteAlegre (hotel Casa Higueras), calle Higuera 133, Cerro alegre

www.casahigueras.cl