Gran Bar Danzón: Buenos Aires’ James Bond-Style Bar

If James Bond had to rendezvous with a seductive female double agent in Buenos Aires he would probably invite her to El Gran Bar Danzón for a cocktail. This Recoleta cocktail lounge, wine bar and restaurant has just the sort of sophisticated atmosphere where 007 would feel at home, and it’s also home to the city’s best Martini, shaken or stirred.

A strong whiff of valerian greets visitors as they make their way up the steps at the small entrance of Danzón.Valerian is supposed to put people at ease, which is obviously the desired effect in this low-lit, smart bar-cum-restaurant.

Bar Danzón is a good spot to bring a date or meet someone new. To fit in here, be sure to dress up if you’re a lady, and flash the cash if you’re a man, as those seem to be the prerequisites for falling in love, Danzón-style. It may not be quite tuxedo and gown territory, but dressing with a little panache will ensure you stand out among the city’s movers and shakers.

Although there are usually a few twenty-somethings, Danzón is geared toward a more mature Recoleta crowd, with the median age for women being mid-thirties or so (think Pussy Galore in Goldfinger), and men a tad older (Pierce Brosnan in Goldeneye).

Floor space is at a premium in Danzón, meaning the atmosphere can go from ‘intimate’ to ‘crowded’ very easily, especially during peak cocktail sipping hour which from about 8:30-11:30pm.

Thriving since it opened in 1998 and designed by the same people responsible for top end bars such as Sucre and Uriarte (now closed), Danzon’s layout tends towards style over practicality. The prime real estate in this bar is the lounge area with its leather loungers, where you’ll get table service and the chance to socialize with fellow sofa-dwellers while observing the beautiful people at the bar. For non-diners not lucky enough to land a sofa spot, other options are a seat at the delightfully glittering bar or one of few raised tables. Once those places are snapped up, most people end up standing pressed against one other, balancing their drinks while struggling to maintain a nonchalant air as staff and fellow customers squeeze past.

Tables in the small dining area to the back of the bar are also snugly arranged — a reservation is recommended if you don’t want a long wait. Both bar and waitstaff are immaculate in their presentation and service. Their long white coats make them look like butchers or lab assistants, but since they’re all so good-looking and maintain a level of professionalism that is hard to find elsewhere in Buenos Aires, somehow it works.

Food, Wine & Cocktails

Those who do decide to dine won’t be disappointed, although they may be a little taken aback by the prices, which are high by local standards, but not totally unreasonable considering the quality of the food.

Since the beginning, Chef Martin Arriera set the gastronomic tone, offering up some surprising taste combinations such as goat’s cheese ravioli with sweet pumpkin sauce and sweetbreads, or crunchy glazed duck with a sauce of blueberries, balsamic vinegar and pistachios.

The over 400 wines selected by sommelier Fernanda Fazekas to represent the best of what Argentina has to offer is one of Danzón’s best selling points. Highly knowledgeable waiters can recommend the perfect drop to compliment customers’ meals, with prices ranging from reasonable to rap star territory. Danzón is one of the few places to find fresh oysters in Buenos Aires and they also serve excellent sushi, which are great options for those in the bar or lounge areas who want to dabble for dinner.

Danzón’s bartenders are about as good as you’ll find anywhere in the tango city. Weekly cocktail specials written up on the blackboard are often inventive, usually delicious and always interesting. Keep an eye out for specials on wine by the glass as well, which are rotated daily. If you’re unsure of what to select, chat to any of the bilingual bartenders and they’ll offer helpful suggestions – or just stop flip flopping and ask yourself, ‘what would Bond do?’

Bar Danzón gets crowded on Wednesday nights from 7-9 pm during ‘jazz y tragos,’ which features a DJ spinning jazz on vinyl. Other nights the music tends to be chill-out inducing ambient electronic.

-Dan Colasimone

Gran Bar Danzon—$$$$
1161 Libertad
Recoleta, Buenos Aires
Tel: 4811 1108

Hours:
Mon-Thurs 7:00pm-2:00a.m.
Fri 7:00- 4:00 a.m.
Sat &Sun 8:00-4:00 a.m

• Happy Hour: 7-9 p.m every day
• Dinner reservations recommended
• major credit cards accepted

Buenos Aires’ Hippest Hostel: Art Factory

Art Factory hostel is a cool option for a stay in Buenos Aires, not just for the graffiti throughout each location, but the relaxed, friendly vibe.

