Founded in 2011 by Anne Reynolds and Marina Ponzi, Fuudis is a group that leads gourmet tours in various neighbourhoods of Buenos Aires. During these tours, Fuudis patrons can test delicacies offered at many a spot off the beaten path of obvious porteño dining.

As you might have guessed, a major component of the Fuudis food tour is, of course, food. I suppose, then, it is my duty as the reporter assigned to review this tour to give you a rundown of the food served during the Fuudis tour in Las Cañitas on 6th February. Here it goes.

Moroccan chicken kebab at Blanch. (Photo: Tomás Guarna)

First: The entree was served at Blanch, a quaint locale on Andres Arguibel, and consisted of a delicious Moroccan chicken kebab adorned with corn and greens, an ingenious “salad” of tartar de salmon, avocado and alfalfa sprouts served in a small glass tumbler, and an appetiser-sized cut of glazed pork belly. Wine and four types of liquor accompanied the course: Campari, Cynar, Cinzanno and Aperol. I had my Cynar mixed with grapefruit juice – it was high in flavour but low in alcohol content, probably a good thing, considering the number of drinks offered up over the course of the night.

Second up was Novecento, an Argentine Bistro with locations worldwide, which hosted the main course, a choice of either pumpkin tortellini with curry-infused butter, ginger, tomatoes and arugula or a spinach gnocchi soufflé with cream and parmesan. I went with the latter and was not disappointed. Housed in a heated cauldron, the green pieces literally melted in my mouth. A friendly fellow diner let me try her pumpkin tortellini, and it’s obvious I couldn’t have gone wrong with either choice.

Finally, for dessert, we headed to Spanish restaurant Sabino and filled whatever stomach space remained with a sampling of budin de pan, a mini apple pancake, sautéed banana, natilla cream and coffee. It seems impossible to have dessert in Argentina without some dulce de leche popping up, and Sabino didn’t disappoint on that front.

But, even though it was all well prepared and delicious, believe it or not, the food was not what left the most lasting taste. Fuudis’ website describes itself as a “social dining experience” and that first word is what I really took out of the experience, tasty as the dinner was.

Each Fuudis tour hosts 25-30 people, and Anne and Marina remind each diner to sit next to a new person at each restaurant, “forcing” you to talk to a bunch of different people. The majority of the diners spoke in Spanish, but there wasn’t much of a language barrier for English speakers. There were a handful of tourists from English-speaking nations, the guides gave all instructions in English and Spanish, and the website is available in English, Spanish and Portuguese.

Foodies engage in conversation in a candlelit dinner in Novecento. (Photo: Tomás Guarna)

I talked to a Dutch journalist who came to Buenos Aires to freelance in an entirely new and different culture, a pair of Jewish Brazilian brothers who recounted their recent trip to Israel, and a friendly local who imparted his wisdom on how to know when you’ve found “the one.” It was great Spanish practice and a nice cultural experience regardless of the odd linguistic complication. Everyone, waiters included, were extremely kind and the whole group was genuinely interested in having a good conversation. My photographer and I were by far the youngest of the crowd, but, the age difference was never a factor.

In addition to neighbourhood tours like the one I attended, Fuudis also offers cooking classes, themed dinners, ice cream tastings, and tours that incorporate art into the trip.

One possible downside is the cost of $250, which might be out of the budget range of some, but the food lived up to it and the social experience was not something you could easily stick a price tag on.

Sometimes I get attacked by a dark hole of self-induced extranjero depression, where just whipping out an old BA guidebook, glancing at an outdated travel article, or deciphering a decrepit pizzería menu gives me the uncontrollable urge to play the Inflations-A-Bitch pity party game. With restaurant costs catapulting skyward, like an Olympic pole-vaulter on a juicing binge, it’s difficult not to partake in the beloved pastime of price complaining. Soaring restaurant prices have become a city-wide phenomenon, where it seems like even the seediest bodegón has the huevos a caballo to charge a $10 cubierto. So how can we look beyond pizza and empanadas, to find winning restaurants where we can stuff our faces without unstuffing our wallets? If you are fond of eating out but don’t have the pesos to support it, look no further: I have searched far (and somewhat wide) to find you (and me) the best deals Buenos Aires has to offer for less than $30 $45 per person.*

Vegetarian Burger and other dishes from Marfa (Photo: Allie Lazar)

Trending in food worldwide, Peruvian cuisine has made a real splash. A staple for those who like eating foods that have seasonings other than salt, the spiced up picante kick and tangy citrusy sauces disguise the not-so fresh fish of BA. Contigo Peru and Primavera Trujillana offer a banging midday menú with ají de gallina, lomo salteado, or grilled fish all available. Go with a group to Chan Chan, La Conga or Carlitos and gorge on massive towers of fresh ceviche, fried seafoody goodness, pollo a la brasa, all with ají-enhanced sauces. For Peruvian sandwiches try the Pollo Parrillero from El Peruanito Ray (make sure to ask for salsa de apio and picante sauce and substitute the mandioca fries for the traditional papas), or the balling bondiola oinking sensation Chicharrón Peruano from Peru Express. 

