I just got back from BA and I have to say that I had a few issues with Asian.
We went there our first night in town and I got the Thai Steak Salad and a Ribeye and my wife got the Chicken Spring Rolls and the Roast Beef. We both LOVED the Thai Steak Salad, and my ribeye, and the Chicken Spring rolls were very good but my wife's roast beef was a bit disappointing compared to everything else, but not bad at all. The pre-dinner shots were delicious, and the Passion Fruit smoothie was amazing, and we got a GREAT waiter who spoke perfect English and was charming and knowledgeable about the menu. We were sure we would return for another meal which we did on our last night in town. That's where the problems started. First, we got ready to order and my wife wanted the Thai steak salad which was mysteriously no longer on the menu. My wife asked if she could get it anyway, and the waitress checked, and came back and said yes. So my wife ordered the Thai Steak Salad and the Curried Indian rice dish with beef. I ordered the Pastrami Bruschetta and the Beef Premium Ribs. 5 minutes later the woman from teh front counter comes over to tell my wife that she CAN'T have the Thai Steak salad since they are trying a new menu so my wife, disappointed, orders the Asian Beef Rolls. The Pastrami Bruschetta was quite good although the "bread" underneath it had a weird soft consistency (probably from being piled under all that hot food). My wife's beef rolls were fine. The big problems started with the main course. My wife's food came and was actually good, but my ribs came and I cut into it and took a bite and they were grey, overcooked, and tough. When I called over the waitress to tell her, she sent over the woman from the front desk. I told her that the ribs were overcooked and she said that I can't order ribs rare since they have to be slow cooked all day to be tender. I told her how it was like leather and not the way ribs should be, and she asked me to order something else from the menu. I then ordered the ribeye again since it had been great the first time. 20 minutes later (while my wife was eating her food) my steak shows up and I cut into it and notice that it is RAW (it looked like a good piece of Tuna looks when cooked properly). I called my waitress over again and told her and she again got the manager who asked me how I wanted my meat cooked and I told her again. I was also thirsty again so I ordered the Passion fruit smoothie, and the waitress asked me how I wanted them to make it. I feel like they were training an entirely new staff on an entirely new menu that night and it showed. This time it only took 5 minutes to get me my steak (apparently it takes longer to make a raw steak than a cooked one) and it was finally cooked properly. My wife was sitting there having eaten most of her food VERY SLOWLY as I dug into my steak. When we paid there was no apology for the problems, and no credit on the bill (not that I needed one since I am willing to pay for food that I eat, but usually when a restaurant here does that they offer you a free dessert or an apology or something). The delay in the meal
Hopefully this was only an anomaly, but it really turned us off from wanting to eat there again. Anyone who makes it there in the mean time should let me know if the new menu is any good and if the service has improved.
In complete contrast, Al Galope gave us tasty food in a timely manner and despite their lack of English knowledge and their lack of any creativity to the dishes (it's just plates or grills of meat and whatever side or salad you order to go with it) we left there happy and full both times we went there (plus we did shabbos take otu from there for dinner and for 158 pesos we were QUITE STUFFED). Also, the meals were MUCH LESS expensive than at Asian (260 pesos for the half mixed grill and salad and kibbeh at Al Galope vs 470 pesos for 2 starters and 2 mains and drinks at Asian), so I guess you're paying for the fancy feel of Asian and not for the food itself.
The atmosphere in Al Galope reminded me so much of Ratner's in the Lower East Side (right down to the old cranky waiters in bow ties) that I was having flashbacks to the potato soup and matzo brei. Either way, I would highly recommend Al Galope (and Kokush bakery on the same block) to anyone and hopefully Asian just had an off night for us.
Oh, and the Kosher McDonald's is eh (although I DID like the McNuggets), but there is something to be said for the experience of eating a Big Mac in a mall food court. That has got to be one of VERY FEW McDonald's in the world that counts as a tourist attraction.
