BAGuide
The Best Restaurants In Buenos Aires
The people of Buenos Aires are a wildly passionate bunch. The country won the World Cup in 2022, and being a fan of the national team is basically its own religious sect. The same strong feelings are tied to food, especially when it comes to beef and pizza. Some porteños stick to specific cuts of steak grilled over a wood fire (never coal), and praise the city’s infamously fluffy pizza with minimal sauce and abundant cheese—forget a thin crust.
When you come to Buenos Aires, be ready to recalibrate your meal times, because things happen later here. Dinner usually kicks off around 10pm and lingers until well after midnight, so let that jet lag work in your favor. That’s the case whether you’re sitting for multiple courses at a tasting menu spot in Colegiales, nursing a malbec over small plates in one of Chacarita’s modern wine bars, or loading up on grilled beef at any parrilla (classic steakhouse) in trendy Palermo or touristy San Telmo. Remember to bring cash, because many restaurants offer discounts if you don’t use a card.
BUZZY SPOTS
photo credit: Martín Chavesta
Catalino is in Colegiales, the current hub for all the restaurants where the chefs use tweezers. The menu has things like wild pig empanadas baked in a stone oven, deer cooked on the coals, and their famous buñuelos, which are fried dough fritters with greens. They use the best seasonal vegetables and fruits from local farmers, and even whip up desserts with loquats harvested from the nearby trees. Sit on the patio and you’ll likely see their pet hen named Catalina wandering around.
After you’ve eaten enough meat to feel like you could have personally shut down a dairy farm, come to Narda Comedor for lunch. It’s run by a famous Argentine chef who opened the spot in 2017, and the menu has a number of solid plant-based options. Palta que lo Parió is one of our favorite dishes and is made with toasted bread, avocado, egg, and coriander. Definitely grab a spot outside when it’s nice out, especially since they’ve got a great view of the park in Bajo Belgrano.
What looks like a cute little corner bistro in Recoleta is actually one of the most popular fine dining joints in Buenos Aires. French-Argentine Roux is the place to order things that aren’t beef-centric, like the octopus risotto and beet carpaccio, or anything with foam on it. If you want to dine in a unique space, book the table inside the cava, the wine cellar in the basement. This white-tablecloth spot is definitely on the more expensive side for Buenos Aires, but totally worth it.
photo credit: Martín Chavesta
Argentina has the 7th largest Jewish community in the world, so you’ll find plenty of Jewish restaurants in Buenos Aires. Come have pastrami at Mishiguene, whose dimly lit dining room is a far cry from the fluorescent lighting of your average deli. Once your eyes adjust, you’ll see your pastrami order is actually a brick-sized slab of smoked beef brisket atop a potato latke and crowned with a fried egg. Equally good is the Jerusalem Mix with steer sweetbread, chickpeas, tomatoes, and pickled onions. It’s located right next to all the parks on Libertador Avenue, like Eco Parque, the Japanese Garden, and the Planetarium.
Puertas cerradas, or closed-door restaurants, are a unique Buenos Aires dining experience (think of them like secret supper clubs with home-cooked meals), and we recommend visiting at least one. Treintasillas has been around for more than a decade, and makes you feel like your swanky chef friend invited you over for a romantic dinner in their dreamy courtyard. The fixed, four-course menu changes weekly—yes, beef usually makes an appearance, but vegetables get to be the main character in many of the dishes you’ll try. Treintasillas is only open on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights, and you’ll need to make a reservation via WhatsApp, email, Facebook, or Instagram.
La Fuerza is a small bar located on a corner in Chacarita where you’ll eat your meal under dim lights and listen to music from the early 2000s. It’s a great place to snack and drink—try their french fries “a caballo,” which has nothing to do with horses and simply means they come topped with two fried eggs. You could also get their chickpea-based fainazzeta pizza if you want something closer to a full meal. Pair it with their house vermouth that’s made with Andean botanicals, on its own or in a cocktail.
photo credit: Martín Chavesta
Plaza Serrano and the surrounding streets are where everybody goes out for the night in Buenos Aires. But instead of (solely) drinking malbec or eating choripan, you should come to Lado V for vegan food like mushroom tacos and a lentil and carrot burger—oh, and also to dive into a ball pit surrounded by neon lights. It might sound like a vegan McDonald's from the ‘90s, but this spot has good food and is extra fun, even if it is a bit gimmicky.
PARRILLAS
Don Julio is arguably the most famous restaurant in all of Buenos Aires. It’s racked up more accolades than EGOT winner and fictional nun Whoopi Goldberg, and ever since Messi ate here a few months after bagging the title for Argentina, it’s impossible to get a table without making a reservation months in advance. Start with the ground beef empanadas before getting into big plates of charred chorizo, crispy sweetbreads, and morcilla. While any cut of beef is excellent, the tenderloins and strip steaks are the best.
photo credit: Martín Chavesta
The neighborhood of Puerto Madero is lovely for laid-back walks at sundown. After you’ve taken enough golden hour selfies to make your travel partner swear off being seen with you at dusk, head straight to Siga La Vaca and look for the cow statues at the entrance—the name of the restaurant literally translates to “follow the cow.” Go for the grilled all-you-can-eat steak, which costs around $35 and includes chorizo, grilled steer chitterlings, and lamb sweetbreads. There’s a solid salad and dessert bar, too.