Join the old men and sweaty football players at Club Eros for simple food that Argies do best: beef, fries and cheap wine. Crowded red chaired Las Cabras has Palermonites spilling out onto the corner of Costa Rica and Fitz Roy for a reason: patero wine in classic penguino pitchers, crayons to draw obscenities on the table, and a banging Parrillada Para Dos that can really feed five. A similar story rings true with sister restaurants Cumaná and Las Cabritas, they may not be the best restaurants BA has to offer, but at least you won’t cry in disappointment when the check arrives. For real deal seekers, head towards the meat action epicenter: the mobile parrilla carritos in Costanera Norte or Sur and stock up on chori or vacío pan that will leave you rolling happily into the Río de la Plata.

For a daily dose of MSG, the counter at Asia Oriental never fails; sesame peanut noodles and wonton soup will make the fishy close-yo-legs supermarket odor bearable. Da Dong Fan Dian in Villa Crespo is another one of those special places, go with a group and order two dishes minus the number of people eating for a Chinese food sharefest. The porky pan-fried dumplings and shrimp fried rice are essential.

Cusic doubles the cheap fun with their crazy affordable para llevar day menu, as well as Thursday nights a la gorra, where each week the menu changes and customers pay what they think the meal is worth. For delivery fans, Green Monster is not only a healthy vegan-friendly option, but the bill won’t top $25.

Comida arabe should always be a go-to affordable option: skip the over-hyped Sarkis and try others of the same breed: Falafel One for the falafel and tabbouleh, Al Zein’s babaganous, pita bread and yogurt sauce, shawarma from Demashk or fava bean pure at Alhambra. A staple only served on Friday and Saturday afternoons, the shawarmas from Medio Oriente are a must.

Kioscos are kicking it up a notch too with affordable healthy(ish) fast food. Check out the sandwiches or platos del día at Suckewer, meatball-cheddar toastie from BakingBA, custom-made wraps at Fitz Roll, veggie burgers from Marfa and the bagel with a KelinCake banana budín from Brocos Deli. Once an actual kiosco take away spot, Latino Sandwich has recently moved into a larger space in the Microcentro, making killer sandwiches that would cost nearly double at any Palermo café, yet probably has double the amount of deliciousness.

Ternera Braseada from Latino Sandwich (Photo: Allie Lazar)

Other solid deals: Oui Oui breakfast promos like ‘The Tony’: eggs benedict, greens, potatoes and coffee or tea for $37, anything on the El Banco Rojo’s menu, La Puerta Roja’s Monday night $30 curry + beer special, Efimero Festin’s salad bar, and tapas from La Esperanza de los Ascurras. In the need to cleanse your stomach, check out Gengis’s House Mongolian BBQ – you make your own massive stir fry plate for $39. For Happy (food) Hours, La Cabrera offers 50% off the menu daily from 7pm-8pm (but get there early, there’s a line!) and Benihana offers half-off the appetizer and most of the sushi menu from 4-8pm daily. Other cheapo discount tips: sign up for Club La Nación and Guia Oleo Deals, where you can get up to 50% off in many restaurants.

*Disclaimer: You may notice that prices in Buenos Aires change awfully quick, so by the time you read this, it’s probably already out of date.

Argentines are famous for hating el picante (spice). Not a trace of it can be found in the vast majority of traditional Argentine foods, and what is called a “spicy meat empanada” really has only the tiniest pinch of ají. This general dislike for anything hot makes the recent growth in popularity of Mexican food in Buenos Aires surprising to many. But it has happened. Restaurants offering Mexican cuisine can now be found all over the city: Guia Óleo lists 55 establishments, many of them opened in the last five years.

Mexican Chilis provide a spicy kick often missing from the Argentine palate. (Photo: Massimiliano Trevisan)

Traditional Mexican food, full of spices and with ancient influences, presents a stark contrast to the usual Argentine fare. The real action of late, however, is not in the sit-down restaurants offering authentic Mexican dishes, but rather in a new trend taking Buenos Aires by storm: Mexican fast food, tailored to Argentine tastes.

