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It was a Thursday evening in early January 2004 and we wanted to try some place new (to us) and fun. We settled on Grasshopper, the Asian small-plate place, and made our way to Berkeley only to find that the place was packed and there were several people waiting. It was an unusually cold night and Michaela seemed to be unusually tired, so we decided to go someplace else. Buttercup was just across the street so we headed there. Buttercup offers a pan-Latin American menu with a concentration of Mexican dishes. Most of their tapas, for example, are basic Mexican appetizers. Their menu is not very expensive, with most dishes in the teens. If you are hungry, you probably should order an appetizer as they don't serve free tortilla chips or anything of the sort. I had the guacamole (served with tortilla chips) and it was quite good (though not outstanding). As my main entre I went for a Venezuelan (or was it Colombian?) marinated steak topped with a mustard sauce. I wasn't too impressed. The steak was the thin, rubbery sort that is often served as "New York steak" in Mexican restaurants. The sauce was very light and in need of some seasoning. I wouldn't order it again. My sister Kathy went for the Argentine breaded veal. It wasn't like any milanesa I've had in Argentina as it came with a heavy sauce, but Kathy really liked it. She'd order it again. Mike had a Pamplona de pollo, chicken stuffed with mushrooms, spinach and other things (cheese?). He liked it, though. We skipped desert (I don't remember if they served it). All in all it was a good experience, I'm not crazy for Latin American food in general, but I can see going back there if we are in the neighborhood. Buttercup 3209 College Ave Berkeley, CA 510 652 -3466