San Carbon: a Gastronomic Landmark Steakhouse in Medellín

San Carbon is one of the gastronomic landmarks in Medellín as it’s the largest steakhouse in the city with some good steaks.

In the U.S., we’d call it a steakhouse, but here in South America it’s known as a parilla, a restaurant where grilled meats are served.

The food is consistently good in my experience with normally very good service plus a great atmosphere.

Since the restaurant is located in Las Palmas it has a nice view of the city from the lower patios. It’s an open-air restaurant so it can sometime be chilly so dress appropriately at night.

San Carbon originally opened back in 2003. The restaurant caters to a more sophisticated, adult clientele.

San Carbon normally has live music from their own band Thursday to Saturday evening and on Saturdays and Sundays at lunch.

The large restaurant also hosts some parties for special dates and holidays, with shows of music and dance, particularly for New Years.

Since it’s a large restaurant it can handle large parties – I have seen several large birthday parties being held at San Carbon.

Our Recent Experience at San Carbon

San Carbon was one of the first restaurants I went to with my Colombian wife while we were dating before we got married.

We recently decided to return to this steakhouse, which is one of our favorite restaurants that we have been to several times over the past few years.

I recommend calling for a reservation on weekends, as it’s a very popular restaurant. It’s the largest steakhouse in Medellín but it can get pretty busy on popular days. We called for a reservation since we went on a Saturday night.

I wanted to have one of the imported Angus steaks and chose the Rib-eye steak, which cost 59,900 pesos ($19.57). My wife wanted a “surf and turf” and chose the solomito con langostinos (filet with jumbo shrimp), which also cost 59,900 pesos

The steaks were perfectly cooked as usual and we also had a bottle of good Argentinian Malbec wine and also shared a dessert, a chocolate torte with vanilla ice cream.

The total for the two of us for dinner including the wine, some sides and a shared dessert was 243,000 pesos ($79).

The Menu at San Carbon

The menu at the restaurant primarily includes meats since it’s a steakhouse. The imported Angus steaks like the Rib-eye and New York steaks each cost 59,000 pesos.

They have many other non-Angus steaks including Churrasco and several Solomitos, which range in price from 36,900 pesos to 54,900 pesos. I especially like the filet with jalapeño sauce that I have had several times before.

Note the steaks don’t come with sides but they have many options for sides including French fries, baked potatoes, beans, rice, vegetables, bread and pasta.

The restaurant also has short ribs that cost 56,900 pesos and several pork options ranging in price from 32,900 pesos to 33,900 pesos.

The menu also includes several chicken and fish dishes ranging in price from 32,900 pesos to 49,900 pesos.

They also have a couple ceviche options for 20,900 pesos. Appetizers range in price from 10,900 pesos to 18,900 pesos. I recommend the stuffed Portabelo. San Carbon also has a salad bar.

There’s also a bar plus a good selection of wines. The restaurant serves many types of beers as well as natural juices and sodas.

How to Get There

San Carbon is located in El Poblado along Avenida Las Palmas.

The best way to get there is to take a taxi or Uber, many taxi drivers or Uber drivers will know where it is, just tell them “San Carbon restaurante – Avenida Las Palmas”.

The bottom line if you are looking for a good steak in a nice setting San Carbon is recommended as it’s among the best steakhouses in the city that is popular with locals.