Open Air

We catch up with one of our favorite chefs in town, Julian del Pino, at his hot new project.

My first contact with chef Julian del Pino was way back in 2012, when he was overseeing Tomás Kalika’s (Mishiguene) kitchen at Food Factory, and producing, at the time, what I rated the best smoked salmon sandwich in the city.

“…beautiful black olive bread, a layer of fresh, vibrant guacamole, five, count them, five nice slices of stacked, smoked salmon, a layer of oven-confited tomatoes, and another of tasty dill-flecked cream cheese. Add to that that it’s accompanied by a mound of amazing, crunch outside, creamy inside “crushed potatoes”.

We didn’t really connect, but I knew his name, and he moved on to stints at various places, including the highly regarded Crizia, though by the time I reviewed it, he’d moved on. He’s worked in Michelin starred and other top end restaurants here, in Brazil, and in Europe, like Sucre, D.O.M., and Martín Berasategui. Our next encounter, and directly, where we started to do all the modern things like exchange social media connections, was as the chef behind Vico Wine Bar, where he was producing exquisite small plate food to go with the dozens of wine by the glass selections. From there he moved on to Bagatelle at the Hipódromo, which I never got to, and then, a bit over a year ago, opened up his own space, Aire Libre, at Av. del Libertador 6327 in Belgrano, just outside of Barrio Chino.

Over the last weeks I’ve made a trio of visits - twice for lunch (once solo, once with The Horde), and once for dinner for our date night. Upfront, each time, Julian sent out additional comped dishes, though we paid for the majority of what we ate.

The space is huge, divided into three “salons” - the main floor restaurant area, an upstairs that’s almost as big, and a semi-outdoor “urban garden”, covered patio. In total, they can seat somewhere around 220 diners, and on all three visits, the place was basically full. On offer, his take on local cuisine - classic Argentine dishes, done his way.

Service is well coordinated, with everyone on the floor being connected by radio, and messages clearly get to where they’re intended to get, with one or another waitperson handling something we asked of a different staff member, often within seconds. The kitchen is semi-open, at the back of the main floor. There are also a few seats at the bar on that level, which I’d probably opt for in the future if dining solo. Let’s check out the food!

Excellent bread service - a beautiful focaccia style bread, dinner roll, and flatbread, with olive oil for dipping.

The lamb empanada was juicy and packed with flavor, the lightly spicy tomato sauce on the side a perfect accompaniment. 6900 pesos seems a trifle steep for a single empanada, but it is both lamb, and extra large, and… worth it.

This might be the best gazpacho available in Buenos Aires right now. It’s certainly the best we’ve tried. Creamy smooth, and spiked with, I’d guess, hot paprika, we ordered this twice. 12000 pesos.

The house cured trout over soft potatoes, and sprinkled with dill, is refreshing and light. One of my favorite mortadellas, from Dina, using walnuts instead of pistachios, graced a plate along with a bruschetta of creamy burrata with black olives, tomato, and basil. Respectively, 16900, 11500, and 18700 pesos. The trout, in particular, is a steal given the quantity, quality and the work that went into it.

The fried calamari is airy, light, crunchy outside and perfectly tender inside. The first time we tried them, perfect, the second time, so salty we couldn’t eat them, and they were swiftly replaced with another batch that were back to perfect. 18900 pesos - kind of pricey for a small portion, though they are among the best we’ve had in town.

I’m not sure why, but this dish just sort of feels like his signature appetizer. No one said that, but everyone recommends it. It’s a creamy prawn infused orzo pasta spiked with cognac and topped with spot-on grilled spot prawns. We ordered this on all three visits, and twice, absolutely amazing, once, again, way too salty, and immediately replaced with a properly seasoned bowl. Julian wasn’t there, and the waitress returned with a message from whomever was running the kitchen to let me know that what I was tasting wasn’t salt, but the cognac - no, it was salt - and, never do that to a customer. 14600 pesos.

Steak, cooked a proper medium rare, and, if I recall, a ribeye, though I’m not sure, and it was part of the day’s menú ejecutivo (depending on how many courses, either 26000 or 30000 pesos) rather than a regular menu item. Served over a proper mushroom risotto. Given that that price includes an appetizer or dessert, or both, plus beverage, it’s a fantastic deal.

Fork tender, braised lamb with gnochetti made from manchego cheese. What’s not to love? Leaning a little salty, but not too much for us this time. 39500 pesos.

A half of a roasted pollito, or baby chicken. With its roasted vegetables this is easily a platter for two, if not three. We brought it home and split what was left for lunch. 40000 pesos.

Dead-on cooked entraña, or hanger steak. Seasoned right, juicy, and lightly charred outside. 44000 pesos. But here, I’m going to be a little miffed. It’s 10% more costly than the baby chicken, and doesn’t include anything. Though we didn’t know that, as our waitress simply asked when I ordered it what I would like for my side dish, and then listed off the options. What she didn’t say, and what we didn’t realize, was that that wasn’t included - at that price, it was just the steak, with nothing. Now, I loved the lightly roasted zucchini served over ricotta, and topped with a sort of dukkah spice crumb. We just didn’t know it was tacking on an extra 15000 pesos.

Let’s move on to desserts….

An apple crumble… which I don’t think of as particularly Argentine, and a very generous portion - that’s like cereal bowl sized. Dreamy, and topped with a creamy cinnamon gelato. At 15900 it’s a dessert I’d order again and again.

And, a dulce de leche flan. I’m not a huge flan fan, but Henry is, and even I had to admit this was pretty damned good. I still only had one big spoonful and he ate up the rest of it. 12500 pesos.

So, what’s the upshot of it all? Love the space. I’m more fond of it during the day with all the natural light from the outside garden and glass wall, plus they keep the music volume lower. Service is impeccable, from the time you walk in until the time you leave. The food, for the most part, fantastic. No, that’s not fair, it’s all fantastic - it’s just now and again, someone back there in the kitchen seems to have a heavy hand on the salt. It’s expensive. For our date night, for example, and at other nice restaurants, we typically order an appetizer or two to share, then two main courses, and a bottle of wine, or cocktails, and run somewhere around 100k with tip. Here, ordering the same quantity, barely shy of 200k. At lunch there’s that great prix fixe, which is very affordable. But a la carte, this is a splurge.

[My “perfect lunch” recommendation? Get the gazpacho, follow it with the orzo and prawn dish accompanied by the roasted zucchini, and finish up with the apple crumble. A glass of wine, and you’re golden, albeit it’s going to run you around 70-75k.]