El Baqueano

El Baqueano 

Address: Chile Nº 495 esquina Bolivar

Phone: 4342-0802

This gem of a restaurant located in San Telmo, a barrio in the city where we rarely get to for dinner. It's a shame too, because this is a fantastic place to eat.

Reservations are a must and they don't print menus.  The inside is modestly decorated but comfortable with a large bar - though it doesn't look like the bar seats are used much. There is a set "degustacion" that changes every 3 months or so, presented on a chalkboard to each table as you sit down.  The set menu has eight steps for AR$230 with the three supplemental steps available for an additional price per dish.

There is also the wine pairing available for an additional AR$135, we skipped this option but it was an ample amount of wine for the price.

The meal started with a choice of freshly baked oregano or whole grain bread along with an olive oil tasting.  I can't pretend that my pallet is refined enough to know the difference between the oils, but they were all good with bread and we ate all of them and asked for seconds.

The first step off of the menu started a theme that continued through the meal.  Degustacion de papas was potatoes served a few different ways.  There were mashed, roasted, fried and delicious.

Each step was completely different.  We enjoyed llama, shrimp, deer, beets and all of them made with ingredients from Argentina.  It helped that they were all quite pretty to look at too.

Beets served multiple ways, delicious just like the potatoes, but there is something about pureed beets that makes me think of the opening credits to Dexter.

I also appreciate a pre-dessert palate cleanser.  It doesn't take away from the dessert, but gives you something sweet prior to the real deal.  This particular course had a great fruit sorbet, topped with peppercorns, a strange and surprisingly solid pairing.

For the next degustacion we had apples.  This time there were more ways than I thought possible to prepare apples on the plate; a fried apple chip, pureed apples, thinly sliced "raw" apples, an apple sorbet, some sort of apple gelatin surrounded by a cold apple broth.  Good, clean, fresh except the gelatin, which is never a good idea in my mind.

The final course, the real dessert was a ying/yang chocolate dish.  The chocolate was rich and tasty, and the presentation was cool, the waitress poured the two sauces at the table, but the white chocolate was a miss.  It was served cold while the dark chocolate was served hot, which added to the fact that in contrast there was no flavor to the white chocolate - it was more milk-y than dessert-y.  Don't get me wrong, I ate the whole thing, but that would be my response if anyone ever asked :).

This was a great meal, quiet atmosphere and interesting food all at a decent price here in Buenos Aires.  It also gives me more reason to return to San Telmo, a place I rarely go after dark.  Our next visitors looking for a fun place to eat should keep this one in mind!  We will certainly be back.

Bar Sur Tango Show

"Have you and Jon started tango lessons?" is one of the most asked questions we get - especially from visitors.  The answer is that we have not, and really don't intend to - it's just not our scene.

It is absolutely a scene here though, if you want to tango, you can pretty much choose when, where and with whom you would like to go.  There are private and formal lessons, shows, clubs, shoes, clothes, books and everything in between.  I know people who claim to go tango dancing 6 nights a week.  And I believe them.  And I'm simultaneously impressed and confused by this obsession.

We waited until we had a group of visitors that were interested in attending a tango show, and finally, 3.5 years into us living in the world of tango, we visited a show.  We took a recommendation from a co-worker of Jon's to avoid the "tourist-y" tango shows and go to a local place that offer a more intimate experience.

Let me just say right now: Tango Show = Touristy Tango Show.  There is no other show.

Don't get me wrong, there are a zillion shows to choose from, some of the most popular being Tango Porteño, Madero Tango and Los Angelitos, but they are all aimed at tourists, no matter what anyone (including TripAdvisor) says.  Now, this isn't necessarily a bad thing.  It's funny how people visiting another country or culture seem to want to steer clear of being a tourist.  But, you are a tourist when you visit somewhere new - it cannot be helped.  Sometimes, the things that make something touristy is the exact reason you want to do it, some other person who visited told you how great it was.  They were also tourists!  Moving on.

Bar Sur was the recommended show we made the reservation for both dinner and the show and took the trip out to San Telmo.  Now, I will say that the day we had available for attending a tango show was during the week, which played into our decision to attend Bar Sur.  They have a "rolling" show that starts at 9pm and you can leave whenever you're ready.  Most of the other shows have a start and finish time, and we were worried that we wouldn't get home until early the next morning if we went somewhere else.  And Jon has this pesky job that he has to get up for.

Bar Sur is located in San Telmo (Estados Unidos 299 & Balcarce), at a corner place that looks really cool from the outside.  Before even walking in, the waiter (who wore many different hats, he was the only employee I saw interacting with customers) advised us that for a group our size (7 people) we would want to sit in the "balcony". Now, this place is tiny.  The balcony was nothing more than a 3-step-up platform where the owners were storing extra tables.  There were only 5 normal chairs in said balcony, and the 2 lucky extra folks got to sit at high top chairs and tables - each at their own since there was so much extra storage around us we couldn't even get them at one table.  The 5 of us that had normal-height chairs sat around 2 tiny round cocktail tables.  It was less than comfortable.

