463117 Fri Nov 23 13:12:36 -0800 2007 0 56 South America 0 3149604 **take note, this report may contain some non-food related items Our first meal was a late lunch at the Rodi Bar (Recoleta), and it was a perfect way to begin our BA dining experience. We had two lomo specials (mine came with a tomato and egg salad, my husband's with ensalada verde) and an order of frittes. The steaks were both perfect medium rare, and it began a 10 day love affair with ensalada verde (typically made with arugula, chicory, spinach, celery, and any other number of items...a great way to counteract non-stop meals of red meat). As we would do with every meal following, we picked a bottle of red wine at random, and we found most bottles extremely quaffable. I think the meal came out to about $50-60 pesos. For dinner and lunch that day we snacked on an amazing charcutterie platter my family arranged through the hotel--excellent cured meats, iberian ham, sundried tomatos, cheeses, and the BEST bread (braided sourdough baguettes, artisinal style). The cured meats in BA are excellent...eat them every chance you get. We ended up hitting lots of delis. We had dinner Wed. evening at La Cabrera and had an excellent meal. I ordered the pork tenderloin stuffed with ham, cheese and sundried tomatos, my husband the bacon wrapped sirloin (wide, thick cut bacon). They were both excellent and we easily could have split and entree, which we actually started doing for most meals. The garnishes are truly pleasing (pureed beets, pureed pumpkin, celery salad, egg salad, and numerous other small dishes). You don't need an appetizer...they bring you a ton of food. The food was great by meat lover standards--straightforward, honest, not fancy, just well done. The next evening we had dinner at Casa Cruz in Palermo. The room is beautiful, the cocktails are excellent. I had the creme bruleed foie gras (excellent, incredibly rich, good to share) with a light argentine riesling style wine...great pairing. My spouse began with a clean, earthy room temp. fava bean soup. I had the slow roasted chicken, which wasn't incredibly memorable, he had the patagonian lamb--the lamb was memorable. The meat itself was excellent, and the flavor was rich and deep. Overall, the meal was good and a lot of fun. As the most expensive meal we had, I would have to say that if you only have a short time in BA, you can probably skip this. I can think of a restaurant in almost every city in America where I can have a similar food experience. The next night we made the mistake of going to the Faena for their cabaret/tango show, dinner and wine included. The show was disappointing, and the food was horrible. The bacon wrapped veal tenderloin was sad and flavorless and the ceviche was scary. The dessert was boring. Oh, and it was really expensive. We had horrible pasta at Filo on Sat., and horrible pizza. Sunday morning we went to the San Telmo market, which was GREAT! Entertaining in so many ways--tango performers, musicians, performance art like I've never seen before. On a tip from my sis we went to Brasserie Petanque for lunch, and it was one of the best meals we had! The start you with kir royale (always a nice touch). We split the grilled sirloin (1 1/2- 2 inches thick and perfectly grilled) covered with sauteed shallots, with ensalada verde and frittes. This piece of meat was glorious, and the room reminds me of the brasseries I loved in Paris. We also had chilean oysters (not too briney, very smooth for large oysters, not mealey), and pistachio creme brulee for dessert. That evening we went to Miramar for oxtail stew and Julio Payne (bandeleon player, bipolar genius). The oxtail falls off the bone...seriously, the bones came out absolutely clean. It's a very rustic, comfort food presentation. It was one of the best meals we had. We followed the stew with flan and cream...the flan was soaking in a rum sauce that got me drunk...so, so good, light, and yummy. The next evening we went to the Standard in Palermo for a 3 1/2 inch porterhouse...it was beautiful and ridiculous, and we ate the whole thing. We began our meal with carmelized ham served with potato salad, then split this beautiful steak (once again sides of frittes and ensalada verde). It was a random meal; we were tired from hiking around all day and wanted to go close to the hotel and got this rec. from staff...if you're in the neighborhood, I would definitely give it a try. We finally made our way to La Cupertina the next day. We tried one each of every empanada on the menu and they were all excellent. I especially enjoyed the carne, pollo and cebolla (onion). I would also have to recommend the stews...we ordered the one with meat, sweet potato, sweet corn, and numerous other ingredients, and it was incredibly satisfying and warming. This restaurant is a treat b/c of the ambience (it's small and almost like eating in your grandmother's kitchen), and the empanadas really are as good as the boards report. For dinner that evening we went to Guido's Bar. Hmm. The interior is charming, and it's true that the waiters just start bringing you food...lots and lots of food seemingly at randon. You never see a menu. The problem is, that we were sitting around some other tourist and a few tables of locals, and watched all the tourist get a similar meal selection while the locals received what looked to be more appetizing dishes. While our pasta was a nice, firm al dente, it was also oily, uninspired, and disappointing...the anglonotti that the table of locals had next to us looked great, but since they didn't bring that to us, who knows. The next day we had lunch at El Mirasol next to the Four Seasons. Expensive by Argentinian standards, not so much by US. Our meal was worth every peso. We had a couple of carne and pollo empanadas (very different from La Cupertina, but equally excellent...the pastry is a little crispier at El Mirasol). We split the macrobiotic salad, filet mignon and garlic frittes...the meat was excellently prepared, the salad incredibly refreshing with mozzarella, avocado and fresh greens. Also, the service is fantastic. For lunch the next day we hit Social Paraiso and had another excellent meal. I had a solid osso buco and risotto dish (nice, mellow use of saffron, tender osso bucco) with baked cauliflower and pickled onions...my husband had a beautiful slow roasted chicken that was tender, flavorful, and juicy. The space is great, very clean white walls, white table cloths...incredibly pleasant. Definitely worth the effort. For lunch the next day we enjoyed a 3 meat combo at La Dorita (flank steak, skirt steak, and tenderloin). This is a place where it's all about the meat. Nothing fancy, true parrilla style. Great experience, very inexpensive. In general, we ate late lunches and late dinners, and our meals took a really long time (not referring to service, just pace). We had a bottle of wine with each meal, took our time, ate multiple courses, and talked to people. I found most people to be incredibly friendly. I speak a little spanish, and it was always worth it to make the effort as I found people refreshingly receptive. You're going to have to ask for the check, and mostly we noticed that waiters didn't hover around the table, so if you need something you might have to ask...there's no negligence to the waitstaff, they will just bug you as little as possible. We ate breakfast at the Four Seasons each morning we were there, and if you stay there, do yourself the favor and include the breakfast. They serve great cured meats, fresh juices/nectars, artisinal breads, cheeses, yogurt, fresh fruit, dried fruit, cereals, eggs...in general, lots of good fiber to contrast all the red meat you will eat. The cocktails at Home Hotel are a must, as are the cocktails at Bar Uriarte. Talk to lots of people, walk a lot, and take it easy...BA is a fun place to be leisurely. If you love meat, spend a little extra on meals, as the cows in Argentina must be incredibly happy and well fed...the cheap parrillas are great, but oy, the steak we had a El Mirasol was eye crossing. Thanks to all the post to our original inquiry...you all gave some great suggestions. Fri Nov 23 13:12:36 -0800 2007 15518 shelbyk