The Run Around: The Last Supper...La Cabrera

         After an unplanned 7 day detour through Patagonia I found myself purchasing a ticket for a flight back to Buenos Aires for two final nights before heading to Mendoza and then on to Chile. After buying the ticket I realized that this was probably going to be my last chance to do the one thing that I regretted not doing the other 4 times I had been in BA - eating dinner at La Cabrera. So I immediately went to their website and booked a table for Thursday night.
          You don't need a guidebook (or to be an avid reader of this blog) to find the not so hidden secret that is La Cabrera. It's probably the most well known (and highly touristy) steak restaurant in all of Buenos Aires. But it deserves the hype! I guess it's comparable to Peter Luger's in NY, but really think it's on a different level (as there are no competitors on its level. i.e. The Palm, Striphouse, Wolfgang's, etc).
My Wednesday afternoon flight took off from Calafaté airport on time at 1:45 but after 20 minutes the pilot realized he could only bank to the right and made an announcement that we'd have to return to the airport (See? that's what I was talking about in my last post. Don't hesitate to let us know if there's some pertinent info. Otherwise, keep it to yourself. Dale Capitan).   We weren't sure if the flight would end up going that night or not until the morning. But, I had faith. The stars had aligned and I was going to eat at La Cabrera, damn it! Finally after a 9 hour delay, the flight took off and I arrived in BA around 1 AM.
          Anyways, back to La Cabrera. Reservations were for 8:30 and the restaurant was only about a 5 minute walk from our hostel so after a quick drink on the hostel terrace my dining partner and I made our way out at around 8:20. Approaching the corner of Thames and JA Cabrera we found a disorganized mass of tourists and locals alike (some with reservations, some without) trying to figure out what was going on and who was in charge. Once we became part of this mass, the anxiety in the air was very apparent. There isn't really a line and everybody is on edge hoping that either their reservation has been confirmed and acknowledged or that they might slip through on the waiting list. The fact that reservations are taken under first names only doesn't add any sense of order or comfort to the situation and since my parents didn't have the foresight to give me a slightly more original name for such circumstances I quickly learned that I was not the only "John" with a reservation for 2 at 8:30 (don't worry little D'Brickeshaw Carter, this is something you'll never have to deal with once you're in the world). Luckily my Spanish charm and New York elbows got us to the front of the line where I learned that our reservation was, in fact, confirmed but was at La Cabrera Norte (across the street, about 50 yards away). So we made our way there and found a much quieter, more controlled, less anxious crowd waiting to be let in for the first seating.
        I gave my name and we were promplty seated in the half empty room and presented with menus and a wine list. After a quick scan of the meat section I decided on the ojo de bife (rib-eye) and my dining partner chose the lomito (tenderloin/filet). We also agreed to share a caprese salad to start and order a few sides and a bottle of wine. While taking our order our waiter, a sweet old man in a seemingly authentic gaucho's cap, informed us that ordering sides would not be necessary as an array of dishes were included with our steaks. He also let me in on the fact that my rib eye would probably be big enough to sink a cruise ship. I told him to bring it on. The wine, water, and caprese arrived. While delicious, the capreses isn't really even worth mentioning here (not sure why just I did).
          Then came the steaks. Mine, the size of a leather briefcase, and Sarah's, 4 big cuts of filet mignon, each one of which could have been a meal on its own. They were served on long wooden boards, accompanied by 6 small dishes of various sides and sauces. Our waiter quickly started re-arranging all of the sides and sauces and informed us that he had to make room for the platter of guarniciones calientes (hot sides) that were on their way. Sure enough, a minute later, a round platter with 6 small dishes containing mashed potatoes, squash puré, warm chick pea salad, confit onions, etc. arrived on our table.

Guarniciones Calientes.

Ojo de Bife

The meal progressed. We ate, drank, and were merry. Happy to be at "the other La Cabrera" which was definitely less crowded and less hectic than the original, and less than a stone's throw away.

"Listo"

I usually try to avoid the most hyped, extremely touristy/popular places. Moral of this story: sometimes the people are right. We should listen to them.