An absolutely first rate historic restoration cafe…read more Buenos Aires Cafes of the early twentieth century were legendary places. Both the Argentine government and appreciative entrepreneurs have been working to save these great old bars and bodegones. El Federal is one of five historic restaurants that are being run by one company that has the goal of saving them all. The job that has been done on El Federal is absolutely top of the line. This is an outstanding place to eat, an outstanding place to drink and an outstanding room to sit in. * * * El Federal is in San Telmo - already one of the most historic and evocative neighborhoods in Buenos Aires. El Federal takes pride in being a vermutaria. They make their own house vermouth. I have been grabbing house vermouth everywhere I can get it. If you want a Malbec, they got plenty of those too. But to my mind, nothing tastes better or is more refreshing than a good Argentine vermouth. The absolute best vermouth in Buenos Aires that I have found so far is at the Cafe San Juan, also in San Telmo. But the vermouth at El Federal is a formidable number two. It is better than ANY house vermouth I have had in Spain, ANY commercial vermouth I have had in the U.S., Spain or Argentina and any of my more limited tastings in Italy. A number two vermouth in a long run of vermouth tastings all over the world? You want to have this vermouth. * * * How is the food? Outstanding! 1) Big beautiful absolutely marvelous milanesas. Reminder - a meat dish with tomato sauce on top is generally going to be better in Argentina than in the U.S. because their tomatoes are better so their tomato sauce is better. The beef is better too, so I had my milanesa with nalga which is rump steak. Chicken in Buenos Aires generally does not impress, but beef is absolutely positively out of this world. Perfect meat? Perfect tomato sauce? Fine cheese and a great great kitchen? Sign me up! 2) The best french fries I have had in Buenos Aires. The Portenos serves french fries with everything. Argentine french fries are no great shakes. El Chori makes fantastic homemade ketchup to die for ... But the base french fries themselves are no thrill. El Federal makes an outstanding addictive french fry. I could have just drunk vermouth and eaten french fries for lunch and I would have been a happy boy. 3) A super filling super yummy Tortilla with potatoes and onions. That dish is fine in a lot of places, but it is first rate here. 4) A totally tremendous fig and brie dessert. I have been served a lot of fig this and fig that in Buenos Aires. Often the fig dishes are disappointments. THIS fig dish is stellar. The figs are small but first rate and super-tasty. The brie is mild - but it goes with the figs wonderfully. The house makes a compote syrup to go over the duo. They don't put on much, but the fig compote syrup is what takes the dish and sends it over the roof. This is an adult dessert - a combination of sweet and savory as opposed to a dulce de leche sugar pigout. This combination of sweet and savory is magical. * * * If you are in Buenos Aires for any length of time, You absolutely positively want to get to El Federal. But lets imagine this is a short trip and you have a very limited number of days. One neighborhood has two of the best kitchens in the city and the two best vermouths in the world. And it is a cute historic neighborhood to boot with great markets and live tango performances? I for sure would do both. I would go to San Telmo for the day, Have an early meal at El Federal which opens early, closes late and has super flexible hours. No matter what time of day it was, I would drink vermouth. Go messing around San Telmo seeing this and seeing that. On a day when they had their fairs I bought some wonderful artisanal scarves at a good price. (There is junk to be had there too. Use your judgment.) Avoid the tourist restaurants in the indoor mercado, and the overpriced tourist stuff for sale there. Then dinner and more vermouth at the Cafe San Juan. You have to reserve for the Cafe San Juan. You won't have a problem getting into El Federal. Amazing eating, the two best vermouths in the world, and a lot of fun in the afternoon. What's not to like?

Nostalgia is the best selling feature. Opened in 1846, I believe it holds the distinction as the…read moreoldest restaurant/bar in Buenas Aires. That's cool, but of course I care first and foremost about the quality of the food. Here I was left wanting. I tried both the spinach and the ham omelettes. They were huge and covered the majority of the plate, but the spinach one was a bit overcooked. The flavor was fine but uninspiring. I also tried a coffee with whisky and it too was okay but not as satisfying as I desired. The place also has a slight odor, but that could be due to the age of the establishment. It was groovy to enter, but I'm not sure if it is much more than a novelty at this point.

