Poke chef Mychael Henry repays a debt

A few weeks ago, Mychael Henry, chef of Buenos Aires pop-up restaurant Poke repaid a debt to my roommate Joanna. Joanna, the Colombian hot mama that she is was kind enough to bring Mychael back authentic Arepa masa from Colombia.  To return the favor, Mychael cooked us all roasted beer-can chicken, rice, arepas, and curry during our last dinner party.  Talia came through with a bomb salad that I got first dibs on so as to hoard as much bacon as posible.  The chicken was moist on the inside and nice and crispy on the outside.  The arepas were a solid sandwich-building base and the rice/curry/salad sides were tasty too.

For recipes and tips, you'll just have to ask Mychael himself at his pop-up every wednesday at Magdalena's party.

CHICKEN!!!

Salad a la Talia

Arroz

Arepas

Final product

The spread

BBQ Town: A "picar"er's dream

"Picar" means to "pick at" in Spanish, most commonly used to refer to picking at your food.  I love picaring and if you're variety-seeking, want to try everything, buffet-loving person like myself then BBQ town is the place for you.

At BBQ town, you're served all-you-can-eat Korean side dishes including peanuts, eggs, calamari, etc to accompany grill yourself, marinated meats and prawns. You can (and will) eat until you wish you had stopped about ten "this is my LAST bites" later.  But it's good, seemingly fresh, and fun.  I prefer BBQ Town to the Flores original version because there are more side dishes, better service, and no need to worry about getting robbed on the way out.  The most satisfying $90 pesos a person place in Buenos Aires these days...

Joanna and Dario getting ready to chow down

Side dish section 1

Side dish section 2

Side dish section 3

Spicy seafood soup

Prawns and panceta

Pork and beef

Cooking action

Anna action

Buenos Aires Staples: Sarkis and Sudestada

Sarkis and Sudestada are my two favorite BA go-to's.  Whenever I need cheap, tasty, and different my move is Sarkis.  Whenever I need spicy (and I mean bad ranking in guiaoleo because Argie's can't handle it spicy) I go to Sudestada.  Definitely give both these a try if you haven't yet and be sure to order the following items:

Sarkis - falafel and chicken or lamb fierro/kebab/whatever it's called COMPLETO with the yogurt on the side.  The yogurt is amazing, thick, doesn't exist in BA style so it's a must on the completo, but you need to ask for it "a parte" or you'll get screwed by an excess of it drenching everything.  

Sudestada - the jalapeno cocktail, the grilled rabbit, and the curry special.  Ask for extra picante if you like spicy because it's LEGIT, almost borderline too spicy for me, but a welcome change from typical argie fare where carne picante empanadas may as well be dulce in my opinion.

Both places are winners and not to be missed.

Chicken kebab completo 

Spanakopita

Falafel

Yogurt on the side

Fish balls - AMAZING

Grilled Rabbit

Green curry chicken

Brazilian Eating Adventures with Ashley

I recently returned from a one week vacation on Ilhabela island in Brazil and I must say, I love Brazilian food.  Tropical fruit, delicious seafood, good sushi, and everything fried.  Top it off with a caipirinha (which is an art in Brazil) and I'm set.  Eating throughout the trip was simply a nice change from bland BA.  I wish I had more pics to share, but blame it on the ca-ca-ca-ca-caipirinhas!

Poolside Beer

Huge Mango Face

Mussels, Calamari, and Shrimp Plate

Pesto Shrimp and Potatoes

Polenta Fries

Fried Sausage