How can the food here be so bad ?

[Uncle Wong]

I live in a town out in the pampa not Buenos Aires. Asados aside the food here is mostly Italian based. As I'm not a lover of pasta or pizza it doesn't leave me with much choice when we eat out. No problem for my Argentine wife but it is for me. When eating out in a similar sized town in Scotland I could have a choice of traditionl Scottish/British food, Indian, Chinese and much more compared to here. We don't even have a MacDonalds!! 😞 As a Scot I love fish and seafood so don't get me started on the awful quality/availability of that here.

This was something that surprised me. I thought for some reason that Argentina with much of it along the coast would have better seafood variety. They do have fish that is exported but I guess not enough demand for it locally? Either that or they get much more money selling it and exporting it. I know in parts of Japan they are even importing Argentine shrimp which surprised me.

Argentine red shrimp find seasonal favor in Japan

Argentine red shrimp have become a popular item during Japanese New Year, with seasonal demand making the species a best-seller.

www.seafoodsource.com

 

[Digital Nomad]

I live in a town out in the pampa not Buenos Aires. Asados aside the food here is mostly Italian based. As I'm not a lover of pasta or pizza it doesn't leave me with much choice when we eat out. No problem for my Argentine wife but it is for me. When eating out in a similar sized town in Scotland I could have a choice of traditionl Scottish/British food, Indian, Chinese and much more compared to here. We don't even have a MacDonalds!! 😞 As a Scot I love fish and seafood so don't get me started on the awful quality/availability of that here.

Yikes! If you don't like Italian food I can imagine your choices are really limited! I don't go to McDonalds very often but I at least like the option that there is one not too far from my apartment if I want to go.

 

[Scottishgaucho]

What do you end up eating there? I am assuming a lot of asados!

We very rarely eat out to be honest so home cooking does us. Argentines aren't very adventurous when it comes to food.

 

[enbits]

I live in a town out in the pampa not Buenos Aires. Asados aside the food here is mostly Italian based. As I'm not a lover of pasta or pizza it doesn't leave me with much choice when we eat out. No problem for my Argentine wife but it is for me. When eating out in a similar sized town in Scotland I could have a choice of traditionl Scottish/British food, Indian, Chinese and much more compared to here. We don't even have a MacDonalds!! 😞 As a Scot I love fish and seafood so don't get me started on the awful quality/availability of that here.

The Pampas are like the wild west so you can not expect international food there. Generally speaking little towns in Argentina are not touristy for foreigners, I believe it has to do with politics as well and how it was developed over the past decades.

I have a cabin in Merlo, San Luis and there's no international food there neither, no McDonalds nor Walmart nor Carrferour whatsoever but that's not what I'm looking for:

I like to go to a carniceria, get one of the best fresh meat in the world, buy fresh veggies in a verduleria (quality there is much better than BA) and make an excellent asado with top notch wine looking at the hills while cooking.

 

[Digital Nomad]

The Pampas are like the wild west so you can not expect international food there. Generally speaking little towns in Argentina are not touristy for foreigners, I believe it has to do with politics as well and how it was developed over the past decades.

I have a cabin in Merlo, San Luis and there's no international food there neither, no McDonalds nor Walmart nor Carrferour whatsoever but that's not what I'm looking for:

I like to go to a carniceria, get one of the best fresh meat in the world, buy fresh veggies in a verduleria (quality there is much better than BA) and make an excellent asado with top notch wine looking at the hills while cooking.

You are making me hungry. What else are common meals that you make at home in those smaller towns? I am guessing lots of empanadas, Milanesas, steaks, potatoes? Could you live in a small town like that @enbits for long periods of time? I like visiting those smaller type towns but ready to get back to a bigger city after a few days.

 

[Betsy Ross]

This was something that surprised me. I thought for some reason that Argentina with much of it along the coast would have better seafood variety. They do have fish that is exported but I guess not enough demand for it locally? Either that or they get much more money selling it and exporting it. I know in parts of Japan they are even importing Argentine shrimp which surprised me.

Argentine red shrimp find seasonal favor in Japan

Argentine red shrimp have become a popular item during Japanese New Year, with seasonal demand making the species a best-seller.

www.seafoodsource.com

Wow I had no idea Argentina exports so much shrimp. Very interesting. I wonder if it is just about money or just very little demand from people that eat seafood in Argentina. Maybe a bit of both.

The Pampas are like the wild west so you can not expect international food there. Generally speaking little towns in Argentina are not touristy for foreigners, I believe it has to do with politics as well and how it was developed over the past decades.

I have a cabin in Merlo, San Luis and there's no international food there neither, no McDonalds nor Walmart nor Carrferour whatsoever but that's not what I'm looking for:

I like to go to a carniceria, get one of the best fresh meat in the world, buy fresh veggies in a verduleria (quality there is much better than BA) and make an excellent asado with top notch wine looking at the hills while cooking.