Off the bat I was debating to give it 4 or 5 stars and after considering all factors I went with 5…read more Here's why: - the service - our server was nice, he was attentive, and he made conversation. All great things. He did forget the bread which since we had just finished a walking tour, was a bummer. BUT, when I asked him about the bread when we asked for a To-go bad he realized he had forgotten and did not charge us the bread fee even after giving us some bread to-go. That was what brought it back to a 5. Mistakes happen, not a big deal, appreciated the remedy. - the food: ordered the tripe, they were good! I'm used to the Colombian and Ecuadorian versions and so for me, they were a little too plain. But if you added the lemon and the chimichurri and their house sauce they were better. La parrillada - it was a huge porción, but we felt it lacked flavor. It lacked salt, for our taste buds. Because I'm not sure if this is the typical Argentian style seasoning or our taste buds and overall it was good with the sauces, it warrants a 5. - the ambiance - a nice mom and pop shop, recommended by our walking tour. Casual and local spot. Prices fair.

You might walk past this place on looks alone. Definitely worth a stop. Food is amazing, staff is…read moreso friendly and the atmosphere you feel like a local in Buenos Aires.

Fantastic. You will only be sorry if you only go there once. The waiters and staff are increíble,…read morethe food ( hecho en casa) is absolutely delightful. One of the few restaurants that serve dinner as early as 6pm.

Unique. A testimony of the Buenos Aires rotisseries, with a…read moremostly Spanish casa-de-comidas-menu, with a few pasta additions. Its architecture is actually very interesting, because these casa de comidas no lomger exist in Spain, so this like the Carmenère of the restaurant type. Its architecture and design is both super nice and dusty. The cafe part being the most refined of the establishment. The food is tasty and homey. Don't expect to be surprised. Not surprising is actually the goal here. The service is respectful and professional. A good experience everyone should have at one point.

This place requires for your taste buds to accommodate Argentinitan palate standards…read more You will find most typical Buenos Aires dishes, all of them abundant and tasty (albeit with little seasoning except for salt). The servings are really abundant and you will most likely get full and happy. This is one of this places where you go to submerge yourself on the local experience, it is a place to become a local for a moment, don't expect refined manners or even smiles from the people working there, you are going to be very well fed, perhaps see a football game and get a drink and that is it. This is the way of the locals.

My wife and I loved this place. We happened upon it on our way home one night. My wife ordered the…read moretenderloin (de lomo) and I had the fried fish. Both came with mashed potatoes. It was simple but elegant and the portions were huge. Both tasted great. We went back a few nights later to the same street side table and waiter and had a full three course meal. We started with calamari and provoleta. The calamari is a staple there and the portion is huge. It is lightly breaded, fried and tasty. The provoleta was fine. This time for my main course the waiter suggested grilled fish so I tried it. It was not especially great since they bread it like it was going to be fried. It was flavorful regardless. My wife ordered the bife de lomo again and again was very happy. For dessert I had a fantastic piece of helado that seemed to be cut from a loaf. I don't remember the name but it was fantastic. My wife ordered the flan and was satisfied. I finished with a limonchella. Gijon is a great neighborhood restaurant with prices to match. It's worth a try.

A true local spot. Not to be missed when looking for lunch in Buenos Aires. It is nothing fancy,…read moreyou may just walk past-don't. 6 of us walked in and were sat immediately. No one speaks English and we used Google translate for the menu. The staff is extremely patient as we decided on our meal. Everyone in our group loved their meal: Hake with sweet potato and mashed potatoes, grilled chicken, chicken with olives (like a soup), sausage and fries, steak and fries. All well prepared and delicious. Lots of activity and local ambience--the place was continually full! Service was great. If we had more time in BA, would definitely come here again

Great ambiance - local Argentinian food. Nothing fancy, but appealing in every way. Every waiter…read morewas kind and helpful. The portions were plentiful and just delicious. We were lucky to have stumbled onto a treasure.

Look, this is simply the type of authentic Bodegon you want to eat at every day when your in Buenos…read moreaires. This is local fair, in a place that is as old as the cobble stones in the street. The menu is vast! Fish meats pastas and more. Killer!!

From the owner: Carne al horno con papas, Supremas y Milanesas, Revuelto gramajo y el Risotto de la casaread more