Since opening their original location in Palermo a decade ago, Art Factory has debuted three new locations, making this hostel more popular than Buenos Aires’ longtime favorite for single travelers, Milhouse Hostel.

Each Art Factory location is housed in classic, restored building. Inside the style is comfortable and colorful with murals along the hallways and in each room. Aside from the usual amenities such as towels, sheets, and wifi, Art Factory features a bilingual staff, free coffee and tea all day, a breakfast that includes eggs and fruit, a library, ping pong tables (at the Palermo location), and free activities such as Spanish conversation classes.

Which Art Factory Hostel Location is Better?

The original Palermo location is spacious and perfectly located to enjoy the many restaurants and clubs nestled around the hostel.

The more minimalist Act Factory Soho, in a large black corner building, is just five minutes from the Plaza Italia transit hub, making it a good location to get around the city. Light sleepers should note this is the noisiest location, but the private rooms are very nice.

The San Telmo Art Factory is for free spirits who want to stay in the south of the city and enjoy their large roof-deck close to downtown attractions such as the Plaza de Mayo, the San Telmo Fair and the walkable and modern Puerto Madero neighborhood.

Beer lovers will definitely want to stay at the newest location, the Art Factory Beer Garden, which claims to be the first hostel in Buenos Aires with its own (quite lovely) beer garden, twenty types of beer on tap and a live DJ spinning music.

Art Factory Hotel Original
Costa Rica 4353
Palermo

Art Factory Soho
Charcas 4500
Palermo Soho

Art Factory Beer Garden
Paraguay 4539
Plaza Italia, Palermo

Art Factory San Telmo
Piedras 545
San Telmo

Polo & the Pampas: The Sport of Kings in Argentina

Argentina is obsessed with soccer but visitors sometimes don’t realize that the sport the country truly dominates is polo.

The ‘sport of kings’ is played professionally only in 18 countries. Argentina is universally recognized as polo’s mecca, with several thousand active players.

A picture of Nacho Figueras by Jiyang Chen — Nacho Figueras/photo: Jiyang Chen

Polo was an on-again off-again Olympic sport from 1900-1936. Argentina’s national team won the gold the last two times.

Over half of the sport’s top pro players hail from Argentina, including Adolfo Cambiaso of La Dolfina and Facundo Pieres of Ellerstina (his brothers, Gonzolo and Nicolás are also pro players).

Nacho Figueras, Ralph Lauren model, celebrity schmoozer and founder of the Cria Yatay polo team has been dubbed the ‘David Beckham of Polo’ by the New York Times.

⇒ Ask us about a fun day of Polo Day & Asado (bbq) at an estancia outside Buenos Aires or see a professional polo game live in Buenos Aires.

Polo, Pato & the Pampas

Originating in ancient Persia, polo was introduced to the British in India in the late 19th century, who soon brought it to the estancias (ranches) around Buenos Aires.

Polo and Argentina were a perfect fit – Argentina has a strong equestrian tradition, a temperate climate and the grassy expanse of the pampas on which to play.

This game also shares some similarities to the more brutish native sport of pato. Pato (meaning ‘duck’) was also played on horseback, but the ‘ball’ was a live duck in a basket. The precolonial-era game was the gauchos’ favorite sport. It was more violent — not just for the poor duck — but also the cowboys who sometimes got trampled or stabbed in heated post-game duels.

Today a more civilized version of pato is played with a leather ball fitted with six handles instead of a live duck. Like polo, pato consists of two four-person teams, requires mastery to handle the horse with one hand and uses a handicap system to rate players. To the chagrin of the Argentine Football and Polo Associations, pato was declared Argentina’s national sport in 1953 by President Juan Domingo Perón.

If pato represents Argentina’s rough game of working ranch hands, polo is the game of the aristocracy, highlighting the legacy of the country’s wealthiest settlers.

A painting of two men on horseback playing polo

Pricey Polo Ponies

Today, professional polo players usually begin to train as children. In order to play each player usually has at least four ponies on hand, each equal to the cost of a fancy car.

The Argentine polo pony is a cross of strong native criollo horses with graceful English thoroughbreds. These days champion horses are cloned and breeders use surrogate mares so that the best ponies are not kept out of play.

