If there’s one thing that Argentina is known for in the culinary world, it’s meat. They basically eat every part of the of cow that they can. It’s really quite remarkable. All over the city (and the country) are Parrillas, the Spanish word for “grill” or “barbecue,” that serve different cuts of steak and sausage—without any marinating and without any sauce on top. While I was there, my favorite cut of meat was “lomo”—the filet. It was the best steak I’ve ever had. I also ate “blood sausage” for the first time, which is tasty but gross in texture… and concept. Though I loved the restaurants in Buenos Aires, my favorite meal in Argentina was some BBQed short ribs that our Gaucho guides cooked for us in Mendoza. After taking a 3-hour horse ride (my first time on a horse!) through the foothills of the Andes, we galloped back to camp in the pouring rain. What awaited us was the amazing, rustic BBQ that you see in the picture above. Paired with a few (read: a lot) bottles of red wine, it was an exciting adventure and very delicious. Then we tried to recreate our own asado (BBQ) when we got back to Buenos Aires on Kate’s patio grill—check out that hunk of beef smothered in Chimichurri sauce below!
