Time Out Buenos Aires

Reviews

Wednesday, July 8, 20090

Time Out
Insiders Guide 2009

Just a quick trio of new reviews for the guide

Astrid & Gastón

The onslaught of Peruvian-Asian fusion restaurants is new to Buenos Aires, but not to star chef Gastón Arcurio, who has been experimenting with these flavors for years throughout his global empire of 38 restaurants. The question on everyone’s lips when his chef protege Roberto Grau took the reins here in Buenos Aires was, will locals eat this food? Very smartly, Roberto toned down the heat levels during the first few weeks and inched them up to find the right balance between the restaurant’s notable style and the tolerance level of porteño palates. The food is beautifully presented and complexly flavored and is accompanied by a smartly chosen wine and selection of pisco cocktails. Desserts are impeccable as is the service. The one downside, perhaps, is the decor of the dining rooms whose near glowing vermilion and off-green walls are reminiscent of being sat down in the middle of a cocktail olive. A&G is up there on the price scale, so be prepared to stretch your credit limit.

Astrid & Gastón, Lafinur 3222, Palermo chico, 4802-2991

PozoSanto

While all the rage seems to be Peruvian-Asian fusion, chef Rafael Rivera Danila has struck out along the path of Peruvian fused with Mediterranean, an idea whose time was probably long overdue. Danila turns out inspired combinations like lasagna filled with one of our favorite Peruvian dishes, ají de gallina and one of the best causas we’ve ever had – a room temp mashed potato dish topped with seafood, paired not only with its perfectly cooked prawns atop, but deliciously juicy breaded fish gougeres on the side. In addition, the restaurant has one of the most handsome rooms in the city, beautifully decked out in a mix of Peruvian artifacts and handicrafts set against expanses of neat brick, panes of glass, and a waiting lounge that doubles as a small garden. Service is beyond reproach. While expensive, PozoSanto is not outrageous, and the food is well worth it.

PozoSanto, El Salvador 4968, Palermo, 4833-1611

Pan y Arte

The new hot spot for the food cognoscenti is the up and coming barrio of Boedo. While no one has yet opened up (thankfully) a bastion of haute cuisine, it is home to small parrillas and cafés that serve up some of the city’s better Argentine cuisine. This spot stands out as, perhaps the sole producer in town of Mendocino cooking. Among the best of the offerings is Pizza al campo mendocino, a smoky-crusted version with fresh tomatoes, herbs, and a wonderfully tangy fresh-made farmer’s cheese. There’s a changing roster of local artwork on display, a terrace for special events, and outdoor seating where you can sit and watch the local nightlife pass by. Service is friendly and casual, prices are easy on the wallet, and you can proudly proclaim your food-insider status having eaten in a neighborhood other than Recoleta, Palermo or San Telmo.

Pan y Arte, Av. Boedo 878, Boedo, 4957-6702

In mid-2006, I started writing for Time Out Buenos Aires. With changes in their way of conducting business, I decided to part company with them after my last article and set of reviews in mid-2009.

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The razzle-dazzle resto brigade

Wednesday, July 8, 20090

Time Out
Insider’s Guide 2009
Page 21

rooms

The razzle-dazzle resto brigade
Ramp up the drama and dine in spectacular surroundings

There’s no question that the food is of paramount importance to most people when dining out; but for many, even those who don’t stop to think about it, the ambiance is of equal value. It brings an added dimension to the dining experience when you’re seated in a beautiful room, be it opulent or simple, with good lighting, where not only is it attractive to view your surroundings, but you and your guests look just that little bit better. After all, even if we profess to like eating in little hole-in-the-walls, we do try to avoid looking around too much, or too closely.

