Eating Well (Again) in Bs As

Well, another week has passed since we last posted any updates. We have been so busy that it is hard to sum up the entire week’s events. And, unfortunately, we have been pretty lazy about taking the camera with us. I have been trying to remedy that the last few days. I need to start documenting more things on camera and video- the things we see every day around here: our neighborhood, schools, favorite restaurants, our friends. It is hard to believe that we have to leave it all behind in two weeks.

After last week’s more “realist” posts, we have gotten some interesting feedback from family and friends. A common thread has been “Oh, I bet you are really looking forward to getting back to your regular life in the States!” Well, yes and no. Silvia and the kids and I have actually talked about that sentiment. Obviously we miss our friends and family in the States, and the many amenities and conveniences that we enjoy as Americans. But it is an interesting transformation that takes place when you live and interact in a new place for a while. Silvia was teasing me yesterday about taking so many photos while we were walking around. She said “you look like a damn tourist.” I had to think about it for a second before I responded, “well, actually I am!”

The Neighborhood - Calle Dr. Julian Alvarez

In some ways, though, we feel like locals. We do most of our business within about an eight block radius of our apartment. We have our favorite cleaners, grocery stores, restaurants, ice cream shops, barber, etc. all nearby. The real pleasure has been in getting to know some of the people we interact with on a personal basis: our building caretaker, our cleaners, the guys at the pizza/empanada place across the street, all the gym trainers, dance class and Taekwondo friends, and of course the teachers and families we have met through the kids’ school. They will be the part of the trip we will miss and remember most.

Now to bring things up to date on our last week’s activities. One of the less appealing aspects of last Monday through Saturday was the grey rainy weather. We got some extensive use of our umbrella and raincoats, something new for people from Arizona. The upside was that the weather was still warm. And, the last few days here have definitely made up for last weeks rain - spectacularly clear blue sky and lots of warm sun, temperatures in the mid 70’s F.

As usual, we have been enjoying a lot of cafes and restaurants, while managing to cook some meals and make most of our lunches at home. One of the highlights of the week was the first chance Silvia and I had for an adult’s night out. We had been dragging our feet about finding a babysitter, and finally asked our landlady about it. It turns out that Joanna, the girl that cleans our apartment once a week, lives in a family of 11 children. As Patricia, our landlady, put it: “I don’t think you will find anyone more qualified to take care of your kids.” The best part is that Joanna’s aunt is married to Roberto, our building caretaker, who lives on the 9th floor. When she babysits in the building, she can just go upstairs and spend the night with her relatives.

On Saturday night, Silvia and I took a cab to Las Canitas, a nice area about 15 minutes from our place. It is a very popular restaurant district, with probably 40 restaurants and bars within a four block radius. We went there with no specific plans, and, ironically, came upon another Mexican restaurant, Cabrones. Since we have already been to two other Mexican places, we just stayed for an appetizer and a drink before moving on. Our next stop was a great sushi place, Sushi Club. A small, intimate place with a hip, interesting mix of people. We enjoyed some California Rolls, sake, and beer. Very nice, and not too expensive.

To continue our “restaurant hopping”, we asked the waitress at Sushi Club to recommend another “don’t miss” place in Las Canitas. She mentioned Las Cholas, one of the traditional Argentine parilladas (grills). There was a line of people waiting to get in and eat - at 1130 PM! We had been running around all day, so we caught a cab home instead of waiting.

We did manage to get our parillada fix Sunday night. We went out at 8PM with the kids since Monday the 2nd of April was a holiday, Dia de las Malvinas/Malvinas Day (Falklands to you Brits). Our restaurant of choice was Don Julio, http://www.guiaoleo.com.ar/detail.php?ID=802 a really nice place in Palermo Viejo. We had walked by it a few weeks ago, and it was full of people, both at the inside and outside tables. I took that as a good sign, and I was right. Silvia and I had some of the best steaks we have had on this entire visit. The kids shared some grilled chicken, and even Diego finished his. The staff were very friendly. We were among the first guests of the evening to arrive (at 830.) I wasn’t familiar with all of the items on the menu, and asked the waiter to explain some of the different items. He had us all stand up and walked us over to the large parillada/grill. He introduced us to the chef, Hugo, who opened the cooler and laid out out all the cuts of meat for us to see. What a great variety, from ribs to T-bones to juicy bifes de chorizo and bifes de lomo. Enough to make even a vegetarian think twice.

Parillada "Don Julio"

We had delicious meal with bread, salad, and the meats and chicken brought directly from the grill to the plate. Another nice touch was the two ice buckets at the end of the table, to chill the sodas for the kids and my ¾ liter Quilmes beer. It ended up being one of our more “expensive” meals so far, about $35 USD with tip. An added benefit, especially after a large steak dinner, was that the restaurant is within a nice eight block walk of our apartment.