Similar to the way that Peruvian food embraced Chinese influences, or Tex-Mex cuisine grew out of cultural integration in the American Southwest, many restaurants in Buenos Aires are offering a distinct new take on Mexican fast food dishes. According to Sebastián Pino of 3 Tiros Burritos, the ever more-popular burritos and tacos are different from the original Mexican versions “in their ingredients and combinations”, instead building on more traditional Argentine styles.

“Mexican dishes are sautéed with spices and different vegetables, while the Argentine version includes fewer vegetables and pays more attention to the cooking of the meats,” adds Pino. Chiles, a Mexican staple, are also notably absent in the majority of these fast food options, which in turn replace the traditional corn tortillas with the flour “rapiditas” that are more familiar to Argentines.

Pino, who has lived in Mexico and the United States, says that in his view, Argentines enjoy trying new flavours, as long as they don’t stray too far out of the realm of familiarity. He explains that the attraction of Mexican fast food is its adaptability: just as Tex-Mex inserted North American ingredients into Mexican dishes, creating a deliciously popular hybrid, the same can be done with ingredients that cater to the Argentine palate, while still offering new and exciting flavour combinations.

“Argentine cuisine, always seeking simplicity and tradition instead of new flavour combinations, is not very original. Mexican food is the opposite, always trying to integrate pinches of spice and the ideal condiments for each dish,” adds Pino. The combination of the two offers innovative options that feed the Argentine appetite for the exotic without pushing them too far out of their comfort zone.

California Burrito Company offers burritos and salads both (Photo courtesy of CBC)

Alec Hart, North American owner of widely successful franchise chain California Burrito Co. (CBC), has a similar idea in mind. He believes that burritos are catching on in Argentina because they offer a relatively nutritious meal that doesn’t stint on flavour, a major attraction to the image-conscious young urbanites who drive city trends like this one. CBC also caters to very diverse tastes, because customers can choose from several different salsas and select the ingredients of their burrito, meaning that the level of Argentine-Mexican fusion lies in the hands of each individual.

For Hart, Mexican food is a “celebration” and the fresh simplicity of high quality, low carb ingredients present a winning combination. The owner of burrito delivery service Donky’s, Santiago Garcia Vozzi, agrees, saying that the beauty of the idea is that burritos contain many everyday ingredients, just put together in an innovatively tasty way. Vozzi’s ambitions for the adaptability of the Mexican fast food model are such that for him, burritos don’t necessarily need to even be Mexican. “What we did,” he says, “is copy the format but with different types of fillings, trying to avoid that just because we’re eating burritos people only think of Mexican food.”

Donky’s offers an Indian burrito with a chicken curry filling, and an American burrito featuring steak with barbecue sauce. In a country famed for loving empanadas, it’s the format, as much as the flavours themselves, that seems to appeal to the locals. This is shown by orders on www.BuenosAiresDelivery.com, where alongside empanadas, the top-ordered foods over the last six months have consistently included spring rolls, tacos, burritos, and shawarma.

Pino, like his counterparts, envisions Mexican fast food taking its place among pizza, empanadas, and sushi as the next big delivery attraction. All agree that they see the trend, which has been growing steadily for about two years, exploding within the next year.

Without a doubt, the internet plays a driving role in inspiring and enabling such changes in tastes. As Vozzi says, “now that everyone is constantly in the know, we’re better informed and so we demand new things, new products and new flavours.” In that sense the growth of Mexican food matches the popularity of other types of exotic, ethnic foods, like Indian or African, that are also taking hold in the city.

However, the influx of foreign tourists, study abroad students, and expats also plays a role in driving demand for international flavours. According to a report by La Nación in May 2012, more than 25,000 students come from abroad to study in Argentina every year. Many of these foreigners bring with them eclectic tastes and a demand for a much wider variety of ethnic foods than have traditionally been available in Argentina. The concentration of students in trend-setting areas like Palermo then goes hand in hand with the Argentine middle class’ appetite for the exotic in driving the growth in popularity of new cuisine.

Quesadillas at Magdalena's Party (photo courtesy of Magdalena's Party)

Mexican fast food seems to appeal to diverse groups of people, from parrilla-loving locals to the hordes of foreigners in the Argentine capital. Johnny Deutsch is the owner and executive chef of Magdalena’s Party, an eclectic bar in Palermo. The food they offer, combining inspirations as diverse as Italian, Argentine, Canadian, and Southern Californian, excite locals and foreigners alike, according to Deutsch: “The California Burrito was a match made in heaven for the Argentine palette. It’s a burrito stuffed with beef, french fries, cheese and sour cream.”