At the truly opulent end of BA dining, there are a few standouts, and one well known to lovers of interior decor is El Bistro at the Faena Hotel + Universe, (Martha Salotti 445 in Puerto Madero Este, 4010-9200). This Phillipe Starck fantasy in white, gold and dashes of red, with unicorns gazing down from the walls, leaves you and yours to provide the color. Set against this backdrop, we all look good – and what better environment could there be for the chef’s presentations of that darling of the culinary vanguard, molecular gastronomy? Another, far less well-known dazzling dining room is at the century-old Club Español (Bernardo Irigyoyen 180, 4342-4380), and its restaurant, Palacio Español. Behind the building’s beautiful tiled facade is a highly ornate salon with vaulted ceiling, tall columns, gold filigree, beautiful lighting, stunning painting and statuary, and a balcony area for semi-private dining. Classic dishes of Spain are the main event in terms of food, including a don’t miss paella.

Not all opulence has to come with a high price-tag, and where Buenos Aires excels in this area are its cafés from a bygone era. While every guidebook out there will point you towards the center of town and the touristy atmosphere of the famed Café Tortoni, we’d like to recommend some more offbeat locales for sipping an espresso and watching the world walk by. The first, L’Orangerie, is the garden salon in the Alvear Palace Hotel in Recoleta, where white-gloved waiting staff still serve afternoon tea at 5pm, complete with tiers of dainty sandwiches, delicate pastries and custom blended teas, as they have for nearly 80 years. Another café well worth the trip is Las Violetas (Rivadavia 3899, 4958 7387), where you sit nursing your coffee in a three-story high café of white and gold that could easily be the fantasy setting for a Hollywood movie. Or if you truly want an ambiance from days gone by, a trip to the somewhat seedy Retiro Train Station offers up the chance to seek out the old Café Retiro at one end, a former ballroom and site of state events that still sports unexpectedly lovely interior architecture under a vaulted glass cupola built in the late 1800s. Several nights a week the café offers up live jazz and tango shows, cultural activities and art exhibitions in the soft glow of the elaborate chandeliers.

Paradoxically, many of the most beautiful ambiances in which to dine are hidden away behind plain façades, often with a bit of graffiti, or a touch of decay – perhaps to hide the fact that behind these simple walls are modern takes on spots to see and be seen in. Local star chef Germán Martitegui of Casa Cruz and Olsen fame has recently opened his own spot, Tegui (Costa Rica 5852, 5291-3333), in Palermo, with bold swathes of black, white, glass and chrome, a garden area, a gleaming open kitchen, and pinpoint perfect lighting that makes guests as much the stars as the exquisite food. Still upscale, but significantly less expensive, is Recoleta’s Teatriz (Riobamba 1220, 4811-1915), a relaxed, somewhat dreamy room, hidden behind gauzy curtains, reminiscent of an old Paris bistro where you can dine on elegantly presented, creative local cuisine. Taking a similar approach, but with a latin twist is the new PozoSanto (El Salvador 4968, Palermo, 4833-1611), with its soaring glass and brick architecture decked out with artifacts and handicrafts from southern Peru. From the outside, you’d never know that one of the city’s most handsome rooms is hidden behind a red-painted concrete wall. Likewise, behind a slightly rundown old façade is the understated yet elegant dining room at Pura Tierra (3 de Febrero 1167, in Belgrano, 4899-2007), where it’s well worth setting yourself down for dinner. In addition to chef Martín Molteni’s exquisite cuisine, the open wood-burning hearth, the pressed tin ceilings, and the gorgeous stained glass windows make for a memorable evening.

Last but by no means least, there’s the simple, minimalist style of several Asian dining spots. One of our favorites is BuddhaBA (Arribeños 2288, 4706-2382) in Belgrano’s Barrio Chino, with its vermillion walls, Buddha statues and beautiful floral arrangements, a separate tea garden, and small art gallery. We’re also quite fond of the traditional home style of the best (and hardest to get into) sushi bar in the city, Yuki (Pasco 740, 4942-7510). Right out of a movie set, the rice paper and bamboo walls, with sliding partitions, give a sense of both intimacy and community. Likewise the geisha house atmosphere of Nihonbashi (Moreno 2095, 4951-7381) with kimono-clad waitresses, constant pampering, and excellent Japanese food, particularly the shabu-shabu hot pot, never fails to remind us of one or another James Bond movies.

