Fancy Food Feasts: Buenos Aires aka “Is. It. Steak?!”
If you’ve never seen the show “Is It Cake?!”, you’ll be ok. But it is the inspiration for today’s post — IS. IT. STEAK?!
The post below documents the culinary highlights of our month-long stay in Buenos Aires, some world renowned, both steak and otherwise. They are pretty much all in the greater Palermo neighborhood, where we stayed. We got super lucky that there were so many excellent places nearby that we didn’t have to travel to other areas for delicious fare.
It’s Steak
Perhaps more than any other nation-food pair (with the possible exception of Italy and pasta), Argentina is the land of steak. The reputation is well deserved — on the streets of Buenos Aires steak is both delicious and cheap, sometimes at the same time! Moreover, it’s an adventure of discovery for the enthusiastic carnivore, because the cuts used are almost entirely different from the US. So much to explore!
We had inadvertently picked an AirBnB close to several renowned restaurants (at least among tourists), including Don Julio (see below). Don Julio happens to be in 2024’s top 10 best restaurants of the year. This establishment also has a butcher shop where you can buy the same steaks they cook in their Michelin star kitchen. I couldn’t resist trying my hand at one of them — and even with our lackluster pans, that was a damn fine ribeye!
But if you have the equipment to attempt an authentic Argentinian asado, I have you covered as well —
Home-cooked steak aside, here are a few of the best meat establishments in Buenos Aires.
Fogon
You probably thought I was going to start with Don Julio. Indeed, every person we asked for suggestion said “You have to try Don Julio”. But, actually, our favorite meat experience by far was Fogon Asado.
Their 9-course tasting menu takes meat to new heights. And there are also lots of cute touches that make for an amazing experience. First, everyone sits around the grills creating a communal experience with both the chefs and fellow foodie adventurers
You get a delicious welcome drink and a jar of chimichuri mix to take home that you make yourself
And meet the meat before it gets cooked. In fact it gets paraded before you and explained in detail. You peak behind the curtain — a circle of peeping toms we were
Of course, all the show would not make this an amazing experience if the result was not delicious. Luckily, this team produced some of the most mouth-watering and superbly dressed meat we have ever tried
Oh, and there is a flambéed crepe with dulce de leche (one of Argentina’s favorite desserts) at the end
All that is to say, if ever find yourself in Buenos Aires, whatever else you do, don’t miss Fogon! (Make the reservation a few weeks ahead of time, and keep in mind that lunch costs less but gives you the same exact experience.)
(Rating: 5/5, $$, Special Occasion)
Parilla Don Julio
A rare (😁) Michelin starred steak house, Don Julio is a darling of Instagram foodie cognoscenti. Its fame has reached such fever pitch that it is surrounded by a swarm of people hoping to get a table without that impossible to get reservation at all hours of the day, every day. Not having done our homework, we got supremely lucky to score a reservation three weeks out - immediately after the reservations opened for the month.
The place has lots of amazing sights. The kitchen is its own pit of carnage, with the coal pit surely roasting the crew almost as much as the meat on the grill
The diligence of the staff is staggering, to the point of ironing tablecloths on the table and literally measuring out the positioning of the cutlery with a ruler
But meat itself was… enormous, sure,
The big flank steak is nearly a kilogram, with a pound of ribeye next to it
and well prepared, but not as flavorful as we had expected. The ribeye was juicy but nothing special after the other steakhouses in the city; the flank was a little tough. However, the delicious merlot at $10 a glass and exquisite pear sorbet were fanstastic. As a dining experience, it ranked below Fogon for me, but still a great night
(Rating: 4/5, $$$$, Special Occasion)
Runners-up
La Cabrera BBQ
Although it has all the trappings of a high end steakhouse, the steak doneness didn’t really match the grade on the picture and was good, but not extraordinary. We did enjoy all the adorable little sides and sauces and breads that come with the meal, as well as the kitschi but cozy atmosphere. Good service too. A neat experience if you didn’t get to Fogon or Don Julio.
