Los Buenos Muchachos

So.. Sunday evening in Chile we were in search of a nice place to have an authentic Chilean meal with Susie and Paul. The groom recommended Los Buenos Muchachos and the guy working at our hotel said they had wonderful steaks, so we piled in the car and set off for it. Of course, we had a hard time finding the right streets because nothing is really marked in Chile and it's hard to navigate 5 lanes of free-range traffic. Eventually we found and were directed to parking in the back. I had a vision of cloth tablecloths, candlelight, soft music so when I opened the door to the restaurant, I stopped, closed it and turned back to the other three. My eyes were wide and I asked if we were sure this was the right place! We went in and were seated at a table right at the edge of the dance floor. There was a band on the stage and someone was talking, but it was in Spanish, so I only understood some of it. I had a feeling we'd walked in a little late and everyone watched us as we entered. Paul ordered the national drink - a Pisco Sour and somehow, we accidentally ordered one for all of us. I'm so glad though because it was SO GOOD!! It was fabulous. After that, we ordered a bottle of wine from a local vineyard - Tarapaca. The wine was yummy! The band played Chilean music and there were dancers - kind of a bunch of different dances and songs to get the flavor of Chile. It was very entertaining. Our food came and YUMYUMYUM! I ordered a steak and mashed potatoes and it was definitely the best meal I had in Chile. We ordered a second bottle of wine and then the band and dancing on stage changed gears to Easter Island. The music and dance was similar to Hawaiian luaus. The dancers went out into the audience and Jeff was chosen to go up there and dance. There were several other people from the audience too, but Jeff was the special one... the girls surrounded him, removed his shirt, put leis on him, rolled up his pants and put something resembling and apron around his waist (I'm sure it was something the original people on Easter Island wore, I just don't know what to call it.) Then, one girl took him out in the middle of the dance floor and danced their hula-ish dance. It was HILARIOUS! Unfortunately, both Jeff and Susie - professional photographers - left their cameras at the hotel! Luckily, the restaurant had a house photographer and in my alcohol induced euphoria, I purchased three. They are available to the highest bidder. Just kidding - they will remain hidden forever! We really had a wonderful time there and if you are ever in Santiago, you have to eat at Los Buenos Muchachos. We all ended up dancing - or stumbling on the dance floor. Paul and Jeff drove us home while Susie and I were silly and laughing in the back of the car. We got lost again on the way back to the hotel, but that's nothing new.