In mid-2006, I started writing for Time Out Buenos Aires. With changes in their way of conducting business, I decided to part company with them after my last article and set of reviews in mid-2009.

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Made in Argentina

Thursday, January 8, 20090

Time Out
Buenos Aires for Visitors
Summer/Autumn 2009
Page 55

puratierra

Made in Argentina
We salute the emergence of a new wave of chefs unafraid of mixing tradition with innovation.

With a focus on new uses for local and regional ingredients, Martín Molteni, chef at Pura Tierra, is experimenting with feverish intensity to find the best ways to use those products that Argentinians have forgotten are part of their heritage – quinoa, amaranth, herbs, wild game and fish. In his view, ‘Argentina is a nation in search of a culinary identity… it is the responsibility of chefs to not just help someone get their certification but to develop their future, their palates and their curiosity.’

Chef Molteni takes classic regional dishes – primarily fish and game dishes, and others which utilzie these lost ingredients – carefully deconstructs them, and puts them back together as spectacularly presented plates that would not be out of place in a top dining establishment in any food capital of the world.

One of the things he focuses on is the lack of inspiration and drive among young chefs to get themselves out there and learn, experience and grow. His approach with both staff and customers is to guide them through tasting the purity of individual ingredients, each prepared in a variety of ways that show off, say, a tomato, at its best. a recent visit showcased them at their best: cured bondiola, one of Argentina’s favorite cold-cuts, alongside amazingly small cubes of fresh tomato; an intense tomato compote served beneath a locally made artesanal burrata cheese; and moments later a cut of ocean-fresh corvina atop roasted tomatoes. He is working to generate in others the same curiosity that he discovered in himself as he spent 16 years working in other chefs’ kitchens in Argentina, Australia and France.

For his part, chef Javier Urondo, of Urondo Bar in Parque Chacabuco, takes as his creative starting point what the average visitor or local might consider the ‘cuisine of Buenos Aires’ – tablas, milanesas, steak, french fries, and so on. His plates are easily recognizable as Argentinian. As he puts it, ‘I like to serve everyday dishes with something simple and different that makes them surprising.’ A perfect example would be a beautifully seared steak served with a spicy garlic puree and accompanied by a risotto flavored with his home-made horseradish mustard; or his signature copetín, a classic collection of vegetables and meat hors d’oeuvres that any Argentinian would recognize – until they bite in and experience the influence of exotic herbs and spices, a different technique applied to each one. He sees hope for the future of local cuisine, with new sources of fresh fruits and vegetables, meat, fish and dairy emerging – all things that Argentina excels at producing, but historically has exported rather than offered to its own citizens. However, as more locals travel, and more foreigners arrive, the interest and demand for ‘something more’ has arisen.

Some of this demand is being satisfied by ‘ethnic’ restaurants serving cuisine from Asia or other Latin American countries. Some is being addressed by the culinary vanguard, with modern techniques and presentations and a strong European or North American base. More recently, there’s been a quietly growing movement of ‘modern Argentinian’ cooking, with chefs like the two profiled above and others like Diego Félix at Casa Félix and Martín Baquero at Almanza, taking the lead. Local dining is already looking more interesting.

In mid-2006, I started writing for Time Out Buenos Aires. With changes in their way of conducting business, I decided to part company with them after my last article and set of reviews in mid-2009.

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Bite-sized bliss

Thursday, January 8, 20090

Time Out
Buenos Aires for Visitors
Summer/Autumn 2009
Page 46

vineria

Bite-sized bliss
Brush up your skills in the fine art of grazing

Whether you want to call it grazing, small plate food, dim sum, meze, tapas or a chef’s tasting menu, what we’re talking about is gettin gthe chance to sample a lot of small bites of different, interesting food at one sitting. It’s a different way of eating from the traditional three-course dinner, and it tantalizes your palate in a different manner – and makes choosing a dish less of an all-or-nothing situation. It’s also, with the exception of buffet-style eating, fairly new for Buenos Aires.

