Gayle and I stopped in on our last night in Purmamarca. Another recommended restaurant was closed,…read moreso we came here on the strength of a Lonely Planet write-up. The restaurant was only 2-3 blocks from our Hotel. And like other establishments in this area of Argentina, please make sure you have enough cash to cover the bill. And don't worry, it's not expensive.
I agree with Lonely Plant that Tierra de Colores has a pleasant rustic dining area serving generous portions of traditional local food. I ordered the Chicken Picante (spicy), while Gayle opted for boney lamb dish whose Argentinian name escapes me. And of course, we shared a bottle of wine and flan for dessert. We both thought the main dishes were just OK. The portions were also huge and since this area of the country is very dog friendly, one nice community dog received a lot of tasty table scraps.
What set our evening apart was the music. It was a 4 man band including folks playing Pan Pipes, Charango, regular guitar, and drums, who we thought were really talented. They were also really friendly and knew how to work the room. At one point, they asked everyone in the room where they were from and luckily Gayle's red hair, smile and decent Spanish resulted in a warm welcome from the room and the musicians. Our fellow diners included a couple families, a few couples, some guy friends, and a pair of Brazilian Bikers. We really enjoyed the music, and made our exit when they took a break. We even walked up to thank them, hand them their tip envelope, bought one of their CDs.
This was one of those nights were the experience as a whole defined the evening. The food or the service was not amazing, but the atmosphere, the music, and our fellow travelers made this one of our trip's most memorable moments.