While the eagerness of a young, connected population to try new flavours certainly makes Mexican food more marketable, it can still be hard to get the natives sold on the spice, though this may become easier in coming years: “The Argentine palette is changing, and the tolerance for spicy food is changing with that,” says Deutsch. But for now it comes as little surprise that most Mexican fast food options available bow to the sensitivities of the Argentine tongue, and keep the spice on the side.

Regardless, the new combinations that are being wrapped up in burritos and taquitos involve more than enough excitement, and point to the growth of a promising new flavour boom in years to come.

Coffee at La Cacerola (Photo: Matthew French)

Buenos Aires, always a strong tourism pull, has become more popular as a foodie destination in recent years as well thanks to the sophistication of the legendary Argentine asados and hot new fusion restaurants littering the culinary scene. But even some of the most dedicated food lovers who come to tour the city with their taste buds are likely to miss out on one of the most intriguing aspects of the Buenos Aires food culture.

Cooperative restaurants, tucked away throughout the city, occupy a fascinating place in the social history of Argentina. Established by groups of colleagues that found themselves jobless when the economic crisis hit Argentina in 2001, these cooperative projects are the result of intense labour and dedication to a common goal of survival. Often beginning with nothing more than a destroyed building and whatever personal funds they could salvage, these people came together from diverse backgrounds to pool their efforts in creating a business that, through income equality, would sustain them all. The result: unique restaurants with an effective form of self-management among the workers and a truly familial atmosphere.

La Cacerola is one of these cooperative restaurants, located on Franklin 26 in the neighbourhood of Almagro. It was founded in 2002 after several neighbours in the area found themselves unemployed and decided start a business of their own that would coexist with the surrounding community. Since then, the workers in La Cacerola have been moving forward together, reclaiming a run-down neighbourhood lot and turning it into a beautiful café in which, despite different responsibilities, all of them receive the same pay. The workers have developed a unique café culture in which they promote the community they cultivate more than the food and drink they put on the table.

This grassroots attitude is apparent in the diverse backgrounds of La Cacerola’s employees. While many are family members and friends of the original founders of the cooperative, the only prerequisite for the job is commitment to the project and the network of people it supports. For this reason, the heads of administration within La Cacerola have hired former convicts, homeless people and drug-addicts, people typically not considered reliable or appealing by employers.

However, as the president of the cooperative, Walter, says, the foundational ideals of La Cacerola are “solidarity and trust”. This allows traditional weaknesses to become strengths, because those former at-risk individuals become the most reliable and loyal workers available. Walter elaborates: one of the top three administrators within the La Cacerola heads up the high management duties despite his history as a juvenile delinquent; an ex-convict tends the cash register unsupervised; and a worker with HIV/AIDS shares mate with her colleagues.

Bar Mu (Photo: Beatrice Murch)

Bar Mu is another type of cooperative establishment, located a few blocks from Congreso on Hipólito Yrigoyen 1440. While officially it can be classified as a restaurant, in truth it is a mix of a library, bar, meeting place and artisanal shop. Most clients are regulars who have grown close with the staff. Bar Mu began in the virtual world as an online journal, founded after the 2001 crisis to promote the cooperative movement in Argentina and create awareness of human rights issues. Its creators then decided to found the Bar Mu space to amplify the cooperative’s reach and establish a permanent, physical place for themselves.

Like La Cacerola, Bar Mu has a unique management system. As a cooperative, all workers receive equal pay and respect, despite varying roles of responsibility. Interestingly, the majority of high-responsibility positions tend to be filled by women. The president of the cooperative, Claudia, mentions that this relates to the belief that women manage domestic economies more effectively than men, though men are more dominant in Argentine business due to a historically machista society. She says that in Bar Mu, women are far more effective in cultivating a familial atmosphere, because they translate the rules of the home into the workplace. These “powers of the woman,” as Claudia calls them, forge Bar Mu’s unique environment. As such, the space feels like the extension of someone’s home, with a cosy and motherly feel. It has the same free speech and comfort that exists within a tightly knit family household.

As my conversation with Claudia ends, a Senegalese immigrant walks through the door and comes up to her, planting a big kiss on her cheek. They chat for a bit, she offers him some mate and he heads back out into the cold. Claudia then tells me that the man is a street vendor. She’s known him for years after he stumbled into Bar Mu offering his wares. Since then he’s been coming around weekly, and she’s even taught him to drink mate. Claudia then frowns and says, “His brother was murdered last week.” She pauses. “It’s been tough for all of us.”

