Beyond medialunas

Argentina's been having a bit of a rough time lately. The global crisis first and now the swine flu pandemic, that has hit this country the hardest, after the US. A combination of bad government, bad timing and plain bad luck has made the situation worst than in other countries. I guess the best we can all do, local and visitors alike is to be careful, wash our hands often, avoid public gatherings (not easy in a big city like Buenos Aires) and not get too paranoid.

When times are tough, nothing better than some good comfort food, like medialunas.

This blog could well be called 'beyond medialunas', since they seem to be a staple in the local diet. They are a smaller, sweeter version than the all too popular croissants. People have them usually for breakfast with cafe con leche. There are 2 kinds of medialunas:

. de manteca -fluffy, thick and quite sweet

. de grasa -thin, flaky not as sweet

So, if you are visiting this lovely city, or are already here, remember to wash your hands and avoid public gatherings. Oh, and don't forget to order some good medialunas. They will make life a little sweeter, even in these rough times.

Photo by Martin Lavega

How to order coffee

A friend told me once: 'Never sacrifice a friendship for a kiss'. And I think there's a lot of truth in that. The thing is that in Argentina people kiss each other a lot, even with this swine flu thing. So I guess you do get to kiss your friends and keep them, too. That same friend tried to order a submarino thinking it was a sandwich.

I think it can be a bit difficult to know how to order coffee here. Sometimes the names are different and some other times the names are the same but the drink is different. So here's a quick list of different coffee drinks. I'm sure I'm forgetting one or two, but well... that's what you get for kissing friends.

cafe: small espresso

cortado: small espresso with a couple of drops of steamed milk

cortado jarrito: cortado on a larger cup

lagrima: steamed milk and a couple of drops of coffee, served on a small cup

lagrima jarrito: lagrima on a bigger cup

cafe con leche: espresso shot with steamed milk (pretty similar to a european capuccino)

capuccino: espresso shot with steamed milk, served on a big glass dusted with cocoa powder and cinnamon

submarino: steamed milk served with a bar of dark chocolate (not a sandwich!)

Best cookies

Sugar & Spice
5419 Guatemala st.
4777 5423

I could write for hours and hours about how Sugar and Spice cookies are the best ones in Buenos Aires, that the owner is a very hands on and an unusual business man (or cookie man!) and that their store/show room is a must visit for cookie nerds. But I won't. instead go check his blog, which is not only entertainig but inspiring and informative. And to me that's what a good blog is all about. Oh! And the cookies are fresh, with real chocolate chunks and inspiring, and to me that's what a good cookie is all about..

Tipping tips

Whenever you travel abroad, there are a few things that are quite difficult to figure out: Is this edible? Where am I? or.. How do you pay for bus tickets? But there's one thing that's particularly tricky: tipping.
In America, tipping is very common, the standard is 20%. I really love the whole tipping culture there (although it took me a while to get used to it).I think It shows appreciation and generosity. As much as I like Europe, the story there is a bit different, they just don't like tipping (in general). I mean, they might tip a waiter, but never a cab driver, or a hairdresser. I think Buenos Aires is the middle point between them both. 15% is the standard tip for restaurants and cafes here (and a bit more if they really made an effort). Some (most) restaurants charge a 'service fee' or 'cubierto', which tends to be around $4.00 pesos per customer. This is not going to the waiters, so don't think they are including the tip on the bill. I really hate this fee, and I'm still trying to figure out what it acually is. As far as cabs and hairdressers go, you don't have to tip them, but it's always good to let the cabbie keep the change and give the stylist a couple of pesos..
It's nice to be nice.