The fire is lit first thing in the morning at Diputació 239, where chef Gastón Riveira has landed with La Cabrera, after two decades conquering Argentine palates. “At 9 a.m. we light the grill, using half charcoal and half firewood, and a while later we cover it with aluminum foil to burn it,” keeping it that way for two and a half hours. A whole ritual at the service of the philosophy of this creative, “to pay tribute to meat and the culinary culture of the Buenos Aires grill”. This, and the fact that the client ate well and enjoyed close treatment and a relaxed atmosphere, are part of the -apparently simple- recipe for success that has led Riveira to become one of the benchmarks of Argentine cuisine worldwide.
This formula has accompanied him since 2002, when he opened his first location in the emblematic Buenos Aires neighborhood of Palermo, from one of whose most famous streets the restaurant took its name, a “baroque neighborhood bistro, which combines innovation with a warm and familiar atmosphere. ”, and which immediately became a classic in the Argentine capital. Distinguished in 2018 as the ‘Best Grill in the City of Buenos Aires’ and as the ‘Best Restaurant’, La Cabrera also managed to be among Latin America’s 50 Best Restaurants for four consecutive years, from 2013 to 2016, and more recently, in the year 2021.
It currently has 23 locations in nine countries as diverse as the US, the Philippines or Mexico, to all of which he has brought his savoir-faire of the Argentine grill. With the same ambition, he has opened his premises in Barcelona and Madrid (Velázquez, 61), after he landed in Spain in 2021 with his first location in Malaga. The one in l’Eixample, which opens from Monday to Sunday at noon and night, is the one with the largest capacity, with a 300m2 capacity for 130 diners, an open kitchen and two terraces, one on the street and the other inside.
This landing in Barcelona occurs at a time of absolute trend in working with grilled products and a growing devotion to grilling. And at La Cabrera, of course, they dominate it: a fixed grill and high heat are used, keeping the meat constantly in motion in order to seal it quickly. In this way, the juices are encapsulated inside and an exterior ‘crunchiness’ is achieved that characterizes it. In addition, they cause all the fat in the meat to go down into the grill and rise as smoke, leaving the meat with smoky undertones.
On the menu of the local Diputació you can choose between the main Argentine cuts, top loin/steak eye -the chef’s favorite, for its varied flavors-, low tenderloin/sausage steak or the classic chorizo ??de rueda. The proposal also includes other classics such as the entraña, the vacuum steak or the loin (cow sirloin), as well as cuts such as the Wagyu top loin or matured low loin. For the boneless cuts, Argentine Angus products are imported and for the other cuts, local products.
In this temple of meat, how could it be otherwise, the issue of cooking is crucial and is treated with exquisite precision. Gastón, in favor of having the client’s preference, offers the client a map upon arrival that shows him the different cooking points so that he can choose according to his taste. A classic that has accompanied La Cabrera on its international adventure is incorporating the best local gastronomy products or dishes into each new menu.
In the case of the Barcelona venue, the presence of Iberian hams and delicacies from the sea such as prawns, prawns or octopus, carefully cooked on the grill, stands out. Also notable are the tasty sauces that accompany the meats: chimuchurri, emulsified criolla, persillade or Provençal sauce, as well as other hot and cold garnishes made with Riveira cooking techniques such as old mustard foam, gazpacho or beetroot hummus and pesto tomato. In short, an authentic festival of aromas and flavors with which the diner will embark for a few hours on a sensory journey to Buenos Aires.