La Cacerola and Bar Mu represent just two examples of this powerful cooperative movement, which in Argentina is not limited to restaurant and cafés but can be seen throughout society, from cooperative living spaces in squatted buildings to worker-run recuperated factories. Often hidden from the eyes of tourists who stick to the main sights, such cooperative establishments offer a glimpse at a profoundly Argentine trait: creative adaptation to overcome hardship and the coming together of community in the face of adversity.

Matthew French is currently working for Buenos Aires Delivery (www.badelivery.com), where he often writes about food and restaurant culture for their blog. He also works with Open Movements, an organisation dedicated to developing social economy and fighting economic exploitation.

With so much competition over hungry patrons and the buzz they create for restaurants, dining out involves far more than socialising and satisfying the palate. While quality service is another key ingredient, there remain occasions when these factors alone are insufficient to deliver the total experience.

Despite a guilty simplicity in the staple porteño diet, dining options in Buenos Aires are quite abundant for seekers of something more. Whether it’s variations to the restaurant concept, variety and specialty in the cuisine, or a range of fun, quirky, and mood-setting environs, those who look hard enough will find the city teeming with creative innovations.

Teatro Ciego in Abasto (Photo courtesy of Teatro Ciego)

In one case, there is no looking to be done at all. The Argentine Centre of Blind Theatre (Centro Argentino de Teatro Ciego), partly inspired by Dans le Noir in London, offers one of the few blind gourmet experiences to be found anywhere in the world. Running Thursdays to Saturdays at 9.00pm, “A Ciegas Con Luz” (“Blinded by the Light”) leads audiences into a pitch-black dining hall to await the overpowering smell of full-course meals being carried out and served. After filling up on tasty finger foods, the singing of Luz Yaciani leads the audience on a sensory exploration outside the prevalence of sight.

If what you seek is variety in your meal and a lively, big gathering experience, the bodegones of Buenos Aires offer a uniquely porteño feast. What began as informal immigrant grocery stores soon transformed into social hubs, forming a tradition of savoury, plentiful, and usually cheap dining.

Among the most famous of the bodegones is El Obrero in La Boca, a fashionable throwback to the 50s and Argentina’s fanatical fútbol legacy. Lined with sports paraphernalia, El Obrero promises heaps of homemade dishes for groups who want to join a large, always spirited crowd for dinner. Similarly, Albamonte, located near the Chacarita cemetery, is a bodegón rooted in the time-honoured tradition of Italian-Argentine cuisine. Best known for its wood-fired pizza, Albamonte’s extensive menu makes for an excellent luncheon or dinner.

For those looking for a more risqué meal, Palermo’s Te Mataré Ramirez offers an erotic theatre show from Tuesday to Thursday nights, with Bossa Nova performed live on Monday nights. L’Averno on Corrientes also spices things up with Nyotaimori, the Japanese tradition of eating sushi off of a naked man or woman’s body, if it’s a particularly daring night.

Nico Fernández Rubio makes pizza at El Gato Viejo (Photo: Mark van der Aa)

In Retiro, El Gato Viejo doubles as an art gallery and restaurant, originally established by recycling artist Carlos Regazzoni. Open Thursday to Saturday from 7pm, El Gato Viejo combines live music, art manufactured from recycled materials, and a bodegón style meal personally prepared by Regazzoni. In an open-air atmosphere mingling with the street, El Gato Viejo provides an atypical experience for those in search of something uncommon. For other dining experiences that will surround you with art, check out Max’s Supper Club, a closed-door (puerta cerrada) establishment with vibrantly painted walls and exhibitions of artwork, as well as DonAire Gastronomía+Arte, a puerta cerrada in Caballito with live music and paintings in an ornate, stimulating environment.

In some cases, the protocol is so out of the ordinary that a menu is deemed unnecessary. In San Telmo, Sukiyaki’s eccentric head chef, Ito San, offers a minimalist Japanese dining experience in which the choice of food comes down to whatever it is the chef decides to prepare, usually the most exotic seafood he can find. In a understated, rather dingy atmosphere, patrons are served by Ito San himself, who always manages to turn heads with his mysterious demeanour and formula for success. There are no fixed prices here. Usually amounting to about $100 per person, Ito San decides what is owed at the conclusion of the meal. For similar experiences in an Italian style, check out Guidos, near the Palermo Zoo, and Don Carlos, in La Boca.