But that's alright, we weren't there to have a conversation  we were there to watch tango.  There were two options when it came to food/drinks/show: the dinner and show option (according to the menu and website includes a 5-course meal and the show) or just pay for the show and buy food and drink a la carte.  I will add that the menu price was 20% more than the price listed on their website (not super-surprising, considering the 30% inflation rate here), but that both options were, let's say, not cheap. The waiter came to take our drink order and informed me that the dinner & show option was a rip off and we should go a la carte.  This was good advice - and he rattled it off in speedy Spanish, thank goodness for language lessons.  Even with the a la carte option, the food, drinks and prices were laughably expensive.  Jon ordered a soda, which was AR$40 (even at the more expensive restaurants in the city, this would be $25 or $30) and only got one small glass of non-refillable Coke.  I'm pretty sure the staff was enjoying the rest of the Coke bottle (there is little to no fountain beverages seen in restaurants here).  Wine was easily four times the amount we've paid elsewhere.  The price for an order of pizza (which was one of the 5 courses included in the dinner price) was three times the normal price and only included 3 slices of a personal sized pizza.  It was ridiculous.  I will say that the prices - in conjunction with the horribly presented and possibly microwaved food - ruined the experience for me.  Luckily, we have very tolerant guests, and they were able to completely enjoy the show.

As I mentioned above, I don't have a point of comparison, but the show seemed good. There were 2 sets of dancers, a singer, and this 3-man-band that was great to watch.  Especially the accordion player. Talk about a dying breed! This guy was great - his expressions, the feeling in the music and the cool velvet blanket that goes with his instrument - very cool.  He was who we were all talking about on the ride home.

The dancers were great, two different couples that had very different styles.  They made the most out of the very small space available to dance.  The women's legs seemed to be on hinges with the way they could swing them around, very cool to watch.

There was also a singer, who did an introduction to the bar and welcomed everyone.  She was good, though the most striking feature about her was her height - she must have been six feet tall.  She had a nice voice, though the way she stood in the middle of a restaurant and sang bleeding heart tango songs had a slight awkward sense to it.  I give her credit - I couldn't do it.

We stayed until 11:00pm or so, then decided to head home.  Our bill was absurd considering the product, but we consoled ourselves with hoping that the entertainers got a cut.  I'll also point out that the doors behind all of the entertainers in these photos were the single bathroom doors - so be sure to make a bathroom stop before heading out for Bar Sur - unless you want a whole restaurant of people to see you walking in under the spotlight. Not a place we will go again - or recommend to friends. We may decide to try another tango show at some point, but it will take a while to get the sour taste of this place out of my mouth.

El Zanjon

El Zanjon is a historic home that found new life when local historian Jorge Eckstein bought the property and began renovations in 1985. The original plan for Eckstein was to renovate the building and turn the space into a part restaurant, part art gallery for his artist wife. As they began renovations on the crumbling building, they realized that there were more layers, literally, than originally thought to the building. Above ground, the house is a beautiful 1830s, Spanish-style mansion complete with an open air-cistern and a lookout tower. After the wealthy family abandoned this house, most probably in the 1870s due to the yellow fever outbreak in San Telmo, the space became a communal home for immigrants and squatters for over 100 years. When Eckstein began the renovations, the home was filled with over 100 years of trash and debris. 139 truckloads of debris later, it was realized that the mansion was actually build upon another full living space that dated back to the 16th century and had been built on top of the original river's path through San Telmo. Since this time, the river has been rerouted (the smell and the rodents were not a great part of this area...moving the river helped) but the tunnels build to contain the river for hygiene reasons remain. This museum is a beautiful restoration of the original house and displays many artifacts found during the renovation, items that represent daily life in many different time periods.

El Zanjon
Location: Defensa 755, San Telmo
Phone: (54-11) 4361-3002
Hours: It is best call first for availability prior to visit. Spanish tours every hour Mon - Fri 11:00am - 4:00pm; every 30 minutes Sun 1:00pm - 6:00pm. English tours available, again, call first. Visitation to museum only available through a tour, open admission not available.
Admission: $30 pesos for hour tour, $15 pesos for 30 minute tour

This museum also offers a venue for private parties and events. Contact eventos@elzanjon.com.ar for information.

San Telmo

San Telmo is the oldest barrio in Bs. As., alive with culture and music and, of course, tango. During the week, it is home to antique shops, art galleries and plenty of cafes; but the weekend holds the real time to visit San Telmo. Each weekend, mostly on Sundays, the cobblestone streets transform into an enormous outdoor market filled with antiques, crafts and artisan items. San Telmo is just a short cab ride from where we live, so it is an easy destination for an afternoon trip. While my mom was in town, I reserved our Sunday to visit the San Telmo market.

The main street in San Telmo is Defensa Street, famous for the street fight between the porteños (Buenos Aires natives) and the British where the porteños put together an impromptu militia and sent the British back to their awaiting ships. This is seen as the first main step in gaining their independence from Spain a few years later. San Telmo is also recognized as one of the potential birthplaces of the Argentine Tango. There are a few other barrios that make this claim, so it depends on who you talk to as to where the actual birthplace was. The weekend market spans countless blocks down Defensa Street, but it seems to begin at Plaza Dorrego. In the Plaza itself, you'll find a higher concentration of antique booths, and the further you walk down Defensa, the more jewelry, mate paraphernalia and clothing booths appear.

We were only a few steps out of the taxi when we ran into this cool tango band complete with three accordians. Throughout our visit to the market, there were countless bands, Spanish guitar players and tango stages set up for open air shows. There are plenty of unique items including horse accessories; stirrups, bits and decorations made out of horseshoes, old time seltzer bottles and lots of copper spoons, jugs and buckets. Additionally, there are plenty of really great finds just waiting to be purchased from the artisan stalls in the market - like this cool "Welcome" sign that I bought.