Just to transplant the equine embryo costs about US$4000. Once they are born the horses have to be trained for four years.

A polo horse waits to play under the shade at Palermo's Campo de Polo — A polo horse waits to play outside the Campo de Polo in Palermo.

It takes a whole stable of world-class horses for a polo game – not hard to see why this is one of the world’s most expensive sports.

Polo also requires a lot of land and its constant maintenance. In Argentina, the elite nature of polo contrasts with the country’s pathological focus on the plight of ‘the working man.‘

Although the price to view a polo match is accessible in Argentina, most of the population’s only contact with the game is seeing it broadcast on TV.

Polo: Basics of the Game

Polo is played on a 300X160 yard field, an expanse that equals the size of five soccer fields. Two teams of four players mounted on horses gallop up and down the field during seven-minute chukkers (periods) trying to hit the ball with a mallet to get the ball down the field and between the opponent’s goal posts.

Once a player has a control of the ball, opponents cannot cross the ‘line of play’ although they can push players off course with a ‘ride-off’ or hook the opponent’s mallet as a form of defense. The matches are overseen by a standing referee at midfield and two umpires, who are also on horseback.

A bell rings at the end of each chukker and continues until there is a goal, foul, out of play ball or a second bell which ends play at 30 seconds, whichever comes first.

Between each chuckker, players have three minutes to hop on another pony. During the Argentine Open and other top tournaments players are able to switch out ponies during play as well.

After a team scores a goal, the teams switch sides to ensure neither team has a wind or turf advantage.

See a Polo Match in Buenos Aires

Spectators watch a polo match in Palermo, Buenos Aires

Polo season runs from then October to early December in Argentina and the three most important polo championships, collectively known as the ‘Triple Crown’ are played in Buenos Aires. Two are the opens that take place in the leafy suburbs of Hurlingham and Tortugas.

The most celebrated tournament is the Abierto Argentino (Argentine Open) set in Palermo’s Campo Argentina de Polo (commonly known as the ‘Cathedral of Polo,’ ). The tournament pits eight teams against each other and provides the best opportunity for visitors to witness the high-speed drama of a match, while also getting a glimpse into the lives of Argentina’s botoxed bourgeoisie.

Visitors who find themselves in Argentina during polo season can check out the list of upcoming matches on our soccer and polo list. Also ask about our day-long polo tours with an asado lunch to get a chance to learn how to play the ‘sport of kings’ yourself.

Painting of polo players. Polo is a very elite sport, popular in Argentina

Gibraltar: Buenos Aires’ Original British Pub

In San Telmo a thirst for home is quenched at Gibraltar. The reigning champion for Buenos Aires’ most authentic British pub, it’s a gathering place for travelers, foreign settlers and neighborhood regulars.

Here you’ll find good booze, decent music at a reasonable volume, an interesting mix of characters, and a few different environments to mingle. Lounge around a booth in the front to watch a game, hook your bag under the sturdy bar to settle in for a chat or pass by the open kitchen to on your way to hang out on the patio.

Food – Fish & Chips, English Breakfast & Curries

A number of places to get good beer have cropped up in Buenos Aires since Gibraltar opened in 1999 but it remains San Telmo’s go-to spot to find a decent shot of imported whiskey, pint of IPA, Gambrinus stout, Antares Scotch or cider on tap.

The pub fare – as long you stick to the Indian or Thai curries, fish and chips and burgers — is fresh and tasty. A frequent 2X1 offer on curries at lunchtime, makes this an inviting spot to invite someone for a casual lunch. On the weekends they offer a traditional English breakfast of eggs, sausage, baked beans and toast until 5 p.m. Note that orders are taken by the friendly staff at the bar.

Sport Games & Pool

If you’re in Buenos Aires and looking to catch a football/soccer, basketball or rugby game on the tube, Gibraltar is one of your best bets in this part of town. You can also join in on a game of pool, just put your name on the chalkboard and dodge pool sticks while you wait.

It can be a crowded on Friday and Saturday nights after 10 p.m. In fair weather sometimes a line forms outside, much to the annoyance of regulars. It pays to get there early, as the Happy Hour 2X1 pints last until 10 p.m. On weekends, neighborhood habitués often come in the afternoon and either settle in at a table in the back or move on before it fills up with young Argentines on a mission to snog foreigners.

