Helados Ferruccio Soppelsa (Mendoza)

Various locations throughout the city.

Of course, what would a trip in Argentina be, without sampling the local ice cream craze? Ferruccio Soppelsa was the place here. They had a special Syrah gelato, which Dresden tried and let me sample--an odd taste combination, but she said it grew on you, and she loved it after a minute. I had a chocolate with brownie chunks and lemon ice cream. The lemon was great and VERY lemony, not what I was thinking, but still, they did it well. The chocolate was fabulous, as only chocolate can be. Two thumbs up.

El Palenque (Mendoza)

Arístides Villanueva 287

Another Mendoza hotspot, Dresden and I arrived here a bit early, but the patio was already packed. Their claim-to-fame is apparently the penguin-shaped pitchers which are used to serve sangria and other libations.

The prices were moderate. I went with a pizza with arugula and lemon juice, which was tasty (and very lemony). I got a kick out of the name of the pizza--El Gaucho, as it seems about as un-cowboy-friendly as possible. However, they had an American pizza, which was simply mozzarella and olives, and about as Argentine as I can imagine.

Dresden ordered a simple Caesar salad, which she said tasted overly-fishy. The sangria was tasty, but with no fruit and probably very little alcohol.

Mercado Central (Mendoza)

Las Heras and Patricias Mendocinas

While not exactly a restaurant, I ate a couple meals here, as it's a cheap place to grab quick food. I first bought a couple slices at the de un Rincón de La Boca stand, which reputedly has the best pizza in Mendoza. I found it rather average. There was a flavorful drizzle of oil on top of the pizza, however the crust was fairly basic, if not an odd mix between the thick crust, french-bready Argentine dough, and the regular wood-fired dough.


The next day, I was ravenous at that sticky 6-o'clock hour. Still hours before dinner, but enough past lunch that no one is eating a real meal, so I stopped by the mercado again, this time for empanadas. There was a good selection of basic vegetarian empanadas--I went for the choclo and olive and cheese options. Then, I sent the choclo back, as it appeared to have fish or chicken in it.

The girl at the counter promptly brought it back to me, promising it was only corn and seasonings. Dubiously, I gave it a try, and after all, I believe she was probably right. However, I can't explain what gave it the appearance. The filling was tasty.

However, with both pies, the pastry got in the way. It was too flakey--felt like it'd be better suited to a dessert pastry than the heavier, savory fillings it contained. It probably shouldn't have been so distracting, but it was. Yet, I left with my belly ready to withold the dinner-wait.

Montecatini (Mendoza)

General Paz 370

The Lonely Planet says, "For over 40 years Montecatini has been dishing out some of the city{s finest pasta, handmade by the same chefs for nearly as long. The dated but classic Godfather atmosphere and side-street location add to the appeal."

So...my friends went and recommended it. It looked a little classy for a lunch spot, but I was starving, having just gotten off a 17 hour bus ride from La Plata, and decided to do my thing there. Service was excellent. There were very few vegetarian choices, but I went with the Spinach fettucini with mushrooms. I had a choice of a white or red (tomato) sauce, and went with the red, because I felt like I needed something a bit lighter and healthier, although it seemed to be a bit oily (re: tasty), so I'm not sure I accomplished my mission. I'd say the combination definitely was meant for a cream sauce.

Given that, the pasta was excellent, as was the tomato sauce. I finished it, although I really didn't need to. Bread was served with butter--always a treat here! And I finished things off with an espresso, hoping to find drive to continue the afternoon, but the caffeine boost was unfortunately ineffective.