Next, a series of proposals to rediscover Mexican flavors in various points of the geography of Buenos Aires: in the geographic center of the City (Caballito), in the gastronomic center (Palermo), the south (San Telmo), or in the north (San Isidro).
Palermo
An immense catrina illuminated in the mezzanine of the premises gives us the pattern that it is a different Baum. This local beer chain is, strictly speaking, an authentic Mexican restaurant with more than authentic flavors. The catrina, a Mexican symbol par excellence, with a skull that represents -we tend to believe- death, was made by the group of muralists Campos Jesses, and is worth a visit to Baum in Palermo in itself. There is also another one on the façade that is gaining ground in the urban art circuit, but at night it is not so easy to see.
The bond with death acquires other dimensions in this old 1920s house that used to be a funeral home -it was also the haunt of the River barra brava, travel agency and bookstore-. “José Guadalupe Posadas, a master engraver, represented the reality of Mexican society at the time: an upper class that dreamed of being French. A dictator, Porfirio Díaz, oppressed the working class. Posadas depicted scenes from daily life in Mexico representing everyone as Calaveras. This makes us all equal,” explains José, the owner of the Palermo franchise, who gives meaning to the place decorated with Mex and with a gastronomic proposal to match. José was born in Sinaloa and had the permission of Baum to readapt the letter. “The idea is for it to be a quick meal to eat by hand with beer, but to take you to the north of Mexico, that’s why we have Mexican suppliers and we respect all the native ingredients,” adds José.
Led by its star chef, Daniel Córdoba, a wide variety of appetizers, tacos, quesadillas, tables, and salads are proposed. And there’s no shortage of typical brewery fare, like burgers and cheddar fries. One of the house suggestions is the chicken tostachones: corn tortillas with braised chicken, black bean paste, sour cream, pico de gallo, cabbage lettuce and Sardinian cheese, and are served accompanied by a guacamole dip. Also highlights are the beef barbecue quesadillas, they are corn tortillas with braised beef with porter beer, onion, lettuce and mozzarella, and they come with hot sauce, guacamole and pico de gallo dips. To taste between 3 or 4 people you can opt for the Mexican table, it comes with nachos mochis, orale burrito, malditas wings and chicken quesadilla, accompanied with pico de gallo dips, guacamole, sour cream, semi-spicy barbecue and hot sauce. In total, there are 16 varieties, and a second visit is almost mandatory to continue exploring the specialties.
The dessert section displays typical chocolate sweets such as chocotorta but with beer, a classic chocolate cookie cake with cream cheese.
For food, the choice of Baum beers or a Margarita. A suggestion, finish with a michelada. As José indicates, it is an anti-hangover drink typical of Mexicans: Beer, lemon, salt, tabasco and a touch of hot sauce.
Address: Cabrera 4427, Palermo.
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Piche Taco
In the Patio de los Lecheros, one of the proposals that stands out in the charming space of Caballlito in the European fair style, is Pinche Taco, a quick way to sit down to eat some good tacos -forgive the redundancy-, a hearty burrito or a order a basket of nachos to accompany a beer.
The tacos are inescapable and here they are prepared in different versions, such as the classic Al Pastor (marinated pork, pineapple, avocado and garden sauce) and Carnitas (pork confit, pickles and red sauce), and the original ojo de bife (eye of steak, grilled cheese and pico de gallo) and fried fish (fried catch of the day, coleslaw and chipotle aioli). They also have a vegetarian option based on mushrooms, feta cheese and coriander pesto that surprises with its freshness and flavor. Burrito fans can choose from pork varieties with feta and beans; and chicken with feta cheese and avocado. To snack on or accompany these preparations, they have typical nachos with guacamole or artisan chili de carne and some forceful potatoes with chili de carne and beans.
Pinche Taco is a great option, with authentic flavors, and it has an advantage: if the companion is not a big fan of Mexican food, Patio de los Lecheros has other places with options ranging from grills, pizzas to Peruvian food. Then, it will be a matter of agreeing on a table as a meeting point.
Address: Donato Álvarez 175, Caballito
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Virgin
Avenida Caseros, around San Telmo, where it runs into Parque Lezama, is gradually taking shape as a new gastronomic pole with its own imprint: modern places, with a young audience, but with sophisticated proposals.
Virgen, a Mexican restaurant, is part of this line, which also offers top-level signature cocktails, with some peculiarities. The first of these is that the decoration avoids the mex meta-message. There are no skulls, no mariachis, or anything to beat your chest with to shout “Long live Mexico, bastards.”
A bold move to offer an environment where pink predominates, with neon lights to match, and which in sight already proposes to arrive with friends or as a couple. The second particularity is the menu, where Mexican classics are revisited with gourmet touches or raw materials typical of Mediterranean cuisine, such as octopus or salmon. Even the aguachile, a classic that is served here in tartare format with white fish and prawns.
Led by chef Juan Manuel Malacarne, a wide variety of appetizers, guacamoles, quesadillas, tacos, salads and main courses are proposed. One of the house suggestions is the Mole Madre: two thick and creamy sauces, one made from fermented cashew nuts with dried chili peppers and the other from beets with tamarind, served with sautéed baby vegetables. For guacamole lovers, an exotic option stands out accompanied by caramelized watermelon with balsamic vinegar. The braised meat quesadilla with dried chilies and spices in combination with a melting mix of cheeses also stands out; the cochinita pibil tacos, a Mayan recipe that calls for pork tenderized with spices, achiote and sour orange; and the Spanish octopus with a black recollection crust (based on yellow chili ashes) served with baby potatoes, roasted garlic aioli and green oil.
At the bar, the boss Sofía Gaffoglio selected cocktails specially designed by the renowned barmanager Brenda Asís. The idea is to get carried away by the drinks menu to pair the dishes. There are specials with tequila as commonly called, and classics, where the Margarita works as an almost obvious choice.
Address: Av. Caseros 467, San Telmo.
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Joe’s Grill
Located in San Isidro, it focuses on Tex-Mex flavors with a family proposal. Special for couples with young children due to its play spaces, the restaurant offers a menu of North American foods but with a strong Mexican influence.
Along these lines, it has several options, both in appetizers (nachos with guacamole stand out), and in its smoked ribs section: in this section, the Mexican ribs consist of slow-roasted ribs with guacamole topping. The Milanese also has its “Mexican” style, with sour cream, guacamole, cheddar, nachos with a hot sauce chip. In the case of hamburgers, it reaches the southern border with the variant that includes tomato, lettuce, onion, bacon, cheddar and guacamole.
But beyond the Mex versions of American dishes, there is also a “Mexican Food” section on the menu. The fajitas stand out there: wheat tortillas to assemble, pieces of beef and/or chicken, caramelized onion and roasted peppers on the sheet metal. They are accompanied with Creole sauce, tartar, tomato, guacamole and cream with green.
Joe’s Grill has spacious indoor and outdoor spaces. In addition, it offers a 100 m Kid’s Club that is equipped for the entertainment of the little ones with baseball pitches for babies and children, virtual game consoles, Arcade, foosball, stuffed animal cranes and games, a wooden house with a slide and bridge and square games.
Address: Av. Fondo de la
League 340, San Isidro.
Source: Ambito
I am an author and journalist who has worked in the entertainment industry for over a decade. I currently work as a news editor at a major news website, and my focus is on covering the latest trends in entertainment. I also write occasional pieces for other outlets, and have authored two books about the entertainment industry.
