Skip to main content

The Argentine Experience

At first I thought this was a stupid tourist trap thing but then I remembered the fishing for piranha that we did in the Amazon in June. That sounded so touristy and ridiculous, but it really ended up being fun. It started as a group of friends who would serve dinner to "foodie" tourist in their apartment. They then got some backers and built a restaurant. So I signed us up for The Argentine Experience.

Boy were we glad. Yes it was a little camp with the aprons and the bogus chef's hat (although it was worth it to see the Sous Chef don the chef's hat), but the food was great and we met some really nice people (2 Argentinians and 1 Brazilian). In a way it was all a little clandestine, as you had to get buzzed into the place.

We started out with meat breaded and fried with aioli (sorry I didn't get a picture of it - I'm also bad with the Spanish name for it). It reminded me of spiedini (Italian breaded fried thin strips of meat - which could be where this Argentine dish comes from since they have a lot of Italian influence).

We had trout tartar. It was fabulous.


We also had fried sweet breads. It was fried - what's not to like?

There was also this cool dish:
Cheese with some toppings melted that you put on some bread crisps (don't ask me the name - I told you my Spanish is bad-really bad). There was also fried chorizo that was almost sweet.

Then we made empanadas one with a beef filling and one with cheese. Each type of empanada is made in a different shape so there are no surprises. The cheese one looks like a giant tortellini. The beef one is a more traditional fold.

Then it was onto the BEEF. I like my a punto (medium well). I also found out that Argentinians like their meat cooked pretty well - not that pink stuff. Maybe I'm really Argentinian? There were some nice roasted vegetables served with a nice vinaigrette that you brush on with a Rosemary sprig. The vegetables were potato, pumpkin (not our type of pumpkin), and onion. Sorry I didn't get any pictures of this because at this point I was too busy concentrating on eating!
There was a little dessert surprise - which they ask not to tell the secret - so I won't. Lastly there was a two cookies sandwiched together with some dulce de leche, dipped in coconut, and then chocolate. YUM!


If you go to Buenos Aires, I strongly recommend you check out the Argentine Experience.

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

I appreciate your comments!

Popular posts from this blog

New Kid on the Block

So here's a picture of the new kid on the block. Ain't she a beauty? It's a Blomberg . They are fairly new to the US. They have been around in Europe for quite a while. I really liked the design. I've been dying to have a freezer on the bottom. With the old refrigerator I would constantly lose brain cells by hitting my head on the freezer will poking around in the refrigerator. It really makes sense to have the refrigerator on top - that is where you spend most of your time. When we bought the old one, it was an emergency situation. The prior one was leaking on the floor and was no longer cooling. Fifteen years ago the freezer on the bottom was just starting to get popular but we were in no situation to wait for delivery. We had to take what they had on hand. Now the freezer on the bottom is by no means unique. What is - is this freezer's design. There are 3 compartments in the freezer. I used to have a chest freezer in the basement and everything would get los
2 comments
Read more

Tomato Risotto

Want to build up those arm muscles.  There is no better way than to do up a good risotto. You will get tired of stirring but it is oh so worth it. Tomato Risotto 1 onion, chopped olive oil 2 clove garlic, minced 1 1/2 c Aborio Rice 1/2 c white wine 4 medium-sized tomatoes, peeled about 1 cup warm vegetable stock (may need additional) 1 t fresh oregano 1 T fresh torn basil 2 T fresh parsley salt/pepper Parmesan cheese In a dutch oven, saute chopped onion in olive oil.  Add a little salt to help the onions along.  Meanwhile prep the tomatoes. Squeeze tomatoes gently just to rid them of the seeds. You do not need to get rid of all the liquid. Chop the tomatoes into large cubes. Cook onions until translucent. Add garlic and cook until fragrant. Add rice and saute for a few minutes until the rice smells toasted. Gradually add white wine and stir until almost all of the wine is absorbed. Add tomatoes to the rice. Add the oregano and basil. Stirring constantly until a
Post a Comment
Read more

Burnt Cinnamon Simple Syrup

The NY Times Magazine section did a piece on cocktails about two weeks ago and one was calling me- Rhum Agricole Daiquiri . What attracted me here (well besides the cocktail aspect) was the Burnt Cinnamon Simple Syrup. It was easy enough to make, as are most simple syrups, but it was the potential uses.  I started thinking not only daiquiris but why not with Applejack? Apples, burnt cinnamon sounds like a winner to me. Or how about a nice hot cider, with a little rum, and the simple syrup (Guess I'll have to wait until the fall for the cider). On the non-alcohol side-why not use it to moisten a sponge cake - wouldn't that give it an interesting flavor? Or what about a burnt cinnamon ice cream? Now first for the burning of the cinnamon - it felt a little like I was doing a cleanse to ward off evil spirits. I think that is usually done with sage but if cinnamon works too - so be it. The recipe recommended using a small creme brulee torch to burn the cinnamon sticks - like you d
Post a Comment
Read more