Resto Review: Hsiang Ting Tang

Despite my previous dining experience in Barrio Chino that was less than stellar (see here), I went back last weekend for another try. This time, success! Maybe the key is actually getting Chinese food in Barrio Chino as opposed to Thai food. Makes sense.

On Saturday night I went with Eli and her friend Beth to a restaurant called Hsiang Ting Tang (Arribeños 2245) for dinner, for no special reason. We wandered around the ‘hood for a little while looking at different places, and chose this one based on the “onda” it appeared to have…it’s a cute place with typical Chinese resto decorations (bamboo, ink paintings, paper lanterns), but the ambience is nice and it’s pretty spacious.

To start we got an order of steamed dumplings, which were very good and came with two sauces, a soy sauce and a spicy sauce that was actually spicy…you could even see the red pepper flakes that made it hot. Then we decided to just order three dishes and share them, so we could try lots of different things. After much deliberation we decided on General Tso’s chicken (which here is actually more of a sweet and sour chicken), vegetable chow mein, and a tofu dish. They were all really good, especially the noodles and the chicken—we managed to polish off all three pretty quickly, despite the portions being quite hefty! For drinks we split a bottle of white wine, which was also delicious and much-needed after a long and hot day.

The prices are a little high for basic Chinese food, but nothing ridiculous…about 28-50 for a main dish depending on what you get, and 8-20 for an appetizer, of which they had quite a few. For some reason they didn’t bring out the exact wine we ordered, but at least they got the type right. The service was good, and our waitress was very pleasant. All in all I would say a nice place to go for a good meal: great food, reasonable prices, nice space. I recommend it! (Guia Oleo review here)

After dinner we walked to the Persicco in Las Cañitas, aka the best ice cream place ever! Actually, I’m not sure if it’s the best place ever, since I haven’t been to all the ice cream places in the city (although I’m working on it…), but it’s the best I’ve had so far. Chocolate amargo y dulce de leche casera con brownie YUM!

And now here’s a picture of Traguito, in one of his favorite places: between my comforter and the comforter cover. He likes to get in there and thrash around, I have no idea why. Strange cat.

Resto Review: Lotus Neo Thai

Argentines don’t do spicy. This is a recognized fact, and I should have known better than to have expectations this weekend when I went to a Thai restaurant this past Saturday night. I went with two couples (yes I was the fifth wheel): Anna and her boy Camilo and Anna’s friends Juan and Ana to a restaurant called Lotus Neo Thai, located up in the Barrio Chino (Chinatown) in Belgrano (Arribeños 2265).

Anna and Camilo and I got there at about 9:30, and already the place was full. We didn’t have reservations, and initially one of the waitresses told us there was no room for 5 of us, but since we had to wait for Juan and Ana to arrive anyway we decided to sit at the little bar and wait and see if a table opened up. It’s a cute place, with about 10 or 12 tables, a little 4-stool bar, and adorable lotus flowers painted on the walls. The lighting is low—there are candles on each table and dim lamps in the shape of lotus flowers—and two of the tables are set up so you can sit on the floor on cushions, in traditional Thai style (??? Do Thai people eat sitting on the floor? How ignorant am I right now).

(pictures are from Lotus Neo Thai website)

So we sat ourselves down at the bar and ordered some drinks—caipirinha for Camilo, strawberry daiquiri for Anna, and caipiroska with passionfruit for me—which were delicious and only moderately expensive (22 pesos each). While we were waiting for the table someone brought us these crispy, airy, wafery chip things (I’m sure they have a name but I have NO clue what it could be) and some dipping sauces, a sweetNsour and a more spicy one. The spicy dipping sauce was by far the spiciest thing I ate that night, which is a little sad considering Thai food is known for its delicious kick.

Once Juan and Ana arrived, we got a table and ordered four dishes to share between the five of us: chicken pad thai, pork with green beans, chicken with cashews, and a chicken soup with ginger and coconut called Tom Kha Gai. The food arrived pretty quickly, and in good portions. I was a little disappointed with the pad thai—it wasn’t spicy at all, and was actually kind of bland. The chicken with cashews was OK, the pork was flavorful although a bit salty, and the soup was good if you like coconut and ginger—it had a very strong flavor and I only had a few spoonfuls. All in all, I was underwhelmed. All the Thai food I’ve eaten in the past has blown me away and so I think I’ve been spoiled. There was just no spice, no kick, no zing. But oh well. Can’t win them all!

