There aren’t many exciting options in BA’s northern suburbs, but now Lardo & Rosemary has become the jewel of La Lucila in Zona Norte. The self-service gastro bar doesn’t serve just one style of food: Here, diners order from a short list of street food-inspired dishes from around the world. Go with a group and order a spread to share, with selections such as burrata and sourdough bread, lettuce with gochujang dressing and crunchy fried onions, crispy sweetbread and chitlin cabbage wrap, roasted eggplant satay, and churros for dessert.

Narda Lepes, a household name in Argentina, stars in cooking and travel shows, writes cookbooks, has her own line of supermarket products and kitchen appliances, and now adds restauranteur to her repertoire. Narda Comedor, her mess-hall motif restaurant in Bajo Belgrano, opened in October 2017, puts vegetables on the main stage, particularly seasonal produce inspired by Lepes’s travels across Asia, the Middle East, and Latin America. A talented crew of young cooks serve all-day dishes — for breakfast, lunch, merienda (tea time), and dinner — reminiscent of Californian cuisine.

We all know Argentina is a carnivorous country, so it’s a big deal when the city’s most talked-about butcher shop opens an adjacent restaurant. Even though chef (and Francis Mallmann disciple) Santiago Garat constantly changes the menu, you can expect him to masterfully serve cuts like sirloin, skirt steak, ribeye, and pork loin straight from the front-and-center parrilla (grill). Don’t miss the spicy lamb merguez sausage starter or seasonal vegetable side dishes. When you’re done, make sure to hop next door to the carnicería and window-shop all of the sausages, pork and beef cuts, and dry-aged beef. Corte opens daily for lunch.

For decades, beer drinkers in Buenos Aires almost exclusively consumed Quilmes, the national brand. But in recent years, the city has seen an artisanal beer boom of epic proportions. There may be dozens of solid cervecerías in every barrio, but few are quite as welcoming as Strange Brewing. The large warehouse includes a microbrewery, taproom bar, beer garden, and open kitchen. The space fills up almost every night, but maintains a low-key atmosphere. A rotating selection of about 10 beers — including IPA, pale ale, amber and dunkel — change regularly. Even though Strange opened in September 2017, the eclectic food menu has substantially evolved over the past 12 months, especially when guest chefs began hosting pop-ups, serving anything from tacos to seasonal goulash and lentil stew to Texas-style barbecue.

If you’ve read a Buenos Aires guidebook published in the past decade, you’ve probably noticed the “Puertas Cerradas” box recommending the intimate multicourse dinners inside private homes that were once all the rage. Today, times have changed, and fresh young minds are transforming the “closed door” supper-club concept. After organizing pop-ups in kitchens across BA, freshman chefs Mica Najmanovich and Nico Arcucci settled on the eighth floor of a high-rise on the Palermo-Colegiales-Chacarita border, complete with an outdoor terrace overlooking the Dorrego Flea Market. The vibe might be laid back, but the masterful dishes reinterpreting Eastern European, Italian, and Middle Eastern cuisines are anything but relaxed, and each small plate emphasizes texture, freshness, and flavor. Vegetarians won’t leave hungry either, since more than half of the menu is meat-free. The wine list features an excellent selection of boutique wines, like the orange torrontés and chardonnay blend from Pielihueso. Anafe serves dinner Thursdays through Saturdays, offers a fixed-price all-you-can-eat brunch buffet on Sundays, and regularly uses the space for gastronomic events and pop-ups.

Perhaps the city’s unconditional love for beef and recent Asian fusion obsession explain the difficulty of snagging a reservation at this pan-Asian style parrilla where Japanese, Korean, and Chinese flavors meet Argentine traditions. Niño Gordo, which means “Fat Boy” in English, is the newest venture from Pedro Peño and Germán Sitz, the creators of Palermo favorites La Carnicería and Chori. Sit at the bar for a great view of the open kitchen and watch chefs plate dishes like miso-chile glazed sweetbreads, chinchulines (chitterlings) okonomiyaki, beef tataki with wasabi, and ssamjang sirloin. Much of the hotness factor can be attributed to the decor: At the restaurant’s entrance, two fish tanks with floating faux jellyfish open onto an intimate dining area whose ceiling is decorated with 143 red chochin lanterns, making Niño Gordo a contender for 2018’s most Instagrammable restaurant.

A John Starks New York Knicks jersey and framed Nas autograph that reads “The Sky’s the Limit” decorate Sheikob’s Bagels, the city’s first real bagel shop. Before native New Yorker Jake Eichenbaum-Pikser took to the streets in 2014, selling the real boiled and baked variety off of his bicycle outside specialty coffee shops, bagels in Buenos Aires meant disappointing bread with a hole in the middle. Last December, Sheikob’s (how Porteños pronounce Jacob) went brick-and-mortar, serving fresh bagel sandwiches to homesick expats and curious Argentines. Try combinations like the Clásico, with homemade cream cheese, smoked salmon, pickled onions and capers; the BEC, with bacon, egg, and cheese; the Mexicano, with jalapeno cream cheese and roasted tomato with cilantro; and the Brighton, topped with lemon-dill cream cheese and pickled beets.  

Argentina is known for its wines, but it’s not easy to find a wine bar here with an extensive selection by the glass. At Vico in Villa Crespo, patrons can taste more than 140 different bottles — on tap from wine dispensers, a novelty in Buenos Aires. Go beyond Argentina’s flagship malbec and discover a mundo of Patagonian pinot noir and torrontés from Salta. The interactive set-up makes it an ideal icebreaker for a first date, or for a group of friends who want to try a multitude of wines. Just make sure to secure your glass under the spout to avoid any embarrassing spillage situations.

Peruvian culinary mogul Gastón Acurio knows a thing or two about the restaurant industry. After the success of ceviche sanctuary La Mar Buenos Aires, the Acurio group decided to show Porteños the ways of Peruvian home cooking. Unlike Tanta in Peru, Chile, and Chicago, Argentina’s upscale downtown location caters to the office crowd. Here, you will find Tanta’s twist on power lunch staples like empanadas, salads, burgers, and sandwiches, plus the real magic, the comforting soul foods. Go with a group to maximize how many family-style dishes you can order, starting with specialties like lomo saltado, ají de gallina, papas rellenas, and causas. For those with a big appetite, try El Bife de Anthony El Goloso, which roughly translates as “Anthony the Glutton’s Beef,” named after head chef Anthony Vasquez and consisting of a 500-gram steak served with pesto fettuccine and creamy huacaína potatoes. Tanta is such a hit in Buenos Aires, there are already plans for expansion.

Often times the best place to go for a cocktail in a new city isn’t the spot with the line out the door or the too-cool-for-school bar where it’s impossible to get the bartender’s attention. You want to find out where the gastro industry goes. Unmarked on a quiet street in Villa Crespo, Kinky was inspired by bar patron-turned-bartender Luis Redondo’s favorite music. Half of the menu consists of signature “Playlist” cocktails, named after hits by David Bowie, the Sex Pistols, Billy Idol, and Blondie, while the other half, the “Covers,” were created by esteemed local bartenders, who often stop by for a drink. Food is limited to potato chips and empanadas, so plan ahead.

A few months ago the dry cleaner on the corner of Velasco and Araoz suddenly closed after more than 30 years of business. But last month, Fabián Yafuso re-opened his family’s tintorería as a 10-seat casual Japanese restaurant. Try dishes like grilled fish, tempura, and fresh sushi and sashimi platters. If you don’t make a reservation, there probably won’t be room at the counter, which offers two seatings every night at 8 p.m. and 10:15 p.m.