photo credit: Martín Chavesta
Since this steakhouse is located a few blocks away from the Parliament building, you can expect a totally local crowd of government workers who come here for a meat charge between all that legislating. Spring for either one of their huge steaks with fries, or a bondiola sandwich filled with shredded pork loin. There’s no better place to practice your Spanish and learn a word or two in lunfardo, the local slang.
photo credit: Martín Chavesta
If you’re looking for something to eat after visiting the Museo Histórico Nacional (and you haven’t yet hit your cow consumption limit), stop by Los Chanchitos for more excellent grilled meat. The dining room is pretty laid-back and cozy, and you’ll see large groups catching up over mozzarella sticks and a truly massive Neapolitan matambre, a popular Argentine brisket steak covered with tomatoes, and fries. End your meal with some tiramisu, and walk towards Musicleta Cultural Club on Aguirre Street to check out the bars and clubs in Villa Crespo.
PIZZA
photo credit: Martín Chavesta
This spot has been whipping up the best pizza in town since 1932 on the centrally-located Corrientes Avenue, and you won’t find a thicker, fluffier dough fully covered with cheese anywhere else. To prove it, order an Especial Güerrín with mozzarella, ham, and green olives. Avoid the crowds by going for a very early dinner (or Argentine lunch) around 6pm. But even if you do have to wait, the line moves quickly and the food comes out fast. Don’t worry about trying everything on your first visit—you’ll most likely end up here more than once.
photo credit: Martín Chavesta
Las Cuartetas is great for a quick bite if you’re catching a play in any of the theaters along Corrientes Avenue or a concert at Estadio Luna Park. The fugazza pizzas are our favorite—you’ll need a fork and knife to pull a slice out of the deep-dish pan, and plenty of napkins in case all that stringy mozzarella and shredded onion finds its way on the table instead of your plate. (These don’t have red sauce, so at least your shirt is safe). Do like the locals do and have your pizza with a cold Quilmes beer at one of the standing counters.
photo credit: Martín Chavesta
Banchero is a legendary pizza restaurant in La Boca that makes great fugazza slices oozing with cheese. Come and have lunch after walking around the colorful Caminito, the city’s iconic (and touristy) stretch of souvenirs, live tango shows, and colorful historic houses of the first immigrants who came to Buenos Aires. In addition to pizza, they also make great beef empanadas, calzones, and chickpea flatbreads called fainá. Banchero has big wooden doors that are hard to miss, not to mention lots of old photos on the walls and a huge painting of the neighborhood’s port.
photo credit: Martín Chavesta
Pin Pun is a small and unpretentious restaurant with three locations in Buenos Aires. This one is in the old neighborhood of Almagro, on Corrientes Avenue but off the tourist track. It’s easy to find—just look for the red wall and neon lights, and follow the smell of fresh-baked dough and browned cheese. The famous mozzarella pizza is a must, but the fried empanadas are just as good. It's a great place to come with a group and yell along with the locals during a Boca Juniors vs. River Plate soccer game. Hang out late on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays when they’re open 24 hours.
TRADITIONAL PLACES
photo credit: Martín Chavesta
Don Ignacio is all about two things: crispy chicken milanesa and rock music. Stop by for lunch after checking out the local shops on Rivadavia Avenue and order some breaded cutlets that are bigger than a snare drum and cost around $5. The menu has over 30 different milanesas, but we like the Don Ignacio with ham, onion, mozzarella, and fried eggs best. It sort of feels like you’re in a mini rock and roll hall of fame—there are old posters, framed record album sleeves, and photographs of Elvis on the wall.
photo credit: Martín Chavesta
Once you walk into Centro Asturiano, you’ll feel like you’re in an old tavern in northern Spain with wine bottles, vintage photos, and antiques everywhere. Come for lunch after you tour the Barolo Palace and Parliament Square, order one of their ridiculously large tortilla españolas, and add on some gambas al ajillo that’s served sizzling in the traditional clay pot. Close out your lunch with a cup of custard.
photo credit: Martín Chavesta
Larreta is a calm spot where locals come to hang out and have a laid-back seafood lunch of fried squid and a casserole with shrimp, mussels, and crab. The dining room is inspired by old Spanish houses with tons of tile and traditional wooden furniture. Stop by after checking out Chinatown and Enrique Larreta Museum of Spanish Art in Belgrano. Afterwards, take a walk down nearby Cabildo Avenue—where you’ll find all different types of cute clothing shops—to digest your mollusks.
photo credit: Martín Chavesta
This all-day cafe made a comeback in 2015 after closing in 1948, and you’ll feel like you’ve been transported to Argentina’s golden tango era when you see the original furniture and photos from the ‘40s on the walls. Come for lunch after touring the nearby Obelisco, Teatro Colon, and Plaza Lavalle—order the roasted mussels, the flan with dulce de leche, and a glass of malbec. Los Galgos is also one of the traditional spots leading a vermouth resurgence in Buenos Aires, and you can get two-for-one cocktails during their daily happy hour from 5-7pm.