Bar Seddon's famous candelabra (Photo: Jessie Akin)

Supposing you are on a mission to have a great night out all in one place, what could be better than tango in Buenos Aires? At Complejo Tango in Balvanera, the night begins with a tango lesson, followed by dinner and a tango show. Split up into 5 scenes and accompanied by an orchestra of renowned maestros, Complejo Tango’s show examines distinct eras in the history of tango, providing enlightenment to go with the food, drinks, and entertainment. Similarly, in San Telmo, Bar Seddon is a popular, 1930s themed café decked out with contemporaneous furniture, paintings, and antique mirrors. In addition to Wednesday tango classes, lives blues and jazz music can be found here on weekends.

There is no telling when the mood to do something unusual will strike, but it is always wise to be prepared for that moment when it comes. Buenos Aires is not likely to disappoint if the goal is too add something extra to your meal. Between closed-door dinners, boisterous bodegones, and up-and-coming businesses ready to give you something new, it isn’t an exaggeration to say that Buenos Aires is a place to find out what is really meant by the word quirky.

Villa Crespo, full of hidden gems (Photo: Alexandra Lazar)

It’s safe to say that Villa Crespo is no longer an up-and-coming neighbourhood; it’s already the hotness and has been for some time. It’s the Palermo Viejo of yesteryear, on that cusp of coolness yet without becoming nauseatingly trendy and touristy. While some may say the Palermo-fication began a few years ago when real-estate crusaders (who deserve a massive chorizo up their Lanus) tried to coin the neighbourhood ‘Palermo Queens’, this quaint middle class residential barrio has been transformed into something quite culinarily unique.

So what makes VC so damn special? In a nutshell: Argentine, African, Chinese, American, Jewish, Italian, fine dining, cheap dining and overall delicious dining. In recent years, Villa Crespo has experienced an explosion of quality restaurants with a diverse offering, mostly all family owned businesses and spread over just a few blocks, turning the area into a haven for the culinary adventurous.

Mariana Pereira, owner of Querido Bed & Breakfast in Villa Crespo, agrees that finding food of all different styles in such a close vicinity is really what makes this barrio stand out. Living in the neighbourhood for four years, she has witnessed the gastro-boom first hand: “Before you would go eat at the more traditional restaurants with great food, but today you notice more smaller gourmet restaurants.” Not only does Mariana love the ethnic variety of the neighbourhood, she finds it especially gratifying when stumbling on those places that don’t appear to be that special from the exterior, but shock you with their excellent food. In Villa Crespo, there are a lot of those surprises.

The grand gastronomical happenings are leading Villa Crespo into the food heavens, sprinkling it with that extra sparkle, and making it a hot destination for traditionalists and trendsetters alike.

With so many great restaurants in such close vicinity, I suggest you embark on a Villa Crespo food crawl starting with some of these recommendations:

Almacen Purista (Photo: Alexandra Lazar)

Almacén Purista (Velazco 701)

With fresh, homemade food, this vegetarian restaurant and café will even please the meatiest of meat eaters.

Angelito (Camargo 490) 

When the legendary pizzeria Imperio closed its doors, the owner opened Angelito a few blocks away. A colorful, rustic, tiny, noisy bodegón, the pizza is a neighborhood favorite.

Bai Fu (Scalabrini Ortiz 152)

Very simple atmosphere, this Chinese hidden gem serves up excellent food and is frequented by many in the Chinese community. Go for their infamous duck, steamed corvina or fried shrimp.

El Buen Sabor (Camargo 296)

One of the only African restaurants in Buenos Aires, chef/owner Maxime Tankouo brings the tastes of Cameroon to the streets of Villa Crespo. A tiny hole-in-the-wall, munch on African specialties like chicken in peanut sauce, fried yucca and beans with fried plantains.

Salgado (listed below) (Photo: Alexandra Lazar)

Da Dong Fang Dian (Vera 468)

Calling all dumpling lovers, this place is for you. The mother-daughter cooking duo makes a mean shrimp fried noodle, chicken Kung Pao, and of course pork dumplings a la plancha. Simple atmosphere, extremely affordable prices, this place is all you could ever want in a neighborhood Chinese joint.

Don Zoilo (Honorio Pueyrredon 1406)

If you look up a classic neighborhood parrilla in the dictionary, Don Zoilo might just show up. A family bodegón that’s always busy, order the dinner of champions: provoleta, bife de chorizo, French fries and a Malbec.

