Guest house in Buenos Aires
There is a guest house, only one block from my apartment, that came to my attention when a tango visitor from the UK rented a room. I met the owners Juan Reartes (an architect) and his wife Josefina who speak English. Here is a photo tour of their 110-year-old house that Juan redesigned. The central milonga venues are within walking distance: Club Gricel (9 blocks), Centro Region Leonesa (14 blocks), Obelisco Tango (11 blocks), La Nacional (15), Casa de Galicia (15), and El Beso (16).
Take my video tour of the house.
Juan Reartes, owner and manager
You don’t have to go far from the house to buy food or dine out. There are many options within three blocks.
I buy all my fruits and vegetables from Elsa La Fuente and Lidia Gutierrez at Av. Independencia 2429. Open from 9:30am to 9:30pm, Monday through Saturday. Monica is the grocery store cashier in the afternoon who speaks perfect English if you need help.
Monica, Elsa La Fuente, and Lidia Gutierrez
Ezekiel and his brother Martin own the local health food shop at Alberti 582 (2 blocks from the house) with hundreds of products including beans, grains, nuts, seeds, tofu, teas, and spices, and natural personal care products. The shop is open from 8:00am to 9:00pm, Monday-Saturday. Ezekiel, who speaks English, is in charge from 3:00-9:00pm, and all day on Monday.
There is a shop around the corner on Matheu selling freshly baked media lunas every morning.
The local ice cream shop Castellon is two blocks from the house on Av. Independencia and Matheu with a long list of delicious flavors.
One of the city’s notable bars–Bar de Cao— is right around the corner at Av. Independencia 2400 for lunch, coffee, and dinner.
You can drop off clothes in the morning with Sun, the owner from China, and pick them up in the evening at the laundry in the next block on Chile. It’s 60 pesos for washing/drying a load of clothes — about $4.
Empanadas, spaghetti, ravioli, salsas, etc. are homemade from the kitchen at Ali’s on Av. Independencia and Pichincha.
When your tango shoes need repairing, Enzo is the expert in the neighborhood. He’s added rubber soles, heel tips, and repaired many pairs of shoes for me. His shop is just a few doors down from La Campina Dietetica on Alberti.
And best of all, you can live like a porteno at Juan’s house.
