Discover Buenos Aires: A Complete Guide to Cafés, Markets, and Sunsets in Argentina’s Vibrant Capital

Introduction

Hey there, wanderlusters! ☕✈️ Take a stroll with me through the vibrant streets of Buenos Aires, Argentina 🇦🇷. Grab a coffee at the iconic Café Tortoni in Centro, then soak up the Sunday vibes at Plaza de Mayo Festival.

Explore the historic Casa Rosada and dive into the San Telmo Market’s lively atmosphere. 🌆 Feel the pulse of Puerto Madero and catch a breathtaking sunset at Trade Sky Bar. 🌅

Indulge in mouthwatering salmon at Sorrento Restaurant and savor an authentic Argentine asado at Siga La Vaca. 🥩🍷 From Teatro Colón to Ezeiza International Airport and NYC, join me on this whirlwind adventure! 🎭✨🌎 #BuenosAires #TravelGoals

Café Tortoni

In the last post I introduced you to some iconic spots of Buenos Aires, and now I want to present you with some closer to the city center.

Very close to El Obelisco, Café Tortoni is a historic café in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Founded in 1858 by French immigrant Touan, it’s the oldest café in the country and one of the oldest in the city. The café is a popular tourist destination, so visitors should arrive early to avoid long lines. 

I got myself some churros, chocolate and a traditional sandwich.

Plaza de Mayo

I left the Café Tortoni, and walk towards La Casa Rosada and the Plaza de Mayo. There was a Sunday festival happening with a lot of different companies selling their services and products.

The Parisian style of this plaza is undeniable.

La Casa Rosada, or “The Pink House”, is the official workplace of the president of Argentina. It’s located in this plaza and is officially known as Casa de Gobierno, which translates to “House of Government”. The big Argentinian flag was waving a lot.

San Telmo Market

One of the surprises of this walk, was going south towards San Telmo neighborhood. Thousands and thousands of people would gather here on Sunday for the famous San Telmo Market. A lot of local craft and souvenirs, among other things, are sold in this famous market.

If you visit this market, just be careful with pickpockets, as it gets very crowded and almost impossible to walk at times.

At least the weather was great, and I got to buy some presents for my family.

The end of this walk was at Plaza Dorrego which was also full of little stores. I got a coffee in the nearest Starbucks, and then walked East towards Puerto Madero.

Puerto Madero and Paseo de la Gloria

I was not sure really where to go, but I got to Puerto Madero, and I had some bookmarked places I wanted to see.

I got to visit the Eva Duarte de Perón Park and Paseo De La Gloria. More locals were around here, while the tourists were left behind in San Telmo. Very different vibe. People from this city were enjoying this area, full of food carts and cafes.

All this nature in this big city made feel a bit lost, but I enjoyed seeing it nonetheless.

I continued walking north and got to Puente de la Mujer, a very impressive bridge over the South Darsena River.

El Ateneo Grand Splendid

From here, I took an Uber to El Ateneo Grand Splendid, a bookstore in El Centro. It’s located in the former Grand Splendid Theater, which was used as a theater until the 1980s. 

The bookstore has been called one of the world’s most beautiful bookstores, and in 2019 National Geographic named it the “world’s most beautiful bookstore”. 

I mean you can see it for yourself. I was in awe the entire time.

After, I went back to the hotel to relax after a long day of walking. El Obelisco was saying hi again.

Trade Sky Bar

It was almost sunset, and my Uber driver from before had recommended me to go to Trade Sky Bar, which is a rooftop bar and restaurant located on the top floors of the Comega Building in downtown Buenos Aires. 

It has three levels: a restaurant and bar on the 19th floor, an Omakase restaurant on the 20th floor, and a rooftop bar on the top floor. 

There was a line to get in, so reservations are recommended. The line forms outside of the building, no matter how chilli the weather could be. But wait to get in, since the views are just mesmerizing.

The bar itself is horrible and crowded, but the views of Puerto Madero and El Centro are perfect, specially during the sunset.

El Obelisco was again saying hi, and the sun was about to set in this beautiful and perfect day.

Went back down, and I was so amazed on the ads for Gen V in this country, this was one of my favorite TV shows of 2023.

For dinner, I stayed in Puerto Madero, and went to Sorrento, a seafood restaurant. I was the only costumer in this Sunday evening, which was weird, but the food was good, and they gave a lot of freebies.

The Last Day

It was finally my last day of this trip, and the last day in Buenos Aires, before I headed back to New York City.

I checked out, and went to the Congreso de la Nación Argentina kind of close to my hotel.

Did not stay too long in this area, since it was a Monday morning and people were rushing to work, but tried to use the Subway, and the card situation was a bit confusing. Dropped the idea almost too fast.

Decided to walk to my next destination, and in this walk I found again El Obelisco, and a platform that I had not seen to take pictures of it, and with it.

Teatro Colón

My flight was tonight, but I still had 3 reservations today. The first one was for a tour at 10 AM of Teatro Colón.

The Teatro Colón (Spanish: Columbus Theatre) is a historic opera house in Buenos Aires, Argentina. It’s considered one of the world’s top opera houses by National Geographic.

The architecture is crazy. Everything looked so good. I felt like I was in some castle in Paris.

The Teatro Colón is known for its rich history, exceptional acoustics, and architectural features. The horseshoe-shaped main hall meets the highest standards of Italian and French classic theater. It has box seats up to the third floor. 

The Teatro Colón is named after the Italian explorer Christopher Columbus (“Cristobal Colon” in Spanish). It has hosted some of the best opera performers of all time. 

It is a popular destination for opera fans, tourists, design fans, and sightseers. Some say the 45-minute tour is worth it, even if you have to take the Spanish tour.

Siga La Vaca

After the great 45 min tour, I ubered to Siga La Vaca, a famous asado place in Puerto Madero. I had a reservation for 12 PM, but I got early, so I decided to go to the closest Starbucks and wait there.

Siga La Vaca is a chain of grills that opened in 1993. The restaurant offers all-you-can-eat steak and a buffet. Some say the restaurant has fast service and wonderful meat.

Even the dessert was great.

The restaurant was super empty but quickly got crowded as people got out of work for lunch in the area.

On the way to the Airport

I went to Patio Bullrich Mall more in the north, and walked all the food I had eaten. My third and last appointment was a massage around this area.

And right after I went back to my hotel to grab my bag and leave. The airport was the Ezeiza, which is located outside of the city. What I was not expecting were protests in the city center, which delayed my Uber ride a lot. I

I got a bit nervous to lose my flight.

Flight back home

But I got on time, and security was slow but still got to the gate with enough time to spend the last pesos I still had with me.

I bought some food, but be careful. THEY DO NOT ALLOW LIQUIDS on the flights to USA. I had to throw away the water I had bought.

The flight was a direct American flight to JFK. I was going to be late for work, but hey at least I did not waste any second of my vacation. Dinner was served and it was pretty good.

I slept so well, and got to JFK during sunrise. I was so happy with this experience overall. But I still have to tell all the story of what happened in the Argentinian Patagonia. Do not miss out.