Damiana Elena

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Review

384 reviews

#11 of 194 Restaurants in Punta Arenas$$$$, Seafood, European, Chilean

(61) 222-818 + Add website

Hours

Tue

7:00 PM - 11:30 PM

Wed

7:00 PM - 11:30 PM

Thu

7:00 PM - 11:30 PM

Fri

7:00 PM - 12:00 AM

Sat

7:00 PM - 11:30 PM

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Ratings and reviews

4.5

384 reviews

#11 of 194 Restaurants in Punta Arenas

RATINGS

Food

Service

Value

Atmosphere

Details

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CUISINES

Seafood, European, Chilean

Special Diets

Vegetarian friendly

Meals

Dinner

features

Location and contact

Hernando De Magallanes 341, Punta Arenas 6212739 Chile

(61) 222-818

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Does this restaurant allow dogs or considered pet friendly?

Yes

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CUISINES

Seafood, European, Chilean

Special Diets

Vegetarian friendly

Meals

Dinner

FEATURES

Reservations, Seating, Street Parking, Serves Alcohol, Full Bar, Wine and Beer, Accepts American Express, Accepts Mastercard, Accepts Visa, Accepts Credit Cards, Table Service, Dog Friendly

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4.5

384 reviews

Excellent

238

Very good

Average

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Terrible

Michael P

3 contributions

Hidden Gastronomical Gem in Punta Arenas

Jan 2020 • none

I loved the experience of eating here. This restaurant is tucked away in an unassuming street outside of downtown Punta Arenas. Going inside you walk into another time and into an old world atmosphere similar to being at Grandma's house. The food is excellent. The variety of the menu is great, serving many local and international inspired plates. You have to listen though, because as the menu changes daily, menu items are read aloud by the house personnel. Speaking of which, the service is excellent. From when you are greeted at the front door, until the end of the evening, you know you are enjoying yourself in Punta Arenas when you are here.

Written January 8, 2020

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Shayne U

Jackson2451 contributions

Our last night in Punta Arenas

Jan 2020 • friends

Our last night in Punta Arenas our friends recommended Damians Elena. Situated downtown in an old house each room had unique table settings. Because we didn’t book at least 2 days in advance we were in the main pass through for all the tables. Not the best situation. However the food made up for the table placement. We started with a pisco saur and then tuna carpaccio and snails. Both delicious. For our main course we split guanaco. Ours was over cooked which resulted in being dry. The vegetable served with it was good. Dessert was a raspberry custard. Very sweet so shared with all four. If you want a seat with a window and out do the traffic pattern be sure you call at least two days in advance.

Written January 19, 2020

Resort812604

32 contributions

Wonderful End to the Day

Jan 2020 • none

An excellent gourmet restaurant with excellent food and wine! Very professional staff. We missed our flight from Punta Arenas to Santiago due to the cruise ship, Australus, had the docking by 6 hours. We requested a gourmet restaurant recommendation from our Hostel manager. She recommended Damina Elena. What an incredible gourmet experience.

Written January 30, 2020

Scot211

194 contributions

Wish we’d never gone!

Jan 2024 • couples

Ignored most of the time. No menu all off the top of the head- why? It’s not like you are imparting state secrets! Food- starters good, but main course was not good! No one asked why we were leaving at least 3/4 of the meal. Crème brûlée was good as was the espresso. V expensive - double the prize for the same food earlier on in the week. Need to up quality of the food and service. There is better food elsewhere.

Written January 17, 2024

Dave

11 contributions

They Discriminate - Foreigners Don't Waste Your Time

Dec 2022 • couples

They discriminate. Not sure if it was because of dress or that we were foreigners or our race. Similar to everyone else's experience.

Written December 22, 2022

Julie

5 contributions

Very nice cosy romantic place

Feb 2020 • none

We spent a nice time a the restaurant Damiana Elena. The staff is kind and the atmosphere very special. It is like in a typical house... They have a nice variety of wines & elaborated vegeterian dishes :)

Written March 1, 2020

JCHIII

Larkspur141 contributions

Excellent traditional food in a homey location

Nov 2019 • none

We had a wonderful meal here which started with an El Calafate rather than a pisco sour. Server was very attentive. Atmosphere is very homey inside a Victorian house. Highly recommended for a couple or family while in Punta Arenas.