La Cava de Jufré (Jufré 201)

Specialty wine shop and wine bar all in one, a great atmosphere to try new wines and gorge on generous picadas. Get your wine education on as well, La Cava offers wine tastings, wine seminars and a course on cheese.

La Cocina Discreta (address given upon reservation)

Only open Thursday – Saturday nights, this closed-door restaurant is located in a beautiful Villa Crespo “PH” and ideal for a multiple course special and discreet eating experience.

The La Crespo Hot Pastrami (Photo: Alexandra Lazar)

La Crespo (Thames 612)

This family-run spot in Villa Creplaj makes everything in-house and is where to go for a cure of NY Jewish deli homesickness. Get down and dirty with real bagels loaded creamed cheese & smoked salmon, cheesecake brownies and an absolutely killer pastrami sandwich, stacked with homemade hot pastrami, crunchy pickles, Dijon mustard and sweet caramelized onions on the side.

La Esperanza de los Ascurra (Aguirre 526)

Prices that will bring you back to 2009, this cool arty vermouth bar is laid back with a total buena onda vibe. Go for dinner and drinks, ordering a bunch of small plates like meatballs, gambas al ajillo (garlic shrimp), and traditional Argie cocktails. All their bread is freshly baked daily which is always a huge plus.

La Mamma Rosa (Jufré 101)

From the outside it appears to be just any old neighborhood bodegón, but La Mamma Rosa is something quite special. Argentine food done right, an Italian influenced menu specializing in stomach-smiling meats and pastas. With decent prices, familiar atmosphere and friendly service, it’s a traditional must visit.

Malvon (Photo: Alexandra Lazar)

Malvón (Serrano 789)

Malvón converts the essence of a New York bakery café into its trendy BA version at one of the newer spots to pop up in the neighborhood. From the same owner as infamous Green Bamboo, Malvón excels in world of baked goods, offering a wonderful assortment of fresh baked breads, muffins, bagels, and an incredible maracuyá cheesecake.

Ocho7Ocho  (Thames 878)

Even though this close-door speakeasy might not be such a secret anymore, 878 makes killer cocktails and a very tasty lamb burger.

Original (1170 Bravard)

Another favorite among the Chinese community, it’s the place to go for the house specialties like xiao long bao (Shanghai steamed bun with pork served in a bamboo basket), dumpling soup, crab with onions and ginger and whole steamed fish.

Paladar Buenos Aires (address given upon reservation)

Chef Pablo and his sommelier wife Ivana open the doors of their home to offer one of the best puertas cerradas in the city. An intimate atmosphere, each party sits at their own table at this closed-door restaurant to indulge in an elegant five-course meal with the optional wine pairings. Get on their mailing list to find out the weekly menu and information about their cooking classes.

Sarkis (Photo: Alexandra Lazar)

Sarkis (Thames 1101)

The most popular restaurant on Guía Oleo, Sarkis is a legend in the world of Buenos Aires restaurants. Specializing in Armenian and Middle Eastern cooking, this lively restaurant is almost always full of families, locals and foreigners. While it’s true that the food quality may not be as good as it used to be, it’s still a solid option if you want big portions, cheap food and a fun atmosphere.

Salgado Alimentos (Ramírez de Velasco 401)

The go-to place for pastas, Salgado Alimentos has been around for fivve years bringing fluffy, pillowy homemade carb deliciousness to many happy customers. Their menu is huge, offering salads, sandwiches, parrilla, minutas, platos principales and, of course, PASTA. Stick to what this place knows best, the fresh, dried or stuffed pastas.

Rolaso (Photo: Alexandra Lazar)

Rolaso (Julián Alvarez 600)

A neighbourhood favourite, most local Villa Crespians will vouch for Rolaso. Great service, food and wine – what more can you ask for in a parrilla?

For more detailed reviews of some of these places check out Allie’s pickupthefork blog, or for a more comprehensive list, check out this Villa Crespo food map.

A gastro-sexual culture has been brewing in Buenos Aires, where dining concepts are being aimed to stimulate much more than taste buds. Whether you want to dine with fellow swingers, lick up ejaculate-inspired desserts, pleasure your palate with aphrodisiac deliveries or indulge in oral orgies, Argentina’s capital is taking the term ‘Food Porn’ to a whole new level.

Food is sex (Photo: Mr. Dale)

Erotic Dining

A pioneer in the sexy eating world, Te Mataré Ramirez (Palermo Soho) is a Buenos Aires legend in the aphrodisiac dining scene.  It was named after a friend of the owner, Ramirez, whose sensational appetite for the opposite sex led him into some trouble:  “I will kill you, Ramirez!” apparently became a common phrase heard by the lovers and husbands of Ramirez’ many conquests.