While many Argentinian restaurants offer what’s called a tabla, it’s often little more than a platter of cold-cuts, cheese and olives. One exception is Breoghan in San Telmo, where you can choose from an array of tablas that offer up exquisite delicacies from Patagonia – fish, game, cheese, vegetables and fruits, in any combination your heart desires – or go for it all with the grand Quimey, a little bite of everything on the menu.

On the tapas side, there’s really only one choice, and thankfully, it’s a good one. Tancat (Paraguay 645, 4312 5442) in the Microcentro offers up a large array of tasty grilled and fried dishes and specializes in seafood and vegetables. While you can grab a table with friends and hang out and order a bit of this and a bit of that, the best thing to do here is to seat yourself at the long bar and start pointing.

When it comes to a chef’s tasting menu, there are three standout places, all of them offering up creatives twists on Argentinian fare and bringing in dishes and flavors from other parts of the world. In the cozy, inviting setting of Thymus you can din on seared duck breast, melt-on-your-tongue lamb’s tongue, or gorgeous roast quail. Or, get yourself into the funky and creative fare at De Olivas i Lustres (Gorriti 3972, Palermo Viejo, 4867 3388), where you’ll find your tastebuds tantalized by plate after plate of little one-bite hors d’oeuvres like ceviche sandwiches, passionfruit alphabet ‘soup’, or the strange sounding but delicious melted cheese with poppyseed caramel. If you really want to put your palate through its paces, you’ll be pleased to know that BA is now home to one of the disciples of Ferran Adrià of Spain’s El Bulli: At La Vinería de Gaulterio Bolivar in San Telmo, you can sample your way through 11 plates of ever-changing, creative cocina de vanguardia, each dish expertly paired with a local wine.

For those who want to step outside traditional or modern Argentinian cuisine, it’s worht nothing that there are two spots that offer up Chinese dim sum (not the classic cart service, but menus that list dozens of options for small plates that you can spread over your table and sample). They are Shi Yuan (Tagle 2531, 4804 0607) in Recoleta, which is also one of the better Chinese restaurants in town, and a few blocks away, Cinco Corderos (Avenida Las Heras 2920, 4806 9466). BA is also home to a very large Armenian community, as well as substantial Syrian and Lebanese ones, and two spots where you can sample lots of such specialties are Sarkis, where you shouldn’t miss the hummus or tabouleh salad, and Cheff Iusef (Malabia 1378, 4773 0450), with its spectacular kebbe de levanie, Both are in Palermo.

In mid-2006, I started writing for Time Out Buenos Aires. With changes in their way of conducting business, I decided to part company with them after my last article and set of reviews in mid-2009.

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Wine and dine

Friday, February 8, 20080

Time Out
Buenos Aires for Visitors
Summer/Autumn 2008
Page 68

wining

Wine and dine
Where can apprentice oenologists sample great glasses? Dan Perlman goes in search of great bars.

Although getting a decent glass of wine in a bar or restaurant is far easier here than getting a decent cocktail, but then ‘decent’is a relative term. Most places offer up no more than a couple of regular wines by the glass, and if you’re lucky the bartender may even know the name of what they’re pouring into your glass. So if you’re more into quaffing the grape than you are downing a martini, where should you go for a large selection with knowledgeable and friendly service?

The ‘gran-daddy’of the local wine bar scene is Gran Bar Danzón. Low tables, lots of gleaming chrome, and the constant beat of house music give you a sense of the style of the place. But don’t be fooled into thinking this is some spot for brightly colored cocktails (although they offer a good number of those), they also offer constantly changing wine lists of over 200 selections, many available by the glass. Not surprising given that the owners also stand behind top restaurants Sucre and Bar Uriarte, both known for their wines. Danzón also has a well-staffed kitchen that churns out creative sushi and twists on local fare. Expect to shell out a fair amount for a visit, but the quality makes it all worthwhile.