No doubt you can't expect international food in smaller towns. I would really miss different varieties of food. But for many of these people in small towns they don't really know what they are missing so not missing out. And as you mentioned @enbits, they aren't geared for tourism so there is probably no demand there.

 

[Blockchain]

I live in a town out in the pampa not Buenos Aires. Asados aside the food here is mostly Italian based. As I'm not a lover of pasta or pizza it doesn't leave me with much choice when we eat out. No problem for my Argentine wife but it is for me. When eating out in a similar sized town in Scotland I could have a choice of traditionl Scottish/British food, Indian, Chinese and much more compared to here. We don't even have a MacDonalds!! 😞 As a Scot I love fish and seafood so don't get me started on the awful quality/availability of that here.

Ouch! I can't imagine not liking Italian food and liking fish and seafood and living in Argentina. That would be brutal. In BA you can get enough variety but Italian was by far the most popular type of food around. Lots of influences from the Italian immigrants it seems.

 

[Scottishgaucho]

The Pampas are like the wild west so you can not expect international food there. Generally speaking little towns in Argentina are not touristy for foreigners,

Don't get me wrong I don't expect to have the same range and quality of food available here as I can get when dining out in Scotland. As I said the locals seem to be happy enough to eat pasta and pizza all the time when not eating asado.
I just wish the restaurants would be a bit more adventurous. They've had the same dishes on their menus for the last 20 years!!

 

[Blockchain]

Don't get me wrong I don't expect to have the same range and quality of food available here as I can get when dining out in Scotland. As I said the locals seem to be happy enough to eat pasta and pizza all the time when not eating asado.
I just wish the restaurants would be a bit more adventurous. They've had the same dishes on their menus for the last 20 years!!

What is the population of your town @Scottishgaucho? They probably won't start changing the menu until an entire wave of people probably die and their kids maybe take over. But maybe even not then by the sounds of things.

 

[Betsy Ross]

Don't get me wrong I don't expect to have the same range and quality of food available here as I can get when dining out in Scotland. As I said the locals seem to be happy enough to eat pasta and pizza all the time when not eating asado.
I just wish the restaurants would be a bit more adventurous. They've had the same dishes on their menus for the last 20 years!!

Exactly. They don't have an adventurous diet. They gladly will eat the same thing over and over. Also, no matter what they think their food is the best in the world. Doesn't matter if it's pizza, pasta, steak. No matter how good or bad it is, they claim it's the best of anywhere in the world.

 

[Twin City]

What a good discussion on food and restaurants. My husband and I recently moved to BA with our 2 toddlers. At first we thought the food wasn't too good here but you start to go around and find good places. We are on a budget so we can't afford some of these expensive places you are posting about which are as much as some American restaurants.

We walked past Don Julio and looked at the menu and the prices were really the same as the US. They had almost $100 dollar steaks on that menu and probably the same price as any high end steak house back home.

Getting a good pizza here took some time to find but we did thanks to the thread on this forum about pizza places.

We don't think the grocery stores as nearly as good as other places in Latin America we have been to and the US where there is more variety and organic options. But we are enjoying the different varieties of food. But you are right that there is a lot of Italian based dishes here.

 

[enbits]

You are making me hungry. What else are common meals that you make at home in those smaller towns? I am guessing lots of empanadas, Milanesas, steaks, potatoes? Could you live in a small town like that @enbits for long periods of time? I like visiting those smaller type towns but ready to get back to a bigger city after a few days.

San Luis is similar to Cordoba, both provinces actually share the hills so you can expect lots of asados not only red meat but chicken and pork as well. Empanadas, something called 'Locro', different types of stews, etc. There is good seafood there so you can make a good grilled salmon at the 'parrilla'.

It's an amazing place to disconnect from the noisy city life. Next time I go there I will bring a Starlink antenna because it's a semi-rural area and the internet connection is very poor.

Some pics:

A couple of wild deers visited the property:


Snowy day. My neighbour's house, he makes great asados!


Some pics of the area:

 

[Twin City]

San Luis is similar to Cordoba, both provinces actually share the hills so you can expect lots of asados not only red meat but chicken and pork as well. Empanadas, something called 'Locro', different types of stews, etc. There is good seafood there so you can make a good grilled salmon at the 'parrilla'.

It's an amazing place to disconnect from the noisy city life. Next time I go there I will bring a Starlink antenna because it's a semi-rural area and the internet connection is very poor.

Some pics:

A couple of wild deers visited the property:
View attachment 6868

Snowy day. My neighbour's house, he makes great asados!
View attachment 6869

Some pics of the area:
View attachment 6870
View attachment 6871
View attachment 6872
View attachment 6873

Wow that looks quite peaceful and beautiful @enbits. Thank you for sharing a little bit of your home with us.

