Food revolution bypasses Buenos Aires

[Ries]

I think there ARE portenos who are interested in a food revolution- just not all of them.

I find that there is some amazing food to be had here, if you seek it out.
Not on the scale of Peru- but Peru is different, for many reasons.

Still, before you slam Argentina once again with a broad brush (which seems to be SO popular here), I would insist you eat at a few places I love to eat.

Casa Felix, for one.
If you think all there is to eat is empanadas and boring old asado, you will be proven wrong here.
http://www.diegofelix.com/
this restaurant can hold its own with any restaurant in any city in the world. Truly amazing food.

I really liked Sifones y Dragones, as well. Asian/Argentine fusion, cooked in front of you by chefs who are worldly and serious.
http://www.guiaoleo.com.ar/detail.php?ID=158

I havent tried it yet, but I have heard great things about Bar Urondo.
http://www.urondobar.com.ar/

There are more, of course- in a city of 4 million, there are always adventurous chefs and diners. Its just taking a bit longer, but slow food, local ingredients, and experimentation ARE coming to BsAs.
You just gotta look for it.

 

[perry]

I think there ARE portenos who are interested in a food revolution- just not all of them.

I find that there is some amazing food to be had here, if you seek it out.
Not on the scale of Peru- but Peru is different, for many reasons.

Still, before you slam Argentina once again with a broad brush (which seems to be SO popular here), I would insist you eat at a few places I love to eat.

Casa Felix, for one.
If you think all there is to eat is empanadas and boring old asado, you will be proven wrong here.
http://www.diegofelix.com/
this restaurant can hold its own with any restaurant in any city in the world. Truly amazing food.

I really liked Sifones y Dragones, as well. Asian/Argentine fusion, cooked in front of you by chefs who are worldly and serious.
http://www.guiaoleo.com.ar/detail.php?ID=158

I havent tried it yet, but I have heard great things about Bar Urondo.
http://www.urondobar.com.ar/

There are more, of course- in a city of 4 million, there are always adventurous chefs and diners. Its just taking a bit longer, but slow food, local ingredients, and experimentation ARE coming to BsAs.
You just gotta look for it.

Yes of course there are great restaurants in this city of 4 million and the few that you have recommended are very good but the topic is not about restaurants only its about the lack of innovation of cooking that is endemic in this society. I for the life do not find it arrogant to ask a simple question to the group that this is sad and creates in many peoples eyes lack of culture.

It is tiring to hear those comments from others that this is Argentina bashing. I live and work here and have residency here I could live in Europe or Australia but choose to make my life here.
I believe that many aspects of Argentine society to be appealing.
I find Buenos Aires to be a very vibrant city with excellent cultural life and a great mix of old and new architecture. I am also a great lover of Tango and the occasional rock nacional. I have a long list of things I love in this city . One of them Ries are the Taxi Drivers of Buenos Aires who in my opinion are the worlds best . I have caught over 1000 cabs here and have only had a handful of unpleasant experiences. The majority are honest, good drivers and will always charge you less if you have only notes . I have learnt more from them than any other group in Buenos Aires. Thank you Tacheros.

Unfortunately I do not find the food In Buenos Aires to be good on the basic level. Can anyone tell me where they can find good sandwiches here in a delicatessen? A simple Thai stir fry that will not cost 35 pesos and is served in a fast food place? A decent hamburger? Fish and Chips?
The list can go on and on.

 

[TomAtAlki]

There is always cooking.
nancy

 

[Napoleon]

I constantly ask the Argentines why they have such boring food. On every block a parilla, an italian place, and two or three pizza/empanada places. They don't have an answer. It was fun for a few weeks on my first visit to Argentina but after living here for two years, I just don't even have interest in eating anymore. Well, I could afford to lose a few pounds.

I have an answer... or at least one of my students last year had an answer. (He is ~32, married, two small children.)

I mentioned that ~95% of the restaurants in Buenos Aires have the same exact menu. (I know that this is an exaggeration, but still.) There are 4 main food groups + "lunch" (any form of jamon y queso that you could want).

-Carne (prepared with salt only)
-Pizza/Empanadas (they are in the same family)
-Fried stuff (milanesas)
-Overcooked pasta

He responded- "Yeah?"

I asked "Why is that all you guys have on the menu?"

His answer "When we go to eat, we don't like complications."

I told him- "What you call complications, we call options."

I've said it before and I'll say it again. For the average porteño, food is something that you put in your mouth to give you energy to continue your day. It's what they use as an excuse to get together and talk with their friends.

In other cultures, food is the focus of the meal, not a side dish.

 

[RWS]

. . . . For the average porteño, food is . . . . an excuse to get together and talk with their friends.

In other cultures, food is the focus of the meal, not a side dish.

A major allure of Argentina (at least for me, who am refugeeing from a country long subjected to great pressures that, cumulatively, are now causing it to crumble into ruin) is its sociability. Of course, I like fine cuisine, too (and have the belly to show it). But, if I must choose between fine food and fine company, I'll live on pasta and water.

 

[nikad]

As a foodie, I have to agree that in general the average Argentine has a limited diet. I haven´t traveled around the world ( yet! ) but my guess is that except for US, Australia, UK, France, Italy, Spain cities and maybe a few more, most countries have a limited diet...try to have an asado in Peru...or good pasta in Germany...great pizza in Sweden (?). Also food options are more varied in the cities, but in small US towns you won´t find a much more than fast food chains ( Wendy´s, BK, MacDonalds, Dunkin Donuts, IHOP, Denny´s, etc ) and some local dinners...

 

[Fettucini]

Can anyone tell me where they can find good sandwiches here in a delicatessen? A simple Thai stir fry that will not cost 35 pesos and is served in a fast food place? A decent hamburger? Fish and Chips?
The list can go on and on.

There's a good place to get traditional english style fish and chips called Hermans oposite the botanical cat park. They have malt vinegar too.

 

[Fettucini]

I had an experience that i got quite annoyed with recently. A friend of mine who makes very good African style biltong back in England (i think it's something like beef jerky in US, dried spiced beef) sent a sample over to me in BA so i could test it on the locals for possible production and distribution.
For this particular batch he used spices and herbs, lemongrass etc and the result was very delicious (and also very popular back in UK), much more tasty than any Argentine meat i've had in a while. I tried it on a few foreigners (non-Argentines) and they loved it and kept asking for more, but when i tried it on my Argentine girlfriend and her mother they spat it out and said they didn't like it. It just really annoyed me how that sort of attitude towards food here is so narrow minded, kind of reminded me of some of the similar narrow minded attitudes towards musical taste in this country. I could go on but will stop there!

 

[mini]

Well, i admit im one of those bland food lover argentinians, guilty as charged. And as argentinian i believe that if there is no meat on the dish, it doesn't count as a meal.

It's cultural, it's wrong and it should change, but several centuries of eating nothing but meat kind of creates hard to change habits. This is mostly the reason whay dispite having thousands of kilometers of cost, sea food is relatively unknown in most of the country. It's also the reason why the average argentinian would choose beef before almost any other food.

In any case with the continuos decline of cattle over the past decades all this should change. It wouldn't surprise me if in a couple of year we have to import beef. So instead of rejecting argentine diet, embrace it, gorge yourself with as much top quality cheap meat as you can while it last, you will miss it when it's gone. I know i will...

With the over fishing crisis, we are going to miss fish & seafood too.

Anyway, thanks for giving us the Argentine point of view.

 

[cujodu]

But, if I must choose between fine food and fine company, I'll live on pasta and water.

Why in the world would you have to choose? It's pretty simple to have both, even possible here in Argentina.