April 29th, 2026
7 min read
Argentina
April ‘26
What if I told you there's a place on earth shaped by the descendants of Sicilians and Basques. Two of the world's greatest culinary cultures.
That place is Argentina. And like a perfectly made chorizo, the Porteños of Buenos Aires blend the good, the bad, and the beautiful into something mouth-watering. For know, let's agree not to ask how the sausage was made. Just eat it.
🥩 Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is massive, roughly one and a half times the population of New York City and every neighborhood has its own personality. SoHo for foodies, La Boca for colorful street art. We stayed in Recoleta, a leafy, elegant quarter full of enormous shade trees and sprawling green spaces. The architecture is stunning. Grand, ornate, very Parisian in detail and it’s entirely by design. In the late 19th century, Argentine elites hired French architects and modeled their capital after the city of lights. Walking these wide boulevards, you feel the ambition of that project.
I know, I know… skip to the food.
Don't miss the San Telmo Market, and specifically, start with a chori pan. Sliced chorizo, split bread, loaded with chimichurri and aioli. Simple and perfect. You’ll question every hot dog you've ever eaten.
Pro Tip: Go on Sunday. The surrounding streets transform into a massive open-air market with food, antiques, street performers, locals, tourists all swirling together.
The restaurants and bars in BA are sophisticated and approachable. Modern, avant-garde spaces with elaborate presentations sitting comfortably alongside classic neighborhood spots. Serious food served with confidence.
Argentina has navigated decades of economic turbulence. Wildly unstable currency, cycles of isolation from global markets, macroeconomic instability that would exhaust most cultures. But out of that hardship emerged a generation of chefs and home cooks who turned inward and learned to explore and celebrate what was already theirs.
The result is a food culture that is proudly Argentine, not derivative. The isolation that could have diminished the table instead forced creativity, and produced a cuisine that feels genuinely rooted in its own soil. The very definition of terroir!
At the heart of Argentine identity, though, is beef. After refrigeration changed the economics of export in the late 19th century, Argentina became one of the world's great cattle nations. Pair that with a glass of high quality Malbec and you have a world-class combo!
“If it grows together, it goes together.” - Yours truly
💃 The Secret Tango Society
One evening, we found our seats at a place I'll simply call the Secret Tango Society. Low lights, close quarters. You could immediately understand that something exciting was about to happen.
It began when a single voice cut through the silence.
Then a duel between the accordion and the piano.
Then they moved.
Two dancers were intense and dangerous in the way spun and carved through the space. They stepped between the tables like they owned every inch of the room. At one point they passed so close I could smell her perfume. No one in the room dared make a sound.
Tango is a conversation, tension and release, pursuit and surrender, played out in real time. Watching it live, in a dimly lit room in Buenos Aires, with a glass of wine in hand, reminds you exactly why you leave home.
🍷 Mendoza - Luján de Cuyo & Uco Valley
A short flight west and we landed in Mendoza, South America's premier wine region, framed to the west by the snowcapped Andes. At 29k ft, they’re the second tallest on earth. We based ourselves in Luján de Cuyo, centrally located with views that go up beyond the clouds.
Our first stop was Zuccardi in the Uco Valley. A striking property with views that border on unreasonable. We toured the vineyards before exploring the modern cellar and tasting a variety of intriguing whites such as Semillon, Albariño and my favorite, the Chenin Blanc. Then, we sat for a nine-course tasting menu paired with the good stuff! The Jose Zuccardi, Malbec is the lead singer here, is the top wine of the estate and I found it easily the day’s best.
The next day, we had a private reservation at Kaiken, a sister property of the Montes wines, in Chile. We walked the vineyard, then entered the cellar and learned more about their specific juju. With the Mai label, their top red, Malbec is again the protagonist. In addition, the wine maker has placed speakers in the cellar that play Gregorian Chants 24/7. The constant vibrations help the wine mature and come into balance.
At lunch, we experienced our first proper asado. You've been to a cookout, you haven't been to an asado. Slow-cooked cuts of beef, blood sausage, chorizo, all tended over hot coals with the patience the ritual deserves. This isn't grilling. It's a ceremony and for us, a right of passage.
After a day of tasting and wandering, we spotted a small patio along a tiny greenway, and stumbled on in. We sat outside and mumbled in Spanish. By this point our empanada count was well into double digits and we thought we'd seen and tasted the best. We were wrong. The oxtail empanadas and seared sweetbreads that arrived were among the finest bites of the entire trip. No fanfare or Michelin stars but extraordinary food made with care.
🏔️ Over the Andes to Chile
On the final leg of the journey, we crossed the Andes, rented a car and drove into remote Chilean wine country. Our destination, Viña VIK, was recently named #1 wine hotel destination in the world. I decided to put them to the test.
The property is open-air and expansive, designed to dissolve the line between inside and outside. Rooms are modern and genuinely spacious. An infinity pool floats above the valley. There’s a full spa and for the restless (like me), the surrounding landscape offers opportunities for hiking trails, horseback riding through the vines and other optional adventures that make you feel like you've actually earned your dinner.
The winemaking facility is sleek and modern, a striking contrast to the wild, rolling landscape surrounding it. Their flagship VIK red, based on the Carmenere grape and Cabernet Sauvignon, is a serious wine. Structured and expressive. If you told me it was from a top quality Napa producer, I would believe it.
Fair warning, here's the nerdy wine term I'll be dropping at Rioja for the foreseeable future… Rather than using commercial yeast to begin fermentation, the winemaker at VIK extracts indigenous wild yeast from dried flowers grown on the property. Those invisible microorganisms carry the specific character of their exact microclimate, into every bottle. Flowerroir!!!
The food and kitchen gardens at VIK deserve equal billing. There are three distinct restaurants on the property, each with its own personality, all operating at the same high level. The menus are modern, the plating is architectural. The dishes make you take out you phone before you pick up your fork. 95% of the produce used at the restaurants is grown on the property. The creativity and attention to detail, sourcing from their own land, cooking with intention, is world-class.
🌎 We're Going Back and You're Invited
I returned from South America with tons of memories, a deeper respect for South American wines, and a list of people I can't wait to introduce you to.
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