Written December 19, 2019

CCS

4 contributions

Do not go here - it is a total sham of a restaurant

Oct 2019 • none

The food at Damiana Elena restaurant is terrible, do not go here. It is a total waste of money. If you have 40 euro's to spend in an irresponsible way in Punta Arenas, go to a casino, or the horse raises, or just fold it into a paper plane and try to fly it across the straight of Magallanes. All of which will be more satisfactory than dinner at Damiana Elena. Short description: The food is pre-cooked and then heated when it is brought out. They do not use fresh produce, even when they say they do. The food you are served uses cheaper products than what they tell you is on the menu. The food is not spiced at all and the owners of the place are rude. They have no menu and do not tell you in advance that the dishes run European prices (i.e. 20 euros for a main), which is overpriced given their mediocre quality. Their owning redeeming quality is the nice interior design, which is not edible. Detailed description Starters: We had a starter of what was called "local clams" and "fresh squid". The speed with which the dishes were served after our order indicated the plates had been pre-prepared. The clams were clearly not fresh, as they tasted like brine. The squid was served as a thinly sliced ham mixed with other foods (unclear which) and drenched in olive oil topped with capers. When I complained about the clams, the owner of the place came out to our table with the pot of brined clams shoving them under my nose and shouting at me that this meant they were still fresh. I guess they operate under the notion of fresh as "anything with an expiry date of before December 2020" or "anything considered fresh on a boat trying to explore Patagonia in 1520". When my husband mentioned that he did not like the octopus because it was covered in olive oil and vinaigrette (from the capers) the owner snapped at him that it did not contain vinaigrette, strategically ignoring the fact that capers are kept in..vinaigrette. We sent the food back without barely eating it. Mains: I had the "sword-fish" and my husband had the tuna. We were told both fishes were fresh, locally caught and cooked as we waited. Again, the food was brought out way too fast to be freshly prepared. My "sword-fish" was layered with cheese and almonds which were burned (probably from being under a food heating lamp for too long). My sword-fish was also not swordfish, which has a rich consistency, even when poorly prepared. This was clearly its cheaper and outcast cousin: the tilapia. The tuna was not prepared as we had ordered it (red) and was not fresh at all. It has that distinct grey colouring that frozen tuna has when heated up. Dessert: we didn't even bother. If there is anything positive to say about this place, it is that they did not charge us for the starters and that the ambience of the restaurant is nice. However, going home hungry and feeling cheated by the bill isn't quite off-set by some nice inedible lamps.

Written November 10, 2019

lupilu81

Vina del Mar20 contributions

Highly disappointed do not waste your money unless you do not care what good food is, SO ANNOYED!

May 2019 • family

This place makes it out to be what it is not. This restaurant to me is a huge Scam, if you know anything about food at all you will agree with me. The restaurant itself is quaint, well decorated, and cosy, i will give them that point, and the fact that the staff were very attentive and friendly. First off, no fresh home made bread or butter, rather just pre-packaged, that is already showing defect in something...We order shrimp and scallops, was “ok” nothing great. No flavour to it. Wine is not of a well selected wine, rather any wine you find in the local Chilean supermarket but except more than double the price. If you live in Chile you will understand what I mean, regarding price, because Chilean wine in general is good, which makes it more important to have a great wine selection, especially if your charging high prices. The food: i had the cannelloni which was definitely NOT cannelloni, but rather a warmed up thick raw pancake type dough of some sort with cut up pieces of “ham chunks” with some sort of “cold blob of pesto” on top of it. I could not even eat it, husband had lamb and gnocchi...Lamb was OK, not badly cooked but definitely just warmed up with gnocchi that was slimy and not even gnocchi, i do not really even know what it was... no flavour at all. Food came out way too fast to be that freshly cooked. To spend 120 dollars or more on food that is as if they went to the frozen food section at a walmarts and warmed it up is Highly disappointing not to mention annoying! It has all the advantages to be a great place, but sadly does not deliver. When we first arrived early they made it seem that they could not receive us because they were all fully booked and made this big fuss, then they are like okay you can have dinner...all just odd. We were there oven an hour and never saw that many people. Owner did not even seem to care less about whats happening or if guests are happy with their food or not. I will definitely never be going back - sad because there is a lot of potential. Great staff, is all it seems to have really.

