***GRINGA IS NOW CLOSED***
Brunch has come and it’s here to stay. This is the next new trend to hit Rio de la Plata. For those who are traveling to Buenos Aires for a short period of time, in the need to strategically plan all restaurant ventures to make each one count, brunch is not for you. Instead, I’d recommend it to all the rest of you expats, perma-tourists, Study Abroad students, multiple tourist visa runners if you are looking for something different yet familiar. Gringa, a recently opened restaurant in Palermo Hollywood, offers just that – a comfortable place with a very proverbial brunch menu.
This airy restaurant, nestled on the sunny corner of Dorrego and Costa Rica, looks like a converted loft-type PH with about 10 tables in the main room, a nice seating area on the sidewalk, and a lovely little table set in an interior patio garden. The menu includes the typical cast of characters like salads and sandwiches, but also offers a brunch menu with eggs, bacon, french toast and pancakes.
Maybe this is my inner fatbutt talking, but there should be a rule that you are not allowed to add something in the title of the dish if it isn’t the major component. For example, a dish call “French Toast AND Bacon” should have more than two sorry strips of bacon. A bit misleading, don’t you think? The french toast, made with a thick sesame brioche-like bread, was served with REAL maple syrup… by real, I mean real to Argentine standards, but fake to US. Dear Aunt Jemima, I love you.
You put the word “organic” infront of something, and it’s instantly more sophisticated. I had an issue with the eggs benedict, I think they missed the hollandaise sauce because this was basically two ORGANIC poached eggs on top of crusty country toast. The egg, perfectly poached, was served with a side of greens drizzled with a strange tabasco-like oil that could have been left off. Good, but not eggs benedict without the hollandaise.* The brunch special is very affordable, at AR$25 it includes brunch + coffee or tea.
Finally, had to test the bagel… maybe one of these days I’ll find THE ONE?! Sadly, my quest continues and I have found yet another “bagel in quotation marks” aka bread-with-a-hole.
Overall verdict? Do-able. I’ll definitely be back try different things on the menu, sit for hours in the nice atmosphere and take advantage of the strong Wi-Fi connection.
*I’ve been back since and the hollandaise was included.
Finn Juhan says
Aunt Jemima is nothing but flavourings, e-codes and artificially coloured sticky stuff. Itś good, but nothing to do with maple syrup.
Eoin says
Went by on sat and it’s either closed or they’re doing renevation….for not it’s closed.
forkyou says
I think it might be closed now…
florencia says
Yes! It’s closed now! I used to work there :(
yasmine says
i’ve had the blueberry pancakes which were delicious and loaded with fresh berries. only thing was they came with honey poured on top so the next time i got them with just butter. an the coffee, yummy in a huge mug.
carly says
I love Gringa! It’s my new brunch stop in BA. You forgot to mention that any brunch order comes with a free coffee or tea, which is pretty great in this expensive city! Viva la brunch!
razalba says
I was so focused on how they used the quotation marks “incluye café o té” that I failed to actually order the café o té… the moza also failed to let me know that I forgot to ask.
iheartbsas says
Thinks looks like a bit of alright to me! Damn those pancakes with pig look goooooood!!
razalba says
i love pig for breakfast, especially on shabbat morning after shul.
Priscila says
I’ll definitely have to try those blueberry pancakes!!