Pick Up The Fork

A Serious Eater's Guide to Buenos Aires and Beyond

Picking Up the Fork, Again

Posted on 38 Comments

*UPDATE 2025* Thanks to your outpouring of encouraging support about my return to writing! You’ve truly warmed my cold, black heart (awww). I’ll be posting mostly on Substack now, so if you’d like to be on the pulse about what I’m babbling about, you can subscribe to my newsletter here.

Hola! It’s been a while. Okay, nearly three years to be exact. And before that? Like five years. But who’s counting?

Recently, I wrote an article for SAVEUR Magazine about the essential dishes of Buenos Aires and where to eat them. Sounds straightforward, right? Wrong. Writing these kinds of pieces is a labyrinth of late-night second-guessing and existential crises… classic Libra behavior (decision-making isn’t our strength). I started with 36 dishes (too many), whittled it down to 18 (still too many), and finally agonized my way to 12 (too few). Then came the ultimate challenge: Choosing just one restaurant recommendation per dish. Naturally, I begged my editor for more space. His response? “No.”

So where was I going to write about the 14 other essential dishes in Buenos Aires I couldn’t mention in the article? Where could I elaborate on the city’s great empanada shops, my favorite pizza spots, or the often-overlooked parrillas I think deserve more love? And what about all the dishes that didn’t make the list but still deserve to be shared and explored?

Cue my downward spiral into the frustrating reality of food media: shrinking opportunities, influencers dominating the space, and the decline of thoughtful storytelling—because, let’s be honest, who even reads anymore? I have no shortage of content or ideas, but there’s only so much Buenos Aires coverage paying mainstream outlets are willing to accept from freelancers.

Then it hit me: I have a blog! Or, well… I had one. Pick Up the Fork has been gathering dust for years, so what better time than now to revive it?

Or maybe that’s a terrible idea. Should I blog? Start a newsletter? Dive into the Substack world? Try condensing my chaotic thoughts into an even more chaotic Instagram reel? These are the questions that keep me up at night (alongside “What’s the best restaurant in Buenos Aires?”).

So, instead of overthinking myself into oblivion, I’m starting here. Back to the blog I launched in 2009, when the only person I thought would read it was my mom. It’s VERY out of date, probably hard to navigate, and my aesthetic screams 2014 food blogger. But you know what? I’ve been paying for this web hosting for over 15 years, and for better or worse, I’m putting it to use.

Because here’s what I still believe: Beyond TikTok trends and viral videos, there are still people like you— although a very specific niche—who actually care about good old-fashioned, written word Argentina food content. So, I’m here to share stories, lists, and musings, just like I did when this blog first began.

Is this a promise to write regularly? Not exactly. But it is my intention—and a 2025 resolution I’ll try to stick to. And please, if you’ve got useful advice—whether it’s about blogging, newsletters, or how to monetize this labor of love—feel free to share. Unless it’s discouraging or patronizing. In that case, kindly keep it to yourself.

Thanks for sticking with me. Let’s pick up the fork again… even if, as I’ve matured in my career, I find myself leaning more toward the spoon as my utensil of choice.

*UPDATE* Thanks to your outpouring of encouraging support that truly warmed my cold, black heart (awww), I’ve started a newsletter on Substack, and you can subscribe to it here.

Author: forkyou

EAT IT:

Comments

Comments

  2. With all the junk email I have to sift through daily, I am so giddy to find this one. This year’s holiday theme for me has been nostalgia and your email tentatively threatening to come back is the Luxardo cherry in my old fashioned. Salud! Y buen provecho.

    Reply

  3. Siiiii, Que alegría! Soy de Rosario y viajo a Buenos Aires cada 2 o 3 meses y me encanta seguir tus recomendaciones.🙌🏼 Gracias por volver a este formato, en donde no son 15 segundos de contenido con “una foto por segundo” y una tormenta de información imposible de procesar, si no una inversión de tiempo, el sentarse a leer y conectar con la experiencia de un otro. Gracias por tomar esta iniciativa y por compartir 💖🥂

    Reply

  9. I am so glad that you are back to your roots. As a fan Buenos Aires food scene but a resident of North Carolina it’s great to have your recommendations back. I used your recommendations in the past trips and look forward to being able to do so again with a new crew, 2 daughters and wife.

    Reply

  11. I missed you!

    Some suggestions (addresses and descriptions in Google

    Villa Crespo and Paternal
    Parrilla D’Gustar
    Santa Inés
    Casa Tinta
    Naní

    Almagro:
    Tuy Salceda

    Facultad de Ciencias Económicas:
    Bi Won

    Once:
    La conga

    Reply

  14. Bravo!! Welcome back!
    Us BA foodies needed you.
    No fue lo mismo sin vos!!
    Vamos Allie por muchos años mas!
    We missed you!

    Reply

  15. Thank you for returning to this blog! Pick up the fork is one of my all time favorites. I’ve gotten a great deal of inspiration for my own cooking from your posts.

    Reply

  16. I’ve been following you since about 2013 and have always enjoyed your content. I’ve even searched your website recently for restaurant recommendations! Delighted to have you back Allie.

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  17. This is such good news! I used to read your blog regularly and was very sad when I noticed you didn’t updated any more. I liked particularly your vision, your humour and your sparkle. As you say, with all the streaming, the platforms and the influencers competing for the time of viewers/readers, its very hard to survive in the space. But you deserve to be there, the quality of what you write deserves to be read, and I very happily welcome you back. Lets hope we all have a great 2025!

    Reply

  18. thank you for commming back. your words resonate in me deeply.
    i´m a blogger who gave up her blog for instagram posts.
    i am too enduring times of oblivion : so much to say, so little focus and rush during this time of the year, plus your exactly same feeling, who really reads any more? merry christimas and sorry for my dusty (and most certainly, full of mistakes) english.

    Reply

  25. There is no one who blends passion, solid information and humor together better than Allie. I’m so glad you’re back. I’ve never laughed harder alone and out loud from your classic Night Before Christmas abuelas poem. Hilarious.

    Please more and thank you,

    Alan Hirsch

    Reply

  27. Love to see you back in this format Allie, after all, isn’t BA the city of nostalgia?.

    Also, way too many aesthetic-driven Palermo/Zona-norte ig-only influencers around. The true BA-food lover knows no boundaries.

    Looking forward to your next post!

    Reply

  29. yesssssss!!!!!

    do it do it!

    pick up the spooooooon! version 2.0 of pick up the fork!

    so happy to read this!

    (so many exclamation marks!!!)

    be free and share your story as a blog or wev floats your boat.

    just bring it back 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾

    how can i support?

    much love.

    xx
    mm

    Reply

  30. Glad you are back – I’ve missed you food photos and love of Baires. We are leaving the cold Chicago suburbs for BA on the 25th – our 4th visit.

    Reply

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