The crowd is a mix of tourists, locals, and the token older Argentine man with high-heeled young arm candy (Ramirez would be proud). The décor of the restaurant could be compared to a 1990’s Dracula-inspired Cinemax late-night film showing, with a heavy hand of a boudoir red, velvet drapes, chandeliers and bizarre erotic clown art hung on the walls.

Each dish, created to give you that special tingly feeling inside, is given an over-the-top sexual, name, with the English translations making you feel just as uncomfortable to say as the originals.  Start out with the fried calamari, aka “You scream with ecstasy while you beg for penetration,” or if you are in the mood for rabbit, order the “Your female swell annihilates me at night.” Other highlights of the menu include the lamb in a ragout mushroom sauce, (“You indecently drank the eruption of my pleasure”) or the “I tear out of enjoyment from your warm treasure with my flaming tongue,” a salmon Tataki served with an arugula, mint, orange and calamari salad.

While the food may not perform as well as you had hoped, you do at least get a show with dinner. Check the calendar for one of the many performances, ranging from nude tango simulations, erotic theater and short films, to my personal favorite: sexual puppet performances. Puppet porno, what a turn on!

Temptations (Photo: Simon Pais)

Known as the partner-swapping club and bar, the infamous Anchorena SW Swingers club (Barrio Norte) is also dabbling in erotic cuisine with their “alta cocina Gourmet” restaurant, Escrúpulos (Scruples). The reduced menu includes dishes like ‘Your innocence in my hands’, or more simply put, a Caesar chicken salad.  For the main dish, try ‘The spot’ which is a bife de chorizo, and “Fantasies” for dessert, flambéed fruit with whipped cream.   If you find yourself at Anchorena after dawn, and didn’t happen to fulfill your craving of huevos the night before, take advantage of their morning breakfast bar.

Not all of us are so overt with our gastro-sexual urges, so if you are a bit more discreet while dining, El Cocoroco (Amenábar 2301, Belgrano) is a more subtly sensual place.  Along with a full menu of Peruvian favorites, El Cocoroco also offers dishes like the ‘Orgia de mariscos’ an “orgy” of seafood mixed with chili peppers and spices, leche de tigre (tiger milk) a Peruvian aphrodisiac, or a ‘Ceviche sensaciones’ – salmon ceviche with passion fruit juice.

Buenos Aires Delivery Afrodisíaco

New to Buenos Aires’ inexhaustible delivery scene, Bocados de Placer (Bites of Pleasure) claims to be the first delivery service of “aphrodisiac food and hot accessories” in the world. Following the Te Mataré Ramirez theme, Bocados offers four sensual-inspired dishes like “Tenderness that feeds my fantasy” –  mixed greens with avocado, toasted almonds, cherry tomatoes and mushrooms served with a tomato-based vinaigrette – and “Your naked body, my weakness,” a mix of prawns and mussels in a light orange sauce.

Romantic delivery from Bocados de Placer

Once the food is chosen, it’s time to pick out your sexy accessory kit: romántico, erotico or salvaje (wild), depending on your mood. The romantic kit is designed for “loving couples who want to reaffirm their feelings,” while the erotic option is aimed for those who are looking for “new and exotic sensations,” and the wild kit made for those “daring couples in search for a night full of fantasy.”

Each kit also includes candles and soft music to set the mood.  According to the company, the idea behind delivery afrodísiaco is for your “five senses to explode from exquisite sensual flavors… the goal is for couples to take time to look, touch, kiss and talk to one another – all in the intimacy of your house.”

Popping the Gastronomical Cherry

Max's Supper Club presents an erotic menu (Photo: Alexandra Lazar)

My first taste in sensual eating was at Max’s Supper Club, back in May of 2011. A fairly young puerta cerrada, chef Max Paarlberg puts a cultural spin on the classic closed-door restaurant by offering a five-course menu inspired by works of local artists. For the first installment, Chef Max cooked up Aphrodisiac-themed dishes to accompany Nicolás Uslé’s exhibit Psicosexual.  Oysters were sensually slurped and chorizos were phallically eaten, before the climactic dessert course, featuring white and dark chocolate “(cum) shots”. With paintbrushes as utensils, diners were invited to paint the strangers next to them with the sweet dessert, and then lick it off. For a first time experience, it didn’t hurt too bad.