Food, Glorious Food: A Buenos Aires story continued

Turns out that all things good in Buenos Aires are ingestible. For instance, the "Super Vermicelli con Tuco y Pesto" from Pippos restaurant (located on Montevideo b/w Saramiento and Corrientes) will make your brain explode. Its that delicious. And the whole experience of slurping down a plate of homemade pasta amidst the work-a-day lunchtime bustle of the porteños; Half smothered with a pungent pesto sauce and half with a meaty bolognese, and you'll see what's what.

And let's not even begin to talk about Argentinean ice cream. It tastes exactly as you imagine a delicious ice cream would taste, except without the horrible realization that what you're really eating is made out of styrofoam. The "crema de fresas", strawberry ice cream, is exactly that. Strawberrys and full-fat milk, frozen. So good.

Then we have the "milanesa" made of beef, and of course the "milanesa suprema"made of chicken. Both of which go great with Ensalada Rusa. Then you have the pizza, more commonly referred to by the Argies as "pitzack". Entirely different taste then American Pizza, and with a thicker crust that's soft and buttery. There's also "facturas", the Argentinean answer to morning croissants. Yum.

However, Argentina also has foods that make a foreigner go, "Hmmm". Things that seem to exist without rhyme or reason. Take "faina". A bland, dry, flat cake-like substance, that the Argies put on top of their pizzas. Why bother, I ask, when the pizza is good on it's own.

Then there's "chinchulines". The lower intestines of the cow. Generally soaked in lemon and then doused in salt, and most commonly cooked on the parrilla. If you don't like being surprised about what might squirt in your mouth as you chomp down on your food, then chinchulines aren't for you. And while we're on this subject. I applaud the fact that Argentineans believe in eating every part of the cow, but really, if it smells like piss, it probably tastes like it too. And, well, piss tastes bad.

But of course, what takes the cake, chews it up and then barfs it out, are any, neigh all of the delightful dishes that mixes cream and fish. For instance, "Merlusa al Rochefort", one of the most disgusting things i've tasted in a long time, is served with a long, flat oily fish called Merlusa. Three or four of which have been rolled up, and covered with a cream sauce made of rochefort.

Now, imagine you take the sickening thought of that flavor explosion, and magnify it 10 times. That would become a dished loved by 3 in 4 Argentines, "Vittell Toné". A dish whose name betrays itself to anyone who is familiar with the romance languages. Vitell=Veal Toné=Tuna. Oh yes, dear friends, veal and tuna. Or rather, thin slices of veal, smothered in a sauce made of tuna and mayonaise, served cold.

Note the picture above. A table laden with plates upon plates of salads. You see, its dead summer on New Year's, so everything is served cold. Then you hear,"Don't give her any vegetables, she'll only eat the Vitell Toné". And you can't understand how anyone could think that the combination of meat and fish could be enjoyable in any way. Its frightening.

And just for good measure, I realize that I never mentioned the "Asado". Its a grill and meat. Nuff said. But for your viewing pleasure.
A typical asado.