The prices weren’t too bad, about 36 pesos for a basic chicken or pork dish, to about 55 or 60 for a seafood platter or shrimp dish. They had a yummy-looking list of desserts too, such as sticky rice with mango slices and various sorbets, but we were all too stuffed to order any. We opted for coffee and tea instead—I tried an herbal red tea with cinnamon, fig, honey, and apples, which was pretty good and reminded me of Christmas with the cinnamon smell (I miss Christmas!! It soooo doesn't feel like Christmas here, and I'm kind of sad about it, especially considering my hometown just got 2 feet of snow and will be having a lovely white Christmas for the first time in years...typical...the one year I leave. Bah humbug.)

Anyhoo, to sum up Lotus Neo Thai: a big fat “meh.” Not bad, but not great. Nothing that offended me to the point of no return, but nothing that inspired me to make the trek back there anytime soon. I will say that the staff were really nice and helpful, and managed to get us a table even though we just tipped up at the door with no reservations whatsoever, so that's a plus. Maybe if I go again I'll take my own spice and just sprinkle it on discreetly. That's a thought. Check out what other people say on Guia Oleo. Or check out the Lotus Neo Thai website, here.

Resto Review: El Dorinda

Ah yes, another restaurant review! No unfortunate incident to avoid discussing in this one, however (if you would like to read about the thrilling events preceding my visit to the last resto I reviewed, go here).

Anyway, this place is too cute! I went to El Dorinda last night as part of a group of expats, partly because it’s fun to get together and meet new people, and partly because I had been sitting on my ass all day in my apartment and I needed to get out before I became glued to my futon. Located in Palermo Viejo (Guatemala 4487) El Dorinda is a restaurant and bar that serves “comida y bebida con mucho arte,” according to their website, and is fairly new on the BA restaurant scene. I don’t know about the art (there were a few pieces of interesting fabric-work hanging on the walls), but the food is amazing. The menu features an extensive list of mostly Spanish food, including tapas, picadas, pintxos vascos, and other appetizers, as well as a daily homemade “plato del día” and several salads, sandwich, pizza, and dessert options. Since we were a large group of about 20, we ordered lots of little dishes to share and then each got a main course.

The tapas we got included various cheeses, jamón crudo, salami, guacamole (very salty and lime-y) with tortilla chips, sardines with onions, bell peppers in oil, and a few small tapas sandwiches with toppings like olive spread, eggplant, and tuna. I recommend the bell peppers in oil (morroncitos en provenza), which was delicious on top of some slightly crusty French bread. Among the main courses ordered were a vegetarian sandwich (not too complicated, just some avocado and spinach on bread), a chicken dish with potatoes, and homemade hamburgers (which I ordered—they came with roasted potatoes and were delicious, although I did ask for some mustard to go with them since they came un-sauced).

But I must say I agree wholeheartedly with the reviewers on Guia Oleo: the star of the show was the Empanada Gallega (it deserves capital letters!). A whole portion would feed two people (for just 18 pesos!) and is really really good. They also have a half portion for 10 pesos. The crust is fluffy and buttery, the filling of tuna (I’m pretty sure it’s tuna) and sauteed peppers and onions is flavorful and perfectly seasoned, and the whole thing is just one big casserole of YUM! I really enjoyed it (clearly), and next time I will order a whole portion just for myself, fatass that I am.

The drink menu is also extensive, although we mostly stuck to beer and water. The service was excellent; we had one waiter for all 20 of us, and he was perfectly pleasant, got all the orders right, and brought out anything anyone requested (like my mustard). It is a small place, with about 10 tables inside and two outside (complete with comfortable wicker chairs instead of those awkward metal director’s chairs most places have), but the staff is truly very nice and attentive. The prices are quite affordable as well—most of the tapas are between 10 and 16 pesos and each pintxo vasco is 5 pesos. Pizzas are 24-34, salads and sandwiches are 17, and drinks range from a 10 peso porrón of Quilmes to a 36 peso Glenlivet 12 year Single Malt or a 70 peso bottle of Tomero Malbec.

(fotos from El Dorinda's website)

I would highly recommend El Dorinda; it's a comfortable place to sit and enjoy some drinks and tapas with friends. Get a few different dishes and try them all, and definitely order an Empanada Gallega. Or three.

Resto Review: Quiroz

Last night, after an unpleasant incident which I am hesitant to discuss considering my mother reads this blog, I had dinner with some friends at Quiroz. It was the second time I’ve eaten there, and I can’t decide if I like it so another visit might be in order- third time’s the charm right?

Located in the heart of Palermo on the corner of Malabia and Gorriti, Quiroz is a unique place, at least in terms of décor. Part Middle-Eastern, part Asian, part American pop-culture, the restaurant features hookahs (which you can order), a small cascading water-wall, and images of Marilyn Monroe and Elvis hanging over the bar. It’s an interesting mixture of “ethnic” and modern, but it works. There is also a small stage for live music, which last night featured a female singer with a good voice and unbelievably short skirt (dinner AND a show!) doing renditions of classic American songs, my favorite of which was Prince’s “Purple Rain.”

