Las Cholas
To say that I was excited about the endless meat dishes in Argentina would be an understatement. Asado, chorizo, milanesa, empanadas … come at me!
However, there is one small problem that I have a beef with. (Geddit?! :) ) I'm not really used to the late night dining hours yet.
Porteños (that's the name for locals who are from Buenos Aires) love to dine really late in the evening. Dinner usually starts from around 10pm and it is not uncommon to have a dinner booking for midnight. Staying awake late is manageable enough, but sometimes I fear I may pass out from hunger before dinner arrives on the table!
Perhaps that is a little dramatic for me to say, but hey, I'm just trying to beef up my argument ;) Okay, no more meat puns for the rest of this post. Promise!
We live in the very lively sub-barrio of Las Cañitas in Palermo that is well known for its bars and restaurants. You might have heard of the neighbouring areas of Palermo Soho and Palermo Hollywood that are famed for their great nightlife. For our first dinner out in our new hood, Danny's Porteño friends recommended that we try Las Cholas.
Asado amazingness was waiting for us there.
On Friday night, we arrived at 10pm and waited around 40 minutes for a table inside. (That's a standard waiting time here, not easy for my grumbling stomach.)
As soon as we were seated, we promptly ordered and scoffed down this bread roll faster than you can say arriba.
Then we proceeded with quaffing down a fine bottle of malbec from the Mendoza. (P.S. Mendoza is on my travel bucket list while we are here.)
It wasn't long before our gigantic meals arrived. Now this is what I call a generous portion size.
Danny ordered the mix de vacio, asado y entraña. The meal came out as cuts of three different meats from the grill served with sweet potato mash and thick cut chips. It was 88 pesos which converts to around US$9 (at the blue rate - not the official one).
I had the barbecue pork ribs with salsa and hot chips. Likewise mindbogglingly affordable at 79.50 pesos (approximately US$8).
Needless to say we were very satisfied with our respective meals and the amazing value.
After dinner, the staff kindly let me enter the kitchen and see the parilla (grill) where they cook the meat.
This is where the magic happens. Asado Kedabro!* (*This is what happens when you read too much Harry Potter as a child.)
The meat was succulent and cooked to perfection. And my pork ribs were doused with a deliciously sticky and sweet sauce. As for the chips… crunchy fried goodness. Hey, nobody said Argentinian food was good for the waistline.
My only complaint is that you get so full from the meal that you don't have room for dessert. Which is a shame because I've been hanging out for dulce de leche since I arrived in Argentina.
