Food & Wine
Of course down here in the Pampas, we’re famous for our meat, which is pretty fantastic, particularly when sat round a campfire sharing stories with a group of Andean cowboys. However, there is so much more to the food culture here than just beef. There are the fantastic fish restaurants of Santiago and the central Chilean coastline, the wave of plant based restaurants that have been taking over our home town of Buenos Aires, the widely different cuisines of northeast Argentina and the northwest and northern Chile and of course the prize winning restaurants of the wineries all along the base of both sides of the Andes, and even along the Argentine coast and over the estuary into Uruguay.
Destinations & Excursions
- Eating fish straight from rivers in the Ibera wetlands.
- Making empanadas in mountain villages in the epicentre for Argentine empanadas, Salta.
- Learning how to cook fire roasted lamb on the coast of Nahuel Huapi in the Patagonian Lake District.
- Blending your own wine in Mendoza.
- Learning the art of the art of the Argentine asado (barbecue).
- Wine tasting on a ranch in the Andes of Mendoza.
- Exploring the Bodegones (traditional restaurants) of Buenos Aires.
Travel logistics
- For food based adventures we’re big fans of Spring (October/November) and Autumn (March/April) during which much of the harvests are in process, though of course eating and drinking can be enjoyed all year round.
- We will arrange all the logistics, otherwise you just need to bring a good appetite!
Things to keep in mind
- Allergies and dietary requirements, you need to be extra careful here in South America with dietary restrictions. Over the years, we’ve looked after many requests and learnt how to help people navigate the pitfalls and make sure everyone is always catered for properly.
- Travel times, between Chile, Argentina and the coast of Brazil and Uruguay, there’s a lot of land to cover and sometimes food options can be limited during the travel days. We work carefully with each of our guests and providers to make sure you always have a good place to eat, and if needs be, we’ll organise a hearty pack lunch to keep you going.
- We are big foodies here at Macdermotts and we’re always checking out new restaurants and different ways to explore the food culture, we’ll advise on a fave restaurants though if you have read about anywhere in particular do let us know and we’ll do our best to make sure they are included in your trip.
Example Itineraries
Some examples of our favourite trips that we’ve organised over the years: