USAFAN

I was in Restaurant Bourgogne, in Hotel Alvear. Had lunch menu incl. a bottle of first class red wine (Nobile or so..)

I also liked the wines and sparkling wines from Domain Chandon Argentina..

El Cochinito:

I think you can't go wrong with wine from Argentina .. all I had were fine...

Now there should be harvesting time/festivals in Mendoza??? May it's to late..

Gaucho100K

Cochinito. I suggest you go to one of the retail wine outlets, two good options are:

Winery - they are all over the place
Frappe - with 4 locations in Buenos Aires

Ask your concierge for details. By all means, please avoid Ligier - they are thiefs but unfortunately grease most hotels so that the concierges send the poor tourists there... they are really bad people and should be shunned. Please take this from a veteran of the Argentine wine scene... you dont want to buy there.

As for wines, whats your budget per bottle? I think that for US$ 15 a bottle you can get a heck of a bang for your buck. In this price range, I suggest:

Cabernets
1) Carmelo Patti, Cabernet Sauvignon
2) Trapiche, Fond de Cave
3) Escorihuela Gascon, varietal line Cabernet Sauvignon

Merlots

1) Escorihuela Gascon, varietal line Merlot

Malbec (Argentina's signature grape)

1) Domingo Molina, Malbec
2) Trapiche, Malbec Reserva Especial

If you want to go upmarket... there are many. Just check out the wines from the following wineries:

Catena Zapata
Finca la Anita
Terrazas de los Andes
etc.

Hope this helps....

Gaucho100K

USAFAN-- how was your meal at La Bourgogne...? If you are in to fine dining, I have some places you should go that are far far better than that place. I happen to know the chef and he is an idiot (so I guess Im biased), but still, Ive never been satisfied with that restaurant.

Cheers...

Gaucho100K

Stewie-- Welcome to FT!! Im very glad you enjoyed travelling around Argentina. We are a country that is still learning how to best treat tourists, we still have a lot to learn but we are getting there. I hope you return there soon and if you have any questions, please contact me or even better fire away here. I shall do my best to help you out...

USAFAN

Gaucho100K:

The meal was very good, like in a 1 to 2 star restaurant in France. Also very good service.

USAFAN

Gacho100K:

You can be proud of your Portenos! Very friendly. We stayed at Recoleta and only met nice and friendly people.
One day we went to your great opera, BTW, great performance of Mozart's Requiem. After the performance it started to rain .. lots of people needed a taxi .. there was no rush .. all and everybody behaved very calm. Great people!
I could live there any time ...

Gaucho100K

USAFAN-- The next time you are down in BA, I suggest you try one (or all) of these places: Sinclair, Christophe, and Nectarine.

Cheers.

Gaucho100K

Address for Nectarine (French Cuisine):

Vicente López 1661 Local 15, 1ş P. Phone: 4813-6993

Gaucho100K

Here is another recommendation, this one for Spanish Cuisine:

Pata Negra
Address: Av. Scalabrini Ortiz 3096
Phone: 4805-9957

USAFAN

Gaucho100K:

Get ready. United is coming (from Chicago)

Chicago–Buenos Aires 9:25 p.m.–11:45 a.m.** Daily from 10/31/04 767
Buenos Aires–Chicago 8:50 p.m.–5:15 a.m.**

I think they will stop/stopped MIA-EZE.

iahphx

Nice to see a B.A. thread. I'm planning my first trip since late 2000, when prices were still high and economic despair was rising. I've been regularly visiting since the late 80s, and it always seems you never know what the situation will be on your next visit! (One time I missed a coup by 4 days).

Since there's not much about Argentina in the US papers these days, I'm assuming things have calmed down and are relatively normal (at least by Argentine standards)? Last time I was in town everyone was banging pots and the airlines were on strike. Are the tourist areas again very safe to walk around in?

Last time -- before the dollar was dropped -- things were a tad expensive and I had to "compromise" on my hotel accomodations. This time, if I can get a top property for less than $100, I'd probably go that route. So everyone keep those hotel tips coming! And it sounds like good steaks are again at the $5 level, so I know we'll eat well (and cheaply) this time, especially from the recommendations you guys already have given. Always interested in good (non-steak) fine dining choices, too -- just to get a little variety in the diet!

Any shopping tips for good quality leather and woolens at good prices?

And if someone had 3 days to spare for a trip outside B.A., what would you recommend? I'd be particularly interested in a gaucho/hacienda type experience.

Thanks.

Gaucho100K

Yes, this was in the planning for some months now. UA EZE had been lobyying WHQ for this flight for ages now, its just that the bean counters wanted for the Northern Hemisphere to go into low season before they released one of the old 767 crates for the ORD service. Do you know if they will be doing this with 2 or 3 classes of service?

Gaucho100K

iahphx-- Glad to hear you will be going down to EZE sometime soon. Things are indeed quiet and orderly, by all standards. True that our picket lines are perhaps louder and more colorful than some of the ones you see in North America, but still, you have nothing to worry about. Getting a place to stay for around US$100 will be very easy, as well as $5-$7 steaks (depending on how high up the scale you want to go).

If you have enough meat in your system, I suggest you try out some of the other places Ive mentioned here and in other threads. Some more examples:

1) La Catedra - International, in Palermo
2) La Fornarina - Italian, in Belgrano
3) La Parollaccia - Av. Libertador, in Belgrano
4) Oviedo - in Barrio Norte

Cheers....

USAFAN

I don't know how they will be doing this; with 2 or 3 classes of service. I only got an e-mail from UA regarding:

BTW, UA needs two of this "old 767 crates" to establish a daily service to/from EZE, right? One 767 is sitting the whole day on the tarmac in EZE ... or make a short trip to Montevideo?!?
I am not a fan of the 767, however, I am beginning to like them. I went with CO from IAH to GRU, this bird had 2 - 1 - 2 seating in business-first.

iahphx

Thanks Gaucho. Given the quality of B.A. restaurants, and the exchange rate, I know we're not going to starve. :<)

Following up on a tip from another poster, I see we can stay at the Claridge for $85 on either a 3-night rate, or a "last minute" rate. I also see there are some 3-4 star properties in the $50 range. Certainly don't mind spending the extra bucks if the Claridge is appreciably nicer. What's the consensus? Location pros and cons? Any other good 4 or 5 star choices under $100?

And still looking for a 3 day excursion from B.A. Been to Iguazu and loved it, but I'm looking for something different. Are internal-Argentine airfares cheap? Or would I be better off driving to an estancia for a few days? Looking for an "authentic" Argentine experience that would be interesting and enjoyable. Thanks.