CAU: A steak to rival all others

The freshest addition to the throng of restaurants that line West Didsbury’s high street, CAU has given more than a lick of paint to the former residence of Zizzi’s. Widely anticipated by locals and students alike, if you’ve not heard of CAU before, you’ll soon discover that it is part of a chain taking the UK by storm.

The interior, still glistening new, does not transport diners back to the sprawling countryside of Argentina, but rather a chic eatery in the vibrant city of Buenos Aires. In lieu of slipping into the typical shell of a restaurant chain with a safe palette and neutral tones, CAU opts to buck the trend with ceilings emanating a brilliant clear sky, and walls of fresh green grass. Lit by the mellow glow of the clouds that hang from the ceiling, the restaurant exudes a warm, modish ambience.

Although Argentinian cuisine could not be described as delicate, here at CAU, it retains a certain level of sophistication. The menu oozes flavour from the sumptuous sides to monstrous steaks.

The empanadas, Argentina’s miniature response to the Cornish pasty, came with a Latino kick. Once opened, they revealed fierce flavours and appetising aromas. For a menu that boasts so much meat, the vegetarian option of spinach, ricotta and date empanadas were anything but neglected. The ricotta mellowed the sweet aftertaste of the dates as the spinach restored the equilibrium of the parcel’s savouriness. In their meaty alternatives the cream cheese tamed the tangy fire of the chorizo.

In keeping with tradition, red wine was ordered alongside the beef rump, and white alongside the tuna steak. The Piche Merlot accompanying the rump was a reason to visit CAU in itself, the kind of wine that will make you tip your head back and exclaim “God! That’s good!”; my fellow diner struggled to restrain the urge to finish it before their steak had even arrived.

Despite its ill-fit alongside the tuna steak, the coupling of cheese and truffle in CAU’s macaroni cheese, was too hard to resist. The breadcrumbs atop it, however, did not add to the experience, and perhaps degraded it.

Crusted with piquant pepper and accompanied by a grilled lime to squeeze over it, the tuna steak was delectable to the tongue. Light and fresh, this dish will leave you suitably satisfied.

It’s hard to believe the idiom ‘melt in your mouth’ can apply to a steak of all foods, but CAU doesn’t serve your typical standard of steak. Instead it’s the kind that will leave you wondering why you ever went for steak anywhere else. Although it may fall short of a steak devoured in Rio de Janeiro, this divine rump will still certainly leave you wishing you had left room for another.

Despite being greeted with a pre-emptive warning of delay, because the restaurant was packed to the brim, service was prompt and practically flawless. Attentive, welcoming and friendly, the waitress was easy-going, yet decidedly diligent.

The dessert menu was not enough to tempt us to undo our jeans by another button on this occasion, the choices conforming, just slightly, to the standard—though ever-popular—fare you might expect. However, the lure of the cornflake ice cream, yes you read right-cornflake, will certainly have me returning at some point in the near future.

Price: £££

700 Wilmslow Rd,
Manchester
M20 2DN