I never walked into the Sake House before and before I knew it, it was replaced by Big El’s. Last night was my first time dining at the Big El’s Latin American fusion restaurant. There was a group of four guys who arrived before us and as usual, we arrived way too early compared to our booking time. I was there by 6pm while the booked time was for 6:30pm.

There was a big welcoming arc to welcome people in with some cute signs on it (not really in an arc shape, but more of square). The premise was huge and can be booked for group dining or large family dinner.

We were seated at a yellow booth and straight away it gave out a more private feeling. The booth made talking easier when the venue got a bit crowded later on. I purposely came to Big El to try out the new menu items that they had been promoting on their Facebook page such as the Kinder shot and Bolivian Papas Rellenas. Unfortunately the new menu won’t be available until later on this week.

The girl who served us was really kind and she offered to make me a cherry ripe shot. This shot wasn’t available in the menu yet as they were still trying to create some new items. So I said yes. I mentioned to her that the shot didn’t have enough cherry taste in it but I like the creamy and chocolaty taste.

THE FOOD

The first to arrive was the Mexican Hot Dog that Hubby was looking forward to try. For $14, Hubby was a bit disappointed especially since it wasn’t a gourmet hot dog at all. As for the taste, it was pretty easy to eat and wasn’t messy. The chipotle mayo was good although the hot dog wasn’t exactly ‘showered’ in it as mentioned in the menu. I wished they'd put more Jalapenos on it.

The Salvadorian Pupusa was okay. The aromatic coriander and beans helped a lot especially since there wasn’t much filling inside the corn tortilla which made the taste a bit weak.

3 BEST FOOD FROM THE NIGHT

The Argentine Style Grilled Rib-Eye was tender, well-seasoned with chimichurri and grilled with some charred parts on it. Not only tender, it was also juicy, meaty, and didn’t have a lot of fat. We were given three different dips and the tomato salsa was our favourite after the chipotle.

The Brazilian Style Coxinha was another dish that I was waiting for especially since I tried it previously from the Big El’s Nino food truck. It made a really good impression that I just had to order it. The skin was crumbly and crispy while the flavourful filling of chicken and cream cheese just melted in my mouth.

The last dish that arrived on our table was the Quesadilla that I ordered with pizza topping. I tried the quesadilla with chicken and pulled pork before and it tasted really delicious. The quesadilla with pizza topping has cut up sausages and meat inside it. The quesadilla skin was golden in colour and wasn’t greasy at all. This dish was really yummy although we had to sacrifice one piece since we couldn’t eat anymore by the end of it.

Service was really good and last night everyone was so friendly that made the dining experience more enjoyable. I imagine it would be really enjoyable to eat in a big group at Big El’s because you can order so much more dishes to share around from the menu.

When we were satisfied and went to pay for the meal, we were astonished to find that it was 50% off! This is because if you booked your table between certain dates through Dimmi, you'll get 50% off the total price.  Another fantastic reason to give Big El's a try with family or friends.