A true newcomer on the scene, Portezuelo (Vicente López 2160, 4806 9462, www. portezeueloweb.com.ar) is the hotspot for wine in the trendy, if a bit touristy, Village Recoleta. Still, after stopping to lay flowers at Evita’s tomb or wandering the Recoleta artisan fair, you may find yourself in need of refreshment. Here you can pop yourself down in a faux old-time pub, livened by pumping hip hop and electonica. They may be into partying, but they’re also deadly serious about their beverage offerings with a regularly changing list of 15-20 wines by the cuartino (quarter liter carafe). While the wines tend to come from the major players, the variety is good, and it’s a great intro to Argentinian wines. The food is mainly of the steak and chips bent, but a perfectly reasonable proposition.

If you’re into the modern art scene, you’ll no doubt find yourself at some point visiting the MALBA. Or perhaps you’ll find yourself across the street at Renault’s Museum of Art, Science and Technology, catering to your inner nerd. Either way, Club Museo (Avenida Figueroa Alcorta 3399, 4802 9626, www.museorenault.com.ar) is a must. Offering up creative international cuisine and sushi, it is a nice way to attract museum clientele, but the real draw here is the wide ranging wine choice that doesn’t stick to the usual suspects. Top that off with more than two dozen selections by the glass (AR$9-23) from a changing selection from lesser known lines as well as the major producers, and you’ve got a winning combination.

Quite possibly the most serious of wine bars is the nearly hidden Epicureos (Soldado de la Independencia 851, 4772 8108, www.epicureos.com). This casual restaurant – deck furniture and directors’chairs, and a beautiful little garden in the rear – also doubles up as a wine shop. It has two major things going for it: a truly great kitchen turning out creative, interesting and delicious food, and access to a well-stocked and well-thought out winery. [Note: I swear, my original copy said ‘wine cellar’.] A regularly changing roster of more than 20 wines by the glass, truly covering the range of varietals and regions of the country, mostly from real, boutique level producers not the commercial biggies. With prices starting at AR$5, it’s a better bargain than any other wine bar in the city.

And finally, for a touch of true elegance, it would be impossible to pass up the stunning Park Hyatt Hotel. Home of several restaurants and bars, wine aficionados ust hund down the wine and cheese bar. It stocks a major collection of international wines, with a good selection offered by the glass. Thankfully a sommelier is always in attendance to guide your tastes. They also offer regular tastings where you can work your way through a particular winery, or style, with the expert assistance of the hotel’s wine director. The bar also has its own cheese ageing room, and is one of the few spots in town where you can sample the best of Argentina’s and other countries’ cheeses along with a glass of the grape. Can you imagine anything better?

In mid-2006, I started writing for Time Out Buenos Aires. With changes in their way of conducting business, I decided to part company with them after my last article and set of reviews in mid-2009.

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Melting pots

Friday, February 8, 20080

Time Out
Buenos Aires for Visitors
Summer/Autumn 2008
Page 20

Melting pots
Dan Perlman takes a tour through the gastronomic delights of Argentina’s far flung provinces without leaving city limits.

Argentina is 3,800 km (2,360 miles) north to south and 1,420 km (884 miles) east to west. That’s just less than 30 percent of the size of the United States; the eastern states of Canada and all of the UK would sit quite comfortably inside the province of Buenos Aires alone. In short, Argentina is a very big country indeed.

No surprise then that food culture varies markedly throughout the country. Fortunately, BA is pretty much the focal point of the country, so you don’t need to leave the capital city to get a chance to stab your fork into these tasty regional dishes.

Food from the north-west area of the country is well represented. What might be called Argentina’s rustic simply styled ‘mountain cuisin’, is featured in Jujuy, Salta, Tucumán, Catamarca and Santiago del Estero. Their rich hearty meals for example, locro (corn, potato, squash and meat stew), carbonada (stew of meat, vegetable and occasionally fruit), and mondongo (tripe stew) are often left in a pot simmering over the fire all day, ingredients being added over the course of one or more dinners. Many of these dishes share influences throughout the Altiplano, a region that extends into northern Chile, southern Peru and Bolivia.