Gibraltar – $$
Peru 895
San Telmo
Tel: 4362-5310

•Hours: 12 p.m.— 4 a.m. everyday
•Happy Hour: 12p.m —10 p.m.
•Kitchen closes around 1:30 a.m.

La Catedral, Bohemian Tango Temple

Behind a nondescript door that looks like the entrance to an office building hides the cavernous La Catedral del Tango. The Cathedral is a unique milonga (tango ballroom) where tango aficionados and novices gather to take classes, practice dancing and eat and drink together every night.

The unique space mixes the sacred aura of a cathedral and the cheerful bohemian clutter of a circus tent. The vibrant atmosphere features 12 meter high wooden ceilings decorated with large sculptures and hanging lights. In former incarnations the 1880 building was a grain silo, dairy factory and a refrigeration warehouse, before finally being converted into a cultural event space.

La Catedral grew out of an experimental rock band called ‘Los Enviados del Señor’ which performed tango music in classic rock ‘n’ roll garb. The crowds loved it, so the group moved into the Almagro building, which had sat abandoned for thirty years, and started rehabilitating the space. In the milonga’s early years they lived in the warehouse, each claiming their own nook.

“I had a platform in one corner, and sometimes there was a milonga, and if I didn’t feel like attending, I watched the dance floor…from my bed,” says one of four co-owners, Mario Bulacio. “It was like that for many years.”

Though the space originally put on shows and cultural events of all kinds it eventually focused exclusively on tango — with the occasional folklore class thrown in. Today La Catedral offers nightly classes, with performances featuring orchestras of varying sizes.

→ See a list of all Tango Tours in Buenos Aires

Classes, Milonga & Performances

The agenda on La Catedral’s website is not always up to date but the milonga opens every day at around 7 p.m. and stays open until 3 or 4 in the morning, depending on the crowd. Classes start at 8 p.m. and 10:30p.m. but are rarely punctual. Dance performances and orchestras almost always start after midnight, sometimes as late as 1 or 2 in the morning.

The best evenings to visit la Catedral are Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays. The group classes are best for beginners, though all levels are welcome; if a group of more experienced dancers attends the teachers will often divide the class into several categories by level. Private classes and group prices are sometimes available if visitors call ahead to inquire. There is no reserved seating as with more formal milongas, but visitors are encouraged to share the available tables, and the venue rarely runs out of space.

After the class is over visitors can continue to practice or sit down and watch the more experienced dancers twirl into the wee hours of the morning.

Vegetarian Food & Drink & Art

La Catedral’s kitchen offers affordable vegetarian options such as empanadas, pizzas and pastas, as well as wine, beer, fernet and other drinks. The vegetarian menu sets La Catedral apart from almost every other milonga in this carnivorous city.

“We agreed to this when we started, because it was in line with each of our personal philosophies. It was something very different at the time, inside the world of tango and tourism, because many people come to Argentina to consume meat,” says Bulacio. “In the beginning it affected us a lot because people didn’t understand. Now with the passage of time many people come here because they know it’s vegetarian. They know that the place offers the option of vegetarian and vegan food for tourists.”

Today La Catedral remains unlike any other tango venue in the capital: no two chairs or tables match, abstract artwork lines the walls, and a temporary exhibit is on display in the side room on the way to the restrooms. Above the bar hangs the four meter high ‘Corazon del Tango.’

Most of the artwork is by Bulacio, who studied art and architecture before turning towards music and tango. The resident cat, Tita weaves through the dancers, clearly used to the noise and the crowd.
The attendees at La Catedral are noticeably younger than in other tango venues in the city, partly because of the laid-back vibe of the place. “We are not a traditional tango venue. Neither our esthetic nor our approach are traditional,” says Bulacio. “We created this place with the idea to make a tango place that fit our identity. It’s not designed for tourists — and I think people like that.”

-Sam Harrison

La Catedral del Tango
Saramiento 4006
Almagro
Hours: 6 p.m.-4 a.m. everyday
Tel: (15)5325-1630

* 2×1 entrance until 10p.m.

⇒ Check out other Buenos Aires tango tours and activities to learn the dance or check out the city’s milongas with a local.

Take a Tango Tour