We love shopping in Buenos Aires but we also love to eat. Naturally, as a tourist in the city, you'll be expecting to eat steak, steak and more steak. However, the restaurant scene has much more to offer than just meat. Don’t get us wrong, the steak here is not to be missed but if you’re wanting a break from the parrilla, here are some of our favourite dining spots.
To satify your spice cravings...
Saigon – Bolivar 990, San Telmo
While authentic spicy Asian food was once hard to come by, Buenos Aires' Asian food scene is definitely on the up and one of our favourite new spots is Vietnamese street food joint Saigon. We recommend starting with the fresh spring rolls, which come with a tasty peanut dipping sauce, followed by the Pho, a brothy, spicy, noodle soup that will definitely clear the sinuses. If you’re not a fan of Pho, we also love the Vietnamese noodle salads served with tofu, meat or prawns. You can wash it all down with a pint of local craft beer.
If that doesn't satisfy your Asian food craving, we also love Sunae Asian Cantina (Humboldt 1626, Palermo Hollywood) and Fukuro Noodle Bar (Costa Rica 5514, Palermo Hollywood).
For modern Argentine cuisine...
Proper – Aráoz 1676, Palermo Viejo
Another newcomer on the scene, Proper's menu consists of delicious tapas-style sharing plates. Situated in a converted warehouse space, the place has a cool, stripped-down industrial feel and the open plan set up allows you to watch the chefs in action. While they do have meat dishes, the menu is vegetarian friendly and our must-try is the Halloumi dish (as anyone who has been in Buenos Aires for a while will know, halloumi is not easy to find). Be sure to get there early to avoid the queues out the door because they don’t take reservations.
For a good ole' brunch...
Oui Oui - Nicaragua 6068, Palermo Hollywood
Oui Oui is one of the city's original brunch spots and was at the forefront of making brunch in Buenos Aires cool. The cute French-style café is filled with the aromas of freshly baked buttery croissants, baguettes and pains au chocolat, among other French pastries. Their extensive menu has all your brunch needs covered, from the standard scrambled eggs to Eggs Benedict, Croque Madames and French toast. Although brunch is their speciality, you'll find something to eat at any moment of the day and you can sit in the sun outside and people watch.
For rooftop cocktails at sundown
Sky Bar at the Hotel Pulitzer – Maipú 907, Microcentro
One of the best spots to admire Buenos Aires' unique skyline at sunset is the rooftop Sky Bar on the top floor of the Hotel Pulitzer downtown. Sip on a delicious cocktail or two (our personal favourite is the fresh Watermelon Collins) and soak up the views and the lively atmosphere (it’s a popular hangout for young Argentine professionals after work). If you're hungry snack on some provoleta with bread (a typical Argentine cheese which is grilled on the barbecue, sort of like the Argentine equivalent to the French raclette but better in our opinion).
For a caffeine and sugar fix...
Salvaje Bakery – Dorrego 1829, Palermo Hollywood
Salvaje Bakery has a mouth-wateringly good selection of homemade breads, cakes and flakey pastries, which are the perfect mid-morning or mid-afternoon pick-me-up, accompanied with a good cup of their freshly-brewed coffee. The salads and sandwiches served on their yummy bread are also good for lunch.
Shopping tip: When you're done you can check out the colourful bric-a-brac at the Mercado de Las Pulgas (flea market) further down the street or browse the latest Argentine designer collections at concept boutique Editor Market (Avenida Dorrego 2133).
Fail-safe favourite...
Las Pizarras - Thames 2296, Palermo Soho
This unasssuming bistro has been on the Buenos Aires dining scene for quite some time but it's still on a lot of peoples’ top BA restaurant lists and never disappoints. The chalkboard menu features hearty dishes with a modern twist and a very affordable wine list. Their seafood dishes are always excellent (which is not always the case here) and they serve less common meats such as wild boar.
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