The Argentine Experience
On Brazil Avenue, two blocks away from the busy intersection of Tres Bocas Streets, The Argentine Experience has just introduced a high-end proposal amidst the strident sounds of the popular shops and the mass canteens of the center. The idea of the creators of this unusual restaurant, inaugurated last November, is to share an exclusive dinner in a room with a maximum capacity of thirty people, while the menu combines the food with a detailed explanation of uses and customs very rooted in the Argentine culture in Iguazu Falls.
From the beginning to the end, the dialogues between hosts and hosts take place in the English language. Dinner starts promptly at 8pm, every night from Monday to Saturday. The customers are treated with torrontés, malbec and blended wines, but everything comes at the right time. The first step is the welcome drink malabeca (mixture of pisco, malbec, lime and apple juice) accompanied by fried manioc. Afterwards, the guests put on an apron and cap, as they also have to demonstrate their skills as a cook. In a friendly and didactic atmosphere, they are served with Torrontés wine and are taught about the repulgue of the empanada. Each one prepares his own with meat cut by the knife and surubí and then-while they parade an opulent chop, loin with rosemary sauce and desserts-, the instructors-waiters elaborate on the “juicy”, “very juicy” meats Point “and” well cooked “, the best way to prepare the mate and the secrets of alfajor.
THE GOOD TABLE: Typical dishes marked by the multicultural contribution
Three very influential cultures are the pillars of local gastronomy. The contribution of the primitive Guaraní settlers is evident in the use of chilis, yerba, maize (key for the yopará field stew), manioc and cassava flour, a basic ingredient for the preparation of a meal made with flour, water and Salt that combines with cooked mate), chipá guazú (fresh corn cake with lettuce and watercress) and Paraguayan soup. From the Swiss, German, Polish and Danish immigrants, the missionary cuisine inherited the goulash with spätzle and sausages with sauerkraut. Meanwhile, the Brazilian label is not only present in the Portuguese colloquium (mixed Portuguese and Spanish languages) but also in the dishes that include black and red beans, rice, farofa (whose main ingredient is manioc flour or cassava Ground) and cooked steak (stake). The Spanish colonization introduced the meats of cow and chicken and the products derived from the milk. The high temperature that usually affects this subtropical region is the main reason for the great popularity reached by the Tereré cold mate.
Among the best of the gastronomy of Puerto Iguazú can not miss the river fish. The restaurants Aqva, María Preta and La Rueda delight with pacú, surubí or dorado in the oven or on the grill, as well as pastas and meats. The most delicious cuts of roast, accompanied by high-end wines, are served in Bocamora – on the Costanera -, La Vaca Enamorada, El Quincho del Tío Querido, La Dama Juana and La Vaca Enamorada. Other dining rooms to take into account are Il Fratello, La Tosacana, La Misionerita and Pizza Color and La Mamma pizzerias specializing in pastas.
At the entrance to Puerto Iguazú by Victoria Aguirre avenue (a couple of blocks from the junction with Córdoba Avenue, where the best places to eat are concentrated), the simple and little showy Chinchulín restaurant is a pleasant surprise, thanks to its exquisite Empanadas meat fries (with verdeo, egg and olive), the roasted meats, the matambrito to the pizza and the milanesas. Here you can have lunch or dinner at home, in a family atmosphere safe from loud voices and with the company of folk music in the background.
