Food & Beer Culture

Weekends in Buenos Aires mean asado, grilling beef over charcoal on the parrilla. Ribs, chorizo, and blood sausage cook slowly until the fat turns crisp. A cold lager pairs well, since it rinses away fat and smoke without competing with the meat.

On the street you'll find choripán, a grilled sausage in a roll with chimichurri, often alongside a chopp. As a starter, provoleta goes on the grill, a sliced cheese that turns soft and stretches into strings. And a picada brings cheese, cured meats, and olives on a board.

A specialty of the capital is onion pizza, called fugazzeta, often eaten with fainá, a flatbread made from chickpea flour. The milanesa, a breaded cutlet, is another classic. All of this pairs well with a cool lager, while a pale ale goes nicely with the heartier dishes.

The classic taverns are called bodegón. Things get loud there, the plates are large, and the beer arrives fast. Often a liter bottle sits on the table, poured round into small glasses so the beer stays cold until the bottle's empty.

On July 20th, Argentines celebrate Día del Amigo, Friends' Day. People meet up at a bar, in a park, or over an asado. At home, beer tends to be seen as a companion to conversation rather than to drunkenness, and in Palermo the evening often stretches on into the night.