Spots to sample this cuisine tend to be casual, almost lunch counter affairs usually starting with empanadas (turnovers), tamales or humitas (stuffed cornmeal dough steamed in corn husks) followed by a stew. The menus often offer little else, maybe a simple house wine and a flan casero (home-made flan) for dessert. Among our favorites are the two branches of La Cocina (Pueyrredón 1508, 4825 3171; Florida 142, 4326 7892). They focus on the reasonably spicy cooking of Catamarca. Their locro is easily one of the best in town, and offered with a choice of chilli sauce with various cheesy add-ons.

The cooking of Tucumán and Salta is probably best represented by the always popular La Querencia (Junin y Juncal, 4821 1888). Here the empanadas arrive with cracker like crusts and are stuffed with a variety of interesting fillings, but spicing tends to be more muted in comparison to other north-western regions. For the somewhat more picante cooking of Santiago del Estero, the empanadas at La Familia (Chile 984) in San Telmo are delicious if you don’t mind takeout only.

The north-east, strangely, is not well represented – the provinces of Formos, Chaco, Missiones, and Corrientes ahve a cuisine that’s heavily influenced by neighboring Paraguay. Often there is a stall at the weekend Mataderos gaucho fair that serves up excellent food from Paraguay and the north-east, well worth the trek if you’re a foodie.

For the specialty fish of the Paraná river that weaves through Santa Fé and Entre Rios, Jangada (Bonpland 1670, 4773 0411) in Palermo serves simple, perfectly grilled fish straight off the parrilla with just a touch of herbs, oil, and lemon.

Off to the west, Mendoza and San Juan are etter showcased. In a spot combining Mendozan art with the cuisine, Pan y Teatro (Las Casas 4095, 4924 6920, www.panyteatro.com.ar) in Boedo has superb pastel mendocino (potatoes flavored with a cinnamon and sugar mixture) and rabbit stewed in white wine. San Juan as the ‘don’t miss’, truly ‘don’t miss’, outposts of El Sanjuanino (Posadas 1515, 4804 2909; Sanchez de Bustamante 1788, 4822 8080; Pedro Goyena 700, 4924 0888, www.elsanjuanino.com) in Palermo, Recoleta and Caballito respectively, serving up divine empanadas and tamales.

Moving on south, the multi-province region – generally known as Patagonia, is easily the best covered part of the country. You could spend weeks just trying out all the little, and not so little, eateries that cover the rich culinary heritage of the forests, mountains, and coastline. Game, fish, and shellfish are strongly represented and interesting fruits, especially berries, figure in much of the cuisine. It’s also, in some ways, a more contemporary culinary experience, with many of the more creative chefs in the city featuring Patagonian ingredients with modern twists on classic cooking. The most famous is probably Patagonia Sur in La Boca, where star chef Francis Mallmann offers up high end dining at a high end price. Easier on the wallet is Aires de Patagonia, in Puerto Madero, which turns out beautifully elegant cuisine. Likewise the San Telmo and Palermo Hollywood locales of Divina Patagonia serve delicious modern versions of dishes such as venison with chocolate sauce, wild boar with raspberries, the famed Patagonian lamb in a variety of ways, and some wonderful seafood dishes that are equally creative.

For a more simple approach, it’s hard to miss San Telmo’s Mitico Sur. You can order from a alarge number of regional wines, paired with a variety of tablas – platters loaded with Patagonian specialities such as locally made cheeses, cured meats, smoked fish, pickled vegetables, and plenty of lamb – and nibble away to your heart’s content.

In mid-2006, I started writing for Time Out Buenos Aires. With changes in their way of conducting business, I decided to part company with them after my last article and set of reviews in mid-2009.

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Malbec or bust?

