Restaurants

Anastasia is an excellent parrilla in Palermo.  It is located on Bulnes and Cavello, one block north of Parque Las Heras.  This restaurant gave me everything I expected from an authentic Argentinean parrilla. 

One thing that amazed me was the low level of noise in the restaurant.  I had expected a lot of noise from a packed restaurant with brick floors and walls, but it was surprisingly muted.  I think it helped that the plates were made of wood, so there wasn’t any clinking of silverware.  Most of the tables were couples, all sharing bottles of wine.  There were a few larger parties, and while they were obviously engaged in conversation it wasn’t loud or annoying.

My boyfriend and I both ordered red meat.  We wanted an assortment of typical parrilla meat; so, he ordered mix de carnes which was entrana (skirt steak), vacio (flank steak), and another unknown cut, and I ordered the brochette lomo.  The brochette is a skewer and lomo is a cut from the tenderloin of beef, the same cut as a filet mignon.  My brochette lomo was a delicious shish kabob with red peppers and onions. 

Both dinners were amazing.  My lomo was crispy on the outside but still tender enough to melt in your mouth.  The onions and peppers gave it the perfect flavor.  Of course I tasted my boyfriend’s dinner and it was just as good as my own.  The vacio had the crunchy outer bits and was full of flavor.  The unknown cut of meat was thick, tender and juicy.  The entrana was decent, but I would suggest trying one of the other cuts; I’ve had better entrana.

To accompany our meat we had a large salad and sweet potato.  The salad was called ensalada para amar, which usually serves eight people.  You are able to pick four ingredients from a list of about 20, and they bring you a generous portion of each.  I was very happy with the salad, because it was crisp and chilled.  I’ve found that many places serve the salad warm or at room temperature.  I’m not sure if this intentional or simply a product of laziness, after all this is the country known for their beef not their salad. Either way, having a fresh, cool salad was a welcome treat.

There is one item on the menu that I didn’t have the opportunity to try, but after watching the presentation I highly recommend the sausage.  You may have to ask the server for the specific type, I think it was chorizo or morcilla.  What makes this dish so attractive is the server brings each piece on its own tray propped up on two spears surrounded by a pool of liquid.  He then lights it on fire and spoons the flaming liquid over the meat again and again until the flames die.  I’m sure this gives the chorizo or morcilla a delicious crispy layer.

Another pleasant surprise was our bill, including the wine and a Johnnie Walker with Pepsi the total was only 104 pesos or about $35 USD.  The whiskey and coke cost just as much as a dinner, at 25 pesos. 

Again, I highly recommend Anastasia as a great parrilla located in Palermo, Buenos Aires, Argentina.

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