My lovelies,
In my previous correspondence I mentioned San Telmo, the oldest barrio (neighborhood) in Buenos Aires and home to Feria San Telmo, the very popular flea market held every Sunday in Calle Defensa. Feria San Telmo is not too different from Notting Hill's Portobello Market, the wares probably in similar degrees of authenticity. Even without the flea market on weekdays, San Telmo boasts of a big antiques market and several curiousity shops along the same street.
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| SAN TELMO © Joselito Briones |
In the same neighborhood are numerous old café's and restaurants - some of them officially recognized by the city as a café of note and historical significance (as is Café Tortoni). I visited two - La Poesia and Café Coruña.
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| LA POESIA © Joselito Briones |
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| LA POESIA © Joselito Briones |
The first one, La Poesia, is the epitome of a Porteño café - the sort that you'll see in a movie if there's ever a scene in a café in Buenos Aires. It's got the old world feel down to a tittle. Exposed bricks, worn out solid wood furniture, retro images on the wall, ham and sausages hanging over the bar - the works. It has a mezzanine at the back where you can drink your coffee while watching people. I could imagine a romantic scene in a film played out in one of the tables by the window, or perhaps a scene where a man drinks quietly in the darker part of the cafe, observing his ability to observe others, asking questions pertaining to his very existence.
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| LA CORUÑA © Joselito Briones |
The other café, La Coruña, turned out to be a working man's hang out. There were men in workclothes having late lunch, each one occupying an entire table to himself, but all facing the same wall where a small TV unabatedly displayed football match results. I wouldn't be surprised if generations upon generations of local families grew up having beer and simple food here while watching football on TV.
When I came to visit, the table by the entrance was occupied by a man who looked like he's had a week's worth of alcohol during lunch - long wavy blond hair, in a summer suit and a thin scarf where his collar and tie was meant to be, nursing a drink and occasionally playing the harmonica and singing a blues song loud enough for everyone to hear. It wasn't difficult to see that he's also not from here, although enough of a regular that the lady shopkeeper was sharing his table. Intrigued by his attempts to attract attention, I approached and asked him what I now realize to be the most tactless question I could've come up with: "Excuse me, are you supposed to be famous?" He graciously said no - I was thankful that he was a happy drunk - and in further conversation I learned that indeed he's a foreigner, looking for a teaching job in Buenos Aires.
The shopkeeper was very patient in helping me choose from what seems to be a fixed menu (written on a board high up on a wall), given her limited English and my bastardized Spanish. In the end, I settled for Porteno classics - churrasco (steak) with grilled peppers, lentils, a glass of Malbec, and flan de leche with a good dollop of dulce de leche. This pretty much sums up the must-haves in Buenos Aires, so I was curious to know how they're supposed to be in their most basic form, and I was not disappointed. If you are easily put off by plastic bread baskets or beer-branded retro plastic napkin holders, this place is not for you. If you are however adventurous enough to overlook the lack of fineries, you will be rewarded with good food.
I really wish you were all here with me - Ms. Vita oggling the hot waiters, Ms. Patty posing for pictures beside marble busts of Venuses, and Ms. Hollie loving and hating his "plebs" in equal measure, but alas, all I can do is imagine what fun it would've been.
For now,
XXX
L.G.D.
Links:
La Coruña
La Poesía
Feria de San Telmo
This is a lovely series, LGD. I'm glad there's 3 more coming. :-) And great photos!
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