Tuesday, August 7, 20070

Time Out
Buenos Aires for Visitors
Winter/Spring 2007
Page 64

timeout0708wine

Malbec or bust?
Dan Perlman finds a bottle for every budget

To some, it’s a ‘full-bodied explosion of currant fruit and notes of cocoa with subtle toasty oak and a long finish’. To others, ‘it’s just grape juice’. Forget politics or religion; a topic that truly polarizes the average dinner party crowd is wine, especially when the discussion turns into long-winded, pedantic arguments that inevitably end in the suggestion that the group orders a pricey bottle. And in most restaurants, a hundred dollars will get you some pretty amazing ‘grape juice’.

But, it’s not all about the money. For most of us its about the simple pleasure of enjoying a bottle of wine with friends, over a nice meal. Fortunately for connoisseurs and casual enthusiasts alike, Argentina produces a range of fine wines to suit all palates and budgets.

The good news for wine lovers of little means (or those who just don’t want to deal with pretentious sales staff in the city’s high-end wine shops) [Note: that parenthetical was added by my editor, who has a vastly different view of sommeliers and salespeople than I do.] is that you don’t need to go into a specialty store to pick up a drinkable bottle of red. Most basic grocery stores stock San Felipe ‘Doce Uvas’, a spicy, fruity blend of twelve different grapes that’ll cost you AR$8 in a shop and around AR$15 in a restaurant. Yup, we’re talking about the quirky, squat oval bottle on sale alongside shampoo and instant soup at your neighborhood supermarket.

In the same budget range, there’s an entire line of wines from a subsidiary of the well known Bodega Esmeralda, that are bottled with an eye towards emphasizing the pure flavors of individual grapes. There are a dozen of them, and so far all worth trying, but the current standout of the Rodas Colección 12 is their Petite Verdot, which will set you back about AR$8-9 in stores and around AR$15-18 in restaurants.

It’s a shame that these wines haven’t picked up more of a following in the restaurant world, because they’re amazingly food friendly – a line of Shiraz (or Syrah) blends coming from Bodegas Callia out of San Juan province – but if you see one, grab it. My personal favorite is the Callia Alta Shiraz-Tannat, a bold, spicy wine that’s a great steak complement – at AR$10-12 in stores and AR$18-20 in the few scattered dining spots that carry it, it’s a steal.

There’s a lot of competition in the next price range up, in fact, something around the AR$20-25 mark, or about AR$15-18 in stores. We’re partial to the Finca La Linda line, which isn’t obscure, but certainly isn’t one of the usual suspects, either. Their Tempranillo is particularly good.

For those who like to allocate more of their budget to wine, lay down AR$25-30 for a bottle of Sur de Los Andes Bonarda. While there’s as much of this grape planted in Argentina as there is Malbec, it’s not nearly as well known, but ought to be.

We haven’t recommended a Malbec yet. Where does the Argentinian classic fit in the budget list? It’s not that there aren’t good ones in the lower price ranges, but for our money, Malbec tends to shine when you hit the mid to higher range bottles. Our top pick in the next price range up is Malbec de Ricardo Santos, which costs about AR$35-40 in stores and AR$50-60 in a restaurant. It’s a beautifully structured unoaked Malbec, exactly what the grape is all about.

If your group appreciates the finer things but still wants to keep a bit of a rein on the budget, try a relatively new wine out of Salta, a blend of Malbec and Cabernet from high-altitude producer Raul Davidos. Bodega Tacuil “RD” is a true stunner, packed with fruit and amazingly balanced. Coming in at about AR$65 in stores and AR$80-90 in restaurants, the bottle can still be considered affordable.

One of the best known Argentinian wineries is Escorihuela Gascon. A couple of years ago they introduced a line of limited production wines, each of which is exceptional. Our personal favorite is the Escorihuela Gascon “Pequeños Producciones” Barbera, which will set you back AR$80-90 pesos in shops, and around AR$120 in restaurants.

