Last published 10 do's and don'ts was Key West back in March…We travel further south with Vanessa Camozzi 10 do's and don'ts of Buenos Aires.
Vanessa
Camozzi is an expat living in Buenos Aires, Argentina. She is the
owner of Fukuro Noodle Bar. Her love and passion for the restaurant
industry prompted her and her husband (a native of Argentina) to open
up #FNB in the heart of Palermo Hollywood. The couple decided to
return back to Buenos Aires and finally open their own restaurant
after spending the past ten years working in the gastro scene in the
U.S.
Vanessa's 10 Do’s and 10 Don’ts of Buenos Aires:
Do's:
1) Visit the incredible landmark Palacio DuHau
at the Park Hyatt and have a glass of champagne outside in the
beautiful patio garden. Palacio Duhau is perfectly located on Avenida
Alvear, in the heart of the French heritage district of Recoleta.
2) Have the best ice cream you have ever tried in your life at one of
Argentina’s many ice cream parlors. Argentineans know their ice
cream—indulge in delicious flavors like dulce de leche granizado,
malbec y frutos rojos, and chocolate suizo. Though there are many
places to choose from I rank Freddo as one of the best ice cream shops in the city.
3) Be
sure to visit the Museo de Arte Latinoamericano de Buenos Aires
(MALBA). The
institution was organized around the Costantini Collection, and has
continued to expand its selection of works from modern artists from
across Latin America. The museum welcomes over a million visitors
annually.
4) Order Argentina’s national drink “Fernet with Coca-Cola” when
you go out at night for cocktails. Fernet is
a type of amaro, a bitter, aromatic spirit made from a number of
herbs and spices. You can’t leave Argentina without trying it!
5) Block out a morning or afternoon to get pampered at Gino
Lozano hair salon. This full service salon will have you looking and feeling like one
of Argentina’s many beautiful models in no time. Argentines take
their time while getting pampered and don’t rush through any of the
services they provide—so make sure to have enough time blocked out
and sign up for a mani/pedi and a “brushing” (a hair blow out) It
is so worth it.
6) Make
sure to try and hook up with a
local to go and have a real Argentinean “asado a la parilla” at
somebody house. Asado
is
a term used both for a range of barbecue techniques and the social
event of having or attending a barbecue,
An asado usually
consists of beef alongside various other meats, which are cooked on a
grill called a parrilla,
or an open fire. It’s
an ABSOLUTE MUST TRY if you are in Argentina. Don’t forget to put
chimichurri on all of your meats to add that final delicious flavor
to your plate. And If you don’t know a local then head over to
Pobre Luis
a typical traditional restaurant that serves up killer asado.
7) Drink
coffee. Do be sure to have lots and lots of “cortados” while
sitting outside in one of Argentina’s many cafes. The
most popular traditional Argentine coffees are small black coffees
(café
solos),
small espresso coffees with milk (cortados–
which also come in larger jarrito size),
and larger coffees with milk (café
con leches). Sit
outside in the sun like a real porteno with a cortado in hand and let
the day pass by as you get nice and caffeinated with each delicious
sip. Don’t know which café to choose? Try El Gato Negro you won’t be disappointed.
8) Visit El
Teatro Colón. It has
just recently been newly renovated.
The Teatro
Colón is
the main opera house in Buenos Aires and is acoustically considered
to be amongst the five best concert venues in the world.
9) Spend time at upscale gourmet harborside of Puerto Madero.
Puerto
Madero was of course originally a port. It was built to accommodate
the cargo ships of the day, but the increasing use of larger cargo
ships around that time quickly rendered it obsolete. It’s now
filled with a plethora of restaurants and cafes. Here you will be
sure to have great food with a beautiful scenic view.
10) Get a dose of dulce de leche infused “facturas.”
Nearly
every other block in Buenos Aires has a panaderia (bakery)
where you can try these delicious sugared pastries. The most popular
fillings are dulce
de leche, custard (crema
pastelera), and quince
paste (dulce
de membrillo.)
You
generally buy them by the dozen and have them during teatime or with
friends while drinking “yerba mate.” Mate,
also known as chimarrão or cimarrón, is a traditional South
American infused drink, particularly in Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay
and the southern states of Brazil and to a lesser degree in south of
Chile, the Bolivian Chaco, Syria and Lebanon. Mate
is the perfect partner to go along with these tasty facturas.
DONT’S
1) Don’t
try to rent a car and drive yourself through this city. Buenos Aires
is way too big of a city not to mention the people drive crazy–you
can forget about everyone staying in their own lanes and following
any traffic laws. The city is way too large to try and navigate solo
or even with a travel partner. Public transportation is a much more
viable and smarter option. Take the bus, subway, a taxi or just walk,
as these are all better options.
2) Don’t
make dinner reservations for 7:00pm. Argentinians do NOT eat dinner
early and never go out at 6 or 7pm to have dinner. It doesn’t
matter if it’s a weeknight or weekend. Everything in this city
stays open until late and it’s completely normal to make dinner
reservations for 10:30 or 11:00 pm.
3) Don’t
go to MicroCentro
otherwise known as the financial district in Buenos Aires— it’s
old, over crowded and overrated.
4) Don’t
be shocked if somebody kisses you on the cheek when you are meeting
them for the first time— it’s customary in Argentina— no
handshakes here. One kiss on the side of your cheek is the practice,
regardless of your age or gender.
5) Don’t
expect the right of way when you are crossing the street. Pedestrians
do not have the right of way. Once in a blue moon a car may stop for
you to cross but nine times out of ten, they wont.
6) Don’t
take the trains, they are overcrowded and accidents seem to regularly
occur each year. The trains are not well maintained so it’s not the
best form of transportation to take.
7) Don’t
be surprised to see lots of dog poop on the streets and dog walkers
walking up to 10 to 12 dogs at a time. Try and look down when you
walk as much as possible or if not you will get a nice frequent
surprise on the bottom of your shoe.
8) Don’t
come here with large bills in hand and expect to get change. Change
is a highly coveted thing in Argentina. Taxis, kiosks and stores
don’t just give out change willingly—so be strategic when you use
a large bill, otherwise you may not be able to make your purchase.
9) If
you are from the United States, don’t say “No hablo espanol soy
Americano/a” Instead you should say “Soy de los Estados Unidos”
It’s considered rude to say you’re “American” since you are
still in America just a lot further South.
10)
Don’t leave without coming to Fukuro Noodle Bar. If you’ve
stuffed yourself over and over with tons of meat and malbec then come
to FNB for some fresh ramen, craft cocktails, dumplings, steamed pork
buns, and milk and cookies. See you in Buenos Aires!
Thanks Vanessa for 20 on the spot tips…