Wine from a Penguin

Only in Argentina do they serve you a liter of the house vino tinto in a pitcher shaped like a Pinguino. We ate dinner at a restaurant in El Chalten on our first night in town, after three days of backpacking the Cerro Torre and Fitz Roy area. It's the only place in town that takes credit cards (aside from the grocery stores), so we decided to go all out. Hence the Penguin of Wine. And Marc's decadent plate of steak .... eggs ... AND fries.

It took all my restraint not to put the penguin pitcher in my backpack.

The Joy of a Bakery

Forget about the Joy of Cooking - there is nothing quite so pleasing as walking into a good old-fashioned bakery. Most Americans know not of this experience, as it has become painstakingly obvious to me that the bakery is missing from our landscape of eateries.

Fortunately for me, I had the opportunity to spend a considerable amount of time soaking up the sights, smells (and flavors) of one such place in El Calafate called, Don Luis.

Over the course of our travels, we returned to El Calafate several times - each visit punctuated by stop at Don Luis. Both of the hostels we stayed at were located a few block off the main street, and our route into town had us (conveniently) walking past Don Luis' doors multiple times a day. And because they have free WiFi, it was an easy place for me to park for a couple hours.

Marc and I enjoyed a variety of pastries - as you might imagine. From sugary glazed croissants (medialunas) and almond cookies to flaky layered numbers filled with dulce de leche. At about 1 peso per fractura (pastry), I couldn't afford not to try the multitude of things.

While the pastry counter drew in many excited faces, the bins of french bread had the most action. All of the hotels and hostels came here to pick up their daily rations.

Suckling Pig of the River

With only 3 nights in Buenos Aires and about a million restaurants to choose from, I did a little bit of research ahead of time to ensure we got a seat at at least one gourmet establishment. An article in the NY Times touting the booming food scene in Palermo Viejo (the chic neighborhood we stayed in) featured this write up:

Still, there are great finds in Palermo Viejo, as there are throughout the city, which showcase Argentina’s rich culinary history and its bounty, which stretches from the ocean to the Andes. A handful of these are new restaurants that pay homage to this tradition and draw a crowd less interested in who designed the room than in what’s coming out of the kitchen.

One is Jangada, where locals go for the pacú, a lumbering cousin of the piranha that can grow as large as 60 pounds. Jangada’s serving is the size of a porterhouse. Grilled until crispy, the flesh is firm but flaky, and so succulent that from the first bite you’ll understand how it earned its nickname, el lechón del rió, or suckling pig of the river. Pacú is worshiped in Argentina but a rare sight in Buenos Aires. And it’s certainly not anything you’ll find on a menu in the East Village.

You can see why I HAD to go there. Of course, we ordered the Pacu ... which to me, seemed more greasy than succulent ... but we enjoyed the mild fish flavor which was accompanied by onion rings, fried potato wedges and a tomato for color. All in all, it wasn't the most delicious piece of fish I've ever tried ... but the service was good and where else are you going to get to eat a cousin of piranha?

Back and Blogging

Just when you thought I slipped into a meat and wine-based food coma somewhere in the Patagonian backcountry, I've returned! We spent the last half of our trip basically out of touch ... which is great for mental well-being but not so conducive to blogging.

But don't fret! Just because I wasn't actively blogging, I was snapping shots and am ready to detail the remainder of our trip for inquiring foodies. Marc and I are now back state-side, I still have many meals to share ... stay tuned!

Detox is for Wusses

Well, my detox in Ushuaia isn't going so well. Friday afternoon we went on a boat ride out to Bridges Island, which included a couple champagne glass size beers from the on-board keg. Then we HAD to get centolla (king crab legs) so we went to a place with a giant red king crab painted on the windows - seemed like the right spot.

We both had "ensalada mixta" to start which wasn't really a "mixture" of anything. Just shredded green leaf lettuce and tomato ... but it's roughage, so I went for it. Marc got the Fuegian style king crab but at a whopping $58 ar, I went with a cheaper version of a seafood stew.

Everything was delicious, but we also ended up drinking a full bottle of wine (turns out the 3/4 size just means 3/4 of a litre and is actually a full bottle by US standards) and I constantly had my hand in the bread basket. Then, as if out of habit, we trotted across the street to Tarte Sara tea house for a piece of apple cake and coffee.

I am paying today.

My body has deciced to do a detox of its own - violently expelling everything from my system I have loaded up in the last 5 days. Marc got me some super delish yogurt from the supermercado and I determine I am back on the wagon. 8 hours of hiking in the Tierra del Fuego National Park and I'm really back on the wagon. Speaking of trekking, if you care to read more about our journey than my food-obsession POV, check out Marc's blog with tons of great photos.

That is, until we "grab a bite" at a local pizza joint. The brushetta is phenomenal (it's summer here so the tomatoes actually taste like something) and the pumpkin calzone knocked our socks off. Should have stopped there, but you know I didn't and we wrapped up the meal with a cheese/onion stuffed pizza. That's right - had to go with the twice the cheese and crust option.

Marc says we are "gorging" ourselves which makes me feel like a fat American pig. Tomorrow is a new day ...

Detox

A wise friend of mine once said (after several days and nights of binge drinking in Mexico), "Why detox when you can retox?" Although this seems a good rule of thumb for lounging on a beach, it is not necessarily the best course of action when one is looking at plane rides, shared hostel bathrooms and a catamaran in the Beagle channel.

3 days of fried food, meat, bottomless wine bottles and good old fashioned American gluttony, I'm starting to feel a little "off."

As we land in Ushuaia for two days of exploring the Tierra del Fuego, I have promised myself to seek out fresh fruit (which may require a trip to the market), ease up on the white bread, seek out vegetables that aren't fried and there will be no red meat consumption. King Crab legs, yes. And as for the wine ... I really don't think I need to drink it at lunch.

Last Tango in Buenos Aires

Our last night in BsAs and we went out with a bang ... and a stomache-ache.
After our customary siesta (from about 5 - 7pm) we headed to a neighborhood cafe, Terra Coffee, for a beverage. I went with yet another local Malbec and it will come as no surprise that Marc selected a Quisme. This time, the Litre of beer was served in a cute little pitcher!

Around 11p we headed back to Palermo Hollywood (of the previous night's sausage adventure) to hunt down some chow. We opted for a little spot called Carita Morena. We sat at a small table near the kitchen and watched massive tabletop grills piled with meat get delivered to drooling Americanos.

Hooray for empanadas on the menu. We got two as an entrada. The verdura was stuffed with creamy spinach and onions, while the carne was a deliciously spicy number. The meat had the consistency of something between a chunky italian sausage and ground beef.

For the plato principal, this place was kind enough to offer 1/2 bife de chorizo and mini bife lomo (sirloin steak and ribeye steak). We ordered one of each with papas fritas.

I have to tell you, this was the classic porteno meal I have been imagining! The meat was expertly grilled to medium-well done (my preference) and it was tender and flavorful. Like no meat I can recall in the US. The fries were thick cut, greasy and kind of like what you'd find at a London pub shop. We probably could have done without the chips - but it's hard for me not to order them.

While we were completely stuffed from the main course, I took it upon myself to order dessert - Panqueque con Dulce de Leche. A crepe with rich, creamy caramel. Wowza.
To top it off, we drank a "3/4 bottle" of Malbec, but since it was 750ml, we counted it as a full bottle.

All told, the meal was more food than two people should have eaten and only cost us about $30. We waddled home around 1am and crashed out for 2 hours before we had to be up again and catching our flight to Ushuaia.