Dig deep in your wallet: we’re heading upmarket towards some of the best bottles in Argentina, or indeed anywhere. The top-end wines – AR$100-500 in restaurants – just keep getting better and better. If you’re up for spending around AR$90 in the stores and AR$125 or so in restaurants, Trapiche Ciento Viente Años is a great blend of Malbec, Cabernet, and Petite Verdot.

The grand prize of Argentinian wine goes to a bottle that sings Malbec, San Pedro de Yacochuya, a wine from the Michel Rolland stable, which, depending on vintage, will set you back anywhere from AR$150-300 in stores and AR$250-500 at the table. If that works for your wallet and ‘grape juice’craving, you can’t do much better.

In mid-2006, I started writing for Time Out Buenos Aires. With changes in their way of conducting business, I decided to part company with them after my last article and set of reviews in mid-2009.

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More tea, padre?

Tuesday, August 7, 20070

Time Out
Buenos Aires for Visitors
Winter/Spring 2007
Page 70

timeout0708tea

More tea, padre?
You heard us. Hip porteños are getting into… afternoon tea. Dan Perlman reports.

It’s a regular refrain we hear from visitors, “I just assumed with the Italian influence that I could get a good espresso here… so where can I find one?” It’s a good question. Make no mistake, porteños have the raw materials – quality coffee beans and equipment are readily available in BA. But strangely enough, it’s actually easier to find a good cup of tea.

We’re not talking about your basic orange pekoe in a bag. Yes, many, if not most places, use teabags, but there are some great local producers of teas and tea blends, including well known brands like Inti-Zen, Cachamai, Evy, and Gold Beginning. Higher-end restaurants often offer a selection, ranging from basic black or green, on up to various fruit and herbal blends.

Anyone can enjoy the simple but sublime pleasure of a cup of tea, the true tea aficionado, however, will appreciate the services of our own local tea guru, Inés Berton In addition to running her world class tea blending company, Tealosophy, she’s also the force behind Inti-Zen, and the soon-to-be-introduced Chamán herbal blends.

Ms. Berton is a returned porteña who grew up in BA and initially trained as a perfume blender; she later switched gears to pursue her passion for tea. She has worked in Paris, London, and New York, blending teas for some of the top importers, and notably, she’s served as personal blender to the King and Queen of Spain, as well as to the Dalai Lama. She’s a tireless world traveler who goes straight to the source, standing in the tea fields in southern China supervising the picking of only the best leaves, herbs from southern France, and vanilla from Madagascar. Most recently, a month working with herb-picking shamans in the highlands of Perú. It’s impossible to sit down with her and not come away passionate about drinking tea – her enthusiasm is infectious, and her shop, at No. 37 in the promenade alongside the Hotel Alvear, along with it’s attached tea salon, is a scented heaven.

Working with virtually every top hotel, and many of the best restaurants in the city, Berton creates custom blends for each customer, working with the venue’s chef to come up with flavors that fit the tenor of the cuisine. As one of only 11 acknowledged “tea blenders” in the world, she’s much in demand.

So where does Ms. Berton recommend “taking tea”? She advocates the elegant experience of a full afternoon tea at hotels like the Alvear, the Cesar Park, and the Park Hyatt – where, come 5pm, the salons fill with the dedicated chamomile-swillers. After a brief tour of hotel-hosted teas, we’d tout the amazing experience of taking tea at the Alvear in particular – the house blended almond tea is a true eye-opener, and if you think you know what Earl Grey is all about, think again.

Looking for something more low key? For more casual venues, Ms. Berton has some suggestions too. She’s particularly fond of Tea Connection (corner of Uriburu and Pacheco de Melo), where more than a dozen blends of teas stack up well against the kitchen’s wonderful selection of fresh sandwiches, tarts, scones, and salads. Mark’s Deli (El Salvador 4701 in Palermo Viejo) is another of her favorites along with i Fresh Market in Puerto Madero.

In mid-2006, I started writing for Time Out Buenos Aires. With changes in their way of conducting business, I decided to part company with them after my last article and set of reviews in mid-2009.

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Magazine articles, Time Out Buenos Aires

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