Written May 8, 2019

TurleighTraveller

Avoncliff154 contributions

Charming Victorian house - but no menu or prices!

Mar 2019 • friends

We went to this charming old Victorian house on the recommendation of our hotel. No menu. The waiter read out the choices - difficult to choose from so many without seeing the menu. And of course no prices...... Wine - we were taken upstairs to the wine cellar - they were all priced. Food excellent. Cost -2 courses with wine 50USD a head.

Written March 13, 2019

darlene5050

Palo Alto31 contributions

Unexpected delight !

Jan 2019 • friends

Close to the main areas of town yet amidst a residential area, there is a great restaurant FIND - Damiana Elena - several generations of chefs/hosts makes this a unique destination. The food is exemplary, the wine list provocative and the service top-notch. What a delightful evening for our group of five. Enjoy!

Written February 27, 2019

onthemach

338 contributions

Best in town!

Jan 2019 • business

Nested in an old cottage style house, it offers dishes prepared with fresh seasonal ingredients. The menu changes daily.. The staff is attentive and speaks English well.The atmosphere is classy but not pretentious. A must try!

Written January 17, 2019

Graciewonton

1 contribution

Very cute restaurant

Nov 2018 • friends

My friend and I stumbled upon this restaurant thinking that it was closed. You have to walk and there's a side door (which is the main entrance). I believe they are closed on Sundays and Mondays. We went on a Tuesday and had a great dinner. I was not a fan of many restaurants in this area and this was by far the best. With a classic decor and great staff. I would recommend anyone, especially English speakers, to request for Azael as their waiter. He was extremely sweet and knowledgeable about the food and wine. Also he is fluent in English, Spanish, and Portuguese. He made this dining experience that much more memorable.

Written December 20, 2018

TravelHedgehog

Toronto37 contributions

A superb experience1

Feb 2018 • none

This ultra stylish, fine-dinning is a must visit when in Punta Arenas. The food is exquisite, and the diversified menu includes lots of local delights, as well as touches from other places. The desserts are absolutely fab and the service equally attentive and cordial. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

Written March 7, 2018

Joe P

6 contributions

Meh

Jan 2018 • couples

If you want the coles notes version, title says it all. For more info, please read on. Gorgeous setting. We walked in without rez. The staff were friendly and fit us in, for as the staff put it, a dining experience we’ll never forget. That much was accurate. We were sat down and then waited for about 15 minutes for someone to wait on us. As previous mentioned, no menu so you need to wait for it to be dictated to you. Awesome in theory, pain in the bum if you’re waiting, and waiting zzzzz. I ordered the cannelloni while my gf ordered the Tilapia. The food arrived without much wait. That’s the good news. The meals themselves were between average to low average. Cannelloni was drowning in pesto sauce, quite salty, but to be fair, perfectly cooked. Trying to stay objective here. I was able to consume ½ prior to calling it quits. It was an average effort but could be eaten. The tilapia Very salty, oily, served on a bed of Asian noodles, which were heavily influenced by ginger and salt. We struggled with it until we found a thumbnail sized piece of clear plastic. Brought to the attention of the waiter and asked for the bill. There was no further mention by the staff relating to the plastic. No apology or reduction on the bill. We paid and left. Im beginning to think good food is a rare find in Chile. Over priced, disorganised staff, and very average food. Do yourself a favour, find the nearest empanada shop and enjoy. You’ll also save yourself time and $$

Written January 24, 2018

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