We arrived at about 11:30, but the place continued filling up until about 2, when we left. In terms of the food, I have mixed opinions. The first time I went to Quiroz, I ordered an appetizer—the vegetarian quesadilla—which was amazing. Stuffed with mushrooms, peppers, onions, and cheese, the tortilla was perfectly crisped (aka not to the point of crunchy) and it came with a hefty portion of delicious guacamole, for about 18 pesos.

Last night I was with three other girls, so we decided to get a bunch of different things and do a little sharing. Among the dishes ordered were mollejas with papas noisette, rabas, langostini, chorizo y morcilla, and two salads. The mollejas were ordered on recommendation from Elizabeth, who had gotten them before and found them delicious, but what came out of the kitchen was nowhere near what she had received before. In my opinion mollejas should be served crispy with a little lemon and butter, which was how they were cooked the time Eli got them before, but these mollejas were served with a heavy sauce with mushrooms which I did not like at all. They were still crispy, but I just couldn’t get past the sauce. The rabas were good, as were the langostini, which were huge and came out on skewers. The salads were basic, as most Argentine salads are--arugula with parmesan and lettuce with carrots--and there were some issues with various ingredients not being available. The chorizo and morcilla were delicious, and the bottle of Uxmal Malbec we split definitely hit the spot.

Prices are reasonable…the mollejas were about 40 pesos, salads 20-25, chorizo/morcilla 5 pesos each, and the bottle of wine was 38 pesos. The menu is pretty varied—they offer multiple appetizers,  7 types of salads, pretty much every cut of meat available in Argentina, chicken dishes, pasta dishes, pizzas, and about 8 dessert options. The drink menu is also fairly extensive, with many different wines, tragos, liquors, and a few beers thrown in for kicks.

To sum up, I would recommend Quiroz, but only if you go without expectations. It seems that the availability of certain dishes/ingredients varies day to day, and things aren’t always what they say they are. That being said, the prices are reasonable, the atmosphere is interesting, and the service is good. So if you’re feeling lucky, check it out!

Here's the Guia Oleo review if you want more info: Quiroz

Resto Review: Cilantro

I LOVE eating. Its one of my passions, and I really love trying new places and new foods. One of my main goals while I'm here is to basically eat my way through the city, trying all the key restaurants and all the little secret places until I have to walk through doorways sideways and can no longer see my feet (note, must find gym!). Anyway, I've been to quite a few places in the three months I've been here, so I'll be retro-posting those reviews in the future, but I went to a new place last night so I'll start there.

Last night I went to dinner with my friend Anna to Cilantro, a southeast Asian-style restaurant in Barrio Norte (Anchorena 1122), like 3 blocks from my apartment. Its a nice place, well-designed with interesting giant twirly vine patterns on the walls, reminded me of Dr. Seuss a little bit. They have happy hour until 9:30 with 2 for 1 drinks so we got 2 Fernet and colas for 22 pesos, which is a pretty good deal considering many bars charge 25p plus for just one! For some reason the waitress decided to eat her dinner at the bar before we had even ordered ours, which was a little annoying because she took her good sweet time and I was starving. I felt bad about interrupting her while she was eating, ironically, so we just waited and eventually she came and took our order. I got pesto penne, and Anna ordered sushi, which I got to try for the first time! The pesto pasta was FANTASTIC, capital letters required! I highly recommend it: the sauce was light and not too basil-y, but tasted exactly like pesto should. There were whole peanuts and a little hint of mint as well, and the whole thing was just heaven. And it was only 22 pesos, for a good sized portion, not too massive but not one of those snobby dishes that come out with like 3 noodles artfully arranged on a tiny leaf. Anna said her sushi was weird...I tried it and it tasted good to me, but I'm a sushi amateur so I wouldn't know. She got 10 pieces of Salmon Roll for 17 pesos. I also saw some other dishes come out that looked good: our table neighbors ordered alitas (wings) in some kind of sauce and a Thai noodle dish, both of which looked delicious as well. And the drinks! I kept seeing people with these tall glasses of something but sadly didn't have the dinero to try one.

In summary: get the pesto! It was that scrumptious. There were also a lot of sushi choices on the menu, and the drink list was quite extensive, so I would recommend trying one of their special drinks, because they looked amazing. The prices were very reasonable for the quality and quantity, nothing really exceeded 30 pesos and the portions were good-sized. Here is the review on GuiaOleo, just to compare my experience with others: http://www.guiaoleo.com.ar/detail.php?ID=4103