Palermo Viejo y BAR 6

Although it's summertime in Buenos Aires, it had been raining for the last few days and there was even a sudden rainstorm on Saturday afternoon that left many, including ourselves, stranded without umbrellas and reluctant to face the flooded streets.

Monday was the first clear day so I took my sister and everyone else to Palermo Viejo - Buenos Aires' trendy neighborhood. We set off at noon and headed straight to bar6 for some brunch. It was packed when we arrived and we were lucky to snag one of last big tables in the back area, near the kitchen and overlooking the terrace with the large parrilla (grill).

bar6 was one of the first places that opened in Palermo Viejo in the very beginning before it became the trendy area it is now and a main stop for tourists. The place has become a bit shabby over the years but despite that, it's still very popular with locals and tourists as it is open everyday (except on holidays) from 8:00 a.m. till late. The menu is simple with breakfasts served till noon, a limited lunch and dinner menu and a cocktail and drinks list several pages long. DJ's play lounge music in the evenings when the younger crowd hang out. During the day, the clientele is a mix of tourists and locals with children and Palermo artist-types.

We ordered quickly - a wok dish (what a stir-fry is called in Buenos Aires) of chicken, vegetables and short-grain rice for me, penne pasta with tomato sauce for J, salmon and a green salad for my sister, the mollejas starter plus a bife con pure (steak and mash) for C and the daily set lunch of zucchini soup followed by steak and eggs with mash for A. Portions are quite big and had we known this, we would have shared a few mains between us but somehow, we finished what we ordered anyway. The food is nothing special and the best deal, price and flavor-wise was the set lunch of either a starter and a main or a main and dessert. We finished off with excellent Segafredo espressos, a large slice of chocolate cake with Mascarpone ice cream and lots of spoons.

Although it was drizzling, we decided to walk off our large lunch by exploring the numerous boutiques. Notable newcomers are Jackie Smith for locally-designed leather bags including stylish laptop cases and a branch of Alvear's Cappio for non-label renditions of designer handbags. My sister lucked out with a Prada-style ruched tote at Cappio plus some cool items from Humawaca which had a pile of items marked down 50%. After a few hours of retail therapy, we hopped on a taxi and headed back home to Recoleta.