Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
96
Tips
W ine Tasting
Part of what makes a meal in Buenos Air es so good is the fine wine selec tion,
specially chosen to complement beef, chicken, fish, and other items on the
menu. Most Argentine wine comes from the Mendoza district, bordering the
Andean mountains. Malbecs make up most of the best, with cabernets , cham-
pagnes, and even grappas on the menus in the humblest r estaurants. If you
know nothing about wine, you may want to take a wine-tasting class, to make
sense of the selections and suggestions offered by the waiter or sommelier. One
of the city's best is run by the
Hotel Alvear's Cave de Vines,
which will run you
about $50 (£34) per person. You'll get about an hour with a sommelier who will
explain the grape-growing process, the harvest, and how the wine is actually
produced as you sample different wines and taste them with various appetizers
from various regions of Argentina. Like fine diamonds, wine is judged by color
and clarity, and you'll learn what to look for in every glass, as well as how to pair
wines with food. Other points include discerning taste and scent points as well as
how to hold a glass of wine without damag ing its contents with your hand's own
body heat.
various sushi fast-food-chain r estaurants as w ell. I also describe a fe w r estaurants in
Buenos Aires's very tiny and little-kno wn Chinatown district, located in the B elgrano
neighborhood.
If you are looking through these listings and still cannot decide what you want to eat,
head to one of these thr ee neighborhoods, and y ou are bound to find something that
pleases you:
Puerto Madero
's historical dock buildings are one such place, and many of
the r estaurants her e ar e a bargain;
Calle Báez,
in the Las Cañitas ar ea of P alermo, is
another such area, and is also one of the most happening r estaurant scenes in the whole
city.
Plaza S errano,
in P alermo H ollywood, has many a good choice for the y oung,
funky, and bargain-minded, as w ell as
Calle Chile
in San Telmo. All of these ar eas also
have plenty of places nearby for after-dinner drinks and dancing.
For additional opinions, check out
www.restaurant.com.ar
. It provides information
in English and Spanish on restaurants in Buenos Aires and other major cities, and allows
you to sear ch by neighborhood as w ell as cuisine type. Another v ery helpful r estaurant
resource online is
www.guiaoleo.com.ar
. You can search by cuisine style and price point,
though all listings are in Spanish only. Once in Buenos Aires, look for the
De Dios
map
company's excellent restaurant map in bookstor es everywhere, or order it ahead of time
at www.guiaoleo.com.ar or www.amazon.com.
Prices at some r estaurants hav e doubled and ev en tripled since our last edition, in
particular at Palermo Viejo restaurants, which now match or exceed prices in Europe and
North America. S till, the r estaurants listed in the I nexpensive and M oderate categories
remain reasonable. Inexpensive restaurants serve main courses from less than $3 (£2) to
about $8 (£5.40). M oderate restaurants serve entrees from around $5 (£3.40) to about
$15 (£10). Expensive restaurants' main courses cost about $12 to $25 (£8.20-£17). Very
Expensive dishes run from $25 (£17) up to almost $50 (£34) and higher .
Note:
While English is becoming comfor tably prevalent in Buenos Aires, less expen-
sive restaurants tend to have fewer English speakers on staff.
5