 

[MickMolloy]

It is far from the worst food on the planet. That is an exaggeration. It is far from cities with the best food. It can't compare to cities like Mexico City or Lima or many others but I can think of places that are worse.

What is your favorite food here @MickMolloy. You can't tell me you can't find a good meal in BA. There are many wonderful places.

My favourite food here is honestly just to get some juicy bife de chorizos from the butcher and cook it myself

The fish and chips from Gibraltar bar is ( was ?) very good although that's a bit sad since it's hardly real Argentine food ha ha it just reminds me of home. I say was because the portions are getting smaller and smaller and the owner openly admits they are trying to reduce portion size rather than raising price. Earning in dollars I would prefer them to just raise prices and give us a decent meal. Well I guess I can just order 2 portions at some point.

 

[Digital Nomad]

My favourite food here is honestly just to get some juicy bife de chorizos from the butcher and cook it myself

The fish and chips from Gibraltar bar is ( was ?) very good although that's a bit sad since it's hardly real Argentine food ha ha it just reminds me of home. I say was because the portions are getting smaller and smaller and the owner openly admits they are trying to reduce portion size rather than raising price. Earning in dollars I would prefer them to just raise prices and give us a decent meal. Well I guess I can just order 2 portions at some point.

Yes it's much cheaper to just buy steak at a butcher and cook it at home. I do that now and saving a lot of money. I agree with you @MickMolloy that one way they are trying to control their expenses is giving smaller portions. I notice that at many places lately. That way they don't have to raise prices so much on the menu but still leave feeling hungry. Where are you originally from? Sounds like maybe UK?

 

[Tim Joe]

There's also a decent place in Recoleta, but it's run by a bunch of Falun Gong cultists, so they'll try and indoctrinate you with the meal. Good food, but the vibes were way off, so we haven't been back.

I don't want to ask @Darksider415 how you found that place!

 

[Mother Russia Argentina]

One thing we find very surprising here is that the milk and yogurts and cheeses here are so poor quality compared to Europe. Shocking when you think of all this fertile farmland. The bagged milk is quite surprising to us.

 

[Betsy Ross]

One thing we find very surprising here is that the milk and yogurts and cheeses here are so poor quality compared to Europe. Shocking when you think of all this fertile farmland. The bagged milk is quite surprising to us.

Definitely it can't compare to the variety and quality in Europe. But try some of the organic stores. This is a good one that has very good quality milk. The store gets stock in on Tuesdays and usually it's sold out by Thursday so go early on Tuesday. The brand is Los Cerezos. It's top notch. They also have great organic vegetables there.

No cualquier verdura - organic store and cafe​

No cualquier verdura - organic store and cafe · Gorriti 5950, C1414 Cdad. Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentinien

âââââ · Bioladen

maps.app.goo.gl

 

[Digital Nomad]

Definitely it can't compare to the variety and quality in Europe. But try some of the organic stores. This is a good one that has very good quality milk. The store gets stock in on Tuesdays and usually it's sold out by Thursday so go early on Tuesday. The brand is Los Cerezos. It's top notch. They also have great organic vegetables there.

No cualquier verdura - organic store and cafe​

No cualquier verdura - organic store and cafe · Gorriti 5950, C1414 Cdad. Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentinien

âââââ · Bioladen

maps.app.goo.gl

Thank you @Betsy Ross! How much is the milk there? I've been ordering it on this website and it so far is the best I have found. Not bad at 2,600 pesos per liter bottle. The yogurts are pretty good too. The store is in Martinez but they will deliver on Wednesday's to Palermo/Recoleta.

Leche Entera "La Choza" 1 L (Con o Sin envase Retornable)

Leche Entera Pasteurizada Composición: Leche de Vaca Conservar en frío (entre 2ºc y 6ºc) Contenido Neto: 1 L ¿Sabías porqué nuestros envases son retornables...

www.tiendalachoza.com.ar

 

[Betsy Ross]

Thank you @Betsy Ross! How much is the milk there? I've been ordering it on this website and it so far is the best I have found. Not bad at 2,600 pesos per liter bottle. The yogurts are pretty good too. The store is in Martinez but they will deliver on Wednesday's to Palermo/Recoleta.

Leche Entera "La Choza" 1 L (Con o Sin envase Retornable)

Leche Entera Pasteurizada Composición: Leche de Vaca Conservar en frío (entre 2ºc y 6ºc) Contenido Neto: 1 L ¿Sabías porqué nuestros envases son retornables...

www.tiendalachoza.com.ar

La Choza also is very good quality also. Great products. The milk at the store I mentioned is almost the same price at 2,650 pesos for a 1 L bottle. I think the quality is better.