Rodriguez Pena 1149 (between Arenales & Santa Fe), Recoleta

In search of the perfect empanada in Buenos Aires…

It’s a tough job trying to find the ‘best’ empanadas in Buenos Aires (just ask Saltshaker). Primarily because there are so many different places to try them at, and of course many different types of empanada from across the different regions of Argentina, and even the rest of Latin America. Still, I came to Buenos Aires with the idea of finding the perfect empanada, and still have this spurious notion in my head, and so on I trudge on with this difficult, yet enjoyable, eating project of mine.

For the record, I have still to taste those hallowed ‘perfect’ empanadas here. There is always something not quite perfect about each one, and I often wish that I could combine the best features of empanadas at different places to produce a super-empanada of sorts. Yes, it’s this kind of silly stuff that keeps me awake at night.

One thing I can say is that my favorite empanadas so far in Buenos Aires cannot be purchased in any restaurant. They are lovingly made by mi suegra (my mother-in-law to be), and are so good I can literally eat twenty in one sitting (I’m a growing lad – perhaps not in the right direction, but growing all the same). At Cumana in Recoleta, the empanadas are pretty good, and excellent value, but for one reason or another, are not quite up there with my suegra’s homemade efforts. And still, I continue in search of empanada perfection…

Read the rest of this entry »