(Rating: 4/5, $$, Kid Friendly, Special Occasion)
El Preferido
Same owners as Don Julio, El Preferido is less steak-focused, slightly less pricey and only slightly less jam-packed with hopeful diners. Although everyone seemed to be ordering their enormous schnitzels (unexpectedly widespread in BA), we didn’t understand the attraction. The desserts however were on point
(Rating: 4/5, $$$, Kid Friendly, Special Occasion)
It’s not Steak
Chui
Or is it? It could be — it was super chewy and umami…
But no, no it isn’t; it just comes from Chui, the most amazing vegetarian restaurant I have ever seen, inexplicably found in the land of steak. While many veg restaurants end up humdrum by creating poor imitations of meat dishes with other ingredients, Chui knocks it out of the park by embracing non-meat dishes and making them their own stars.
Coming in, you are greeted by a display of picklings of all kinds. And, to further impress their foodie status on you, just look at the upstairs “door to hell,” just slightly enough ajar to give you a hint of the fire and brimstone within. Or maybe it’s just the hot box with infrared lamps where they grow their shrooms…
The food that followed was absolutely stellar; meat was not missed at all
So of course we came back, and would have done so more than once, but we discovered it late in our stay. I’m not saying that we would fly back to BA just for Chui… but I’m not not saying it.
(Rating: 5/5, $$, Date, Friends or Special Occasion)
La Alacena Trattoria
During our visit we learned that Argentina had a huge influx of Italian immigrants in early 20th century, so that half of BA’s residents have Italian names and even the local Spanish has an Italian flavor. So it’s not a surprise that we found excellent Italian restaurants, such as La Alacena or Cucina Paradiso (where Masha became addicted to an endive/burrata salad as well). For a minute, we were back in Venice…
Like the other places above, La Alacena Trattoria generally requires an online reservation. (Rating: 4/5, $$, Kid Friendly, Date, Friends or Special Occasion)
Mishiguene
As much as Buenos Aires is influenced by its Italian and Spanish roots, it also has a large jewish diaspora. And this shows very much in its many bakeries, cafes and restaurants. One prime example is Mishiguene (which means crazy) in Palermo. This is a beautiful special occasion restaurant set in a dimly lit old-style fashion establishment that left us quiet happy. We loved the cucumber salad, pate, freshly baked bread and the ginormous warm pastrami plate…but the desserts really stole the show. Great date night option!
(Rating: 4/5, $$$, Special Occasion)
La Mezzetta
@googlemaps
This one is a bit different. A super-informal place, you order at the outside window, and then pick up the gooey cheesy goodness inside and eat standing up (or take it away). We found out about it from “Somebody Feed Phil”. Be careful when ordering, or you’ll end up with a whole pizza instead of a single slice like I did. (Rating: 3.5/5, $, Kid Friendly and Casual)
Giuseppe Vicenti
A lunch sandwich shop in outer Palermo, this was a recommendation from our property manager. The focaccia itself is tasty, but it is the breadth of delicious toppings that make this place worth the line you can expect on a weekday. We loved it
(Rating: 4.5/5, $, Kid Friendly and Casual)
Runners up
Nicky Harrison
A solid sushi restaurant in front, and atmospheric speakeasy in the back. Some of the best sushi we tried in BA actually, but with prices to match. Really lovely for a date night, not the best for kids
The drinks in the back bar are a bit conservative but well crafted .
(Rating: 4/5, $$, Date, Friends or Special Occasion)
Georgian Food Class (a bit of an unexpected experience)
In country after country — none of which were Georgia — we seem to end up in Georgian restaurants. This time, in Argentina, we decided to embrace it and actually take a Georgian cuisine cooking class that randomly popped up on our radar (one day we’ll actually go to Georgia…). Over the course of a couple of hours, we made delectable Adjarian Hachapuri which I first tasted in Tashkent and a chicken in garlic sauce — from scratch! This experience was in Russian, so not accessible to all -- but a nice reminder that cooking classes make a great date!
In our monthlong stay in Buenos Aires, we found delicious food of all stripes, both steak and otherwise. So to all the foodies out there, this is a place for you!
