Buenos Aires - Argentina - page 99

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Tips Bares y Cafés Notables

If you want to dine in an atmosphere recalling the glory days of Buenos Aires's
past, investigate the list of nearly 40 bares y cafés notables —historic restaurants,
cafes, and bars specially protected by a law stating that their interiors cannot be
altered. Known as Law No. 35, this special protection, granted by the city of Bue-
nos Aires, passed in 1998 and was updated in 2002. Many of these special estab-
lishments appear in this chapter, including Café Tortoni, La Biela, and La Perla.
They tend to be clustered in the city's oldest neighborhoods, such as Monserrat,
Congreso, La Boca, and San Telmo. Ask the tourism office for the map Bares y
Cafés Notables de Buenos Aires, which lists them all, with photographs of the inte-
riors. Many of the venues also sell a coffee-table book with additional photo-
graphs.

San Martín 975 (at Alv ear). & 11/4311-0312. www.filo-ristorante.com. Main courses $4-$10 (£2.20-
£5.50). AE, MC, V. Daily noon-4pm and 8pm-2am. Metro: San Martín.

Galauno Value PARRILLA/ARGENTINE This very basic, small parrilla is the rein-
carnation of La S ortija, recommended over the years in this topic. The venue, essentially
the same, but with a r enovation that removed the charming wood interior, serves exactly
the same menu and has the same staff. The emphasis remains on quality food and courte-
ous service at a r easonable price. M ost of the patr ons are working-class locals who hav e
jobs in the area. It's very busy after 5pm, when they stop in for a bite before making their
way home. Galauno prides itself on what it calls cocina casera, or home cooking, and serves
well-prepared cuts of meat such as bife de chorizo. They also have sandwiches for takeout.
This place offers good value, and pizza, pasta, and chicken r ound out the menu.
Lavalle 663 (at Maipú). & 11/4328-0824. Main courses $3-$10 (£2-£6.80). No credit cards. Daily noon-
midnight. Metro: Lavalle.
Il Gran Caffe CAFE/ITALIAN As its name implies, this largely I talian restaurant
sells an extensiv e selection of pastries, pastas, and panini, as w ell as mor e traditional
Argentine fare. On a busy corner across the street from Galerías Pacífico, it is also one of
the best perches from which to watch the crowds passing by on Calle Florida. A covered
canopy on the Córdoba side also provides further outdoor seating, rain or shine. In fact,
the people-watching is so good that the restaurant charges about 10% more for outdoor
dining. If that bothers the budget-conscious spy in y ou, the best compr omise is to sit
inside on their upper-floor lev el, with its bir d's-eye vie w of the str eet and the N aval
Academy, one of the city 's most beautiful landmar ks. M ixed drinks star t at about $5
(£3.40) each. They have an ex cellent Italian pastry menu; the N eapolitan sfogliatella is
especially good.
Calle Florida 700 (at C órdoba). & 11/4326-5008. Main courses $8-$15 (£5.40-£10). AE, MC, V. Daily
7am-2am. Metro: Florida.

5

Morizono Value JAPANESE A casual J apanese restaurant and sushi bar , Mori-
zono offers such menu items as dumplings stuffed with por k, shrimp and v egetable

tempuras, salmon with ginger sauce, and a v ariety of sushi and sashimi combination

platters.