Food

Hikers and climbers stock up on supplies at El Super (Lago del Desierto 248), El Gringuito (Cerro Solo 108), and Stella Maris (Avenida San Martín 36). For its size, though, El Chaltén [1] offers a fine and improving restaurant selection.

La Chocolatería (Lago del Desierto 105, tel. 02962/49-3008) is more than it sounds—the desserts are good enough, but the breakfasts and pizzas are also excellent, and the Bailey’s-spiked hot chocolate is comforting on a cold night.

La Senyera del Torre (Lago del Desierto 240, tel. 02962/49-3063) prepares Argentine comfort food such as the locro (a hearty stew) and excellent desserts.

Domo Blanco (Avenida Güemes 71, tel. 02962/49-3036) serves exceptional ice cream, with local ingredients such as raspberries and strawberries, and will also deliver to your hotel.

Bocatto (Avenida San Martín s/n) makes the best takeaway empanadas, in several varieties, all a little larger than the Argentine standard. Cruel (San Martín 84, tel. 02962/49-3167) is best for a quick sandwich. New in late 2008, Rincón del Sur (Lago del Desierto 265) is Chaltén’s first wine bar, with sandwiches and platters of cheeses, cold cuts, and smoked Patagonian meats—not to mention great cycling advice.

In new quarters, La Tapera (Antonio Rojo 76, tel. 02962/49-3138, lunch and dinner daily) is an exceptionally friendly restaurant–tapas bar with a small but excellent menu of fixed-price dinners (US$13) that includes soup and a choice among four entrées—one of the best values in town.

Del Bosque (San Martín 591) is a combination teahouse and ice cream parlor. La Cervecería (San Martín 320, tel. 02962/49-3109, lunch and dinner daily) is a pizza pub with its own microbrew beer (US$2 per pint); it also prepares an outstanding locro (US$5.50), a meal-in-itself northwestern Argentine stew that’s ideal for a cool Chaltén evening.

Open in summer only, Ruca Mahuida (Lionel Terray 55, tel. 02962/49-3018, lunch and dinner daily) is one of Chaltén’s most imaginative eateries—try the lamb ravioli in mint sauce (US$12)—with improved service. With only four (big) tables, it’s open for lunch but most people come at dinnertime after their hikes. There are fine appetizers in the US$5–7 range, but most entrées cost nearly US$20 and up.

Lamb is the specialty at La Casita (San Martín 430, tel. 02962/49-3042, lunch and dinner daily), which otherwise serves a standard Argentine menu—beef, pizza, pasta, and the like. Its major downside is the cramped and tobacco-heavy atmosphere.

In midsummer it can be hard to get a table at popular Pizzería Patagonicus (Güemes 57, tel. 02962/49-3025, lunch and dinner daily), one of few Argentine eateries to have lamb on the pizza menu; the decor, with natural wood and mountaineering photos, embodies Chaltén’s evolving style.

Pangaea (Lago del Desierto 330, tel. 02962/49-3084) has decent pizza and a really excellent wine list.

Reservations are advisable for Fuegia (San Martín 342, tel. 02962/49-3019, lunch and dinner daily), Albergue Patagonia’s bistro-style restaurant, though it’s expanded to accommodate demand for dishes like rack of lamb and Patagonian trout (US$15).

Likewise, plan ahead for the unpretentious Estepa (Cerro Solo 86, tel. 02962/49-3069, lunch and dinner daily), a snug, tobacco-free, six-booth place with views of Fitz Roy. Offering home-style cooking at a high level, its enduring specialty is the cordero estepa (US$16) lamb with calafate sauce, but there are also pizzas and empanadas, with most other entrées in the US$8–15 range.

Also tobacco-free, at the north end of town, tiny El Muro (San Martín 912, tel. 02962/49-3248, lunch and dinner daily) is a bistro-style restaurant where the kitchen pays minute attention to diners’ tastes, but the service can be distracted when it gets busy. Dishes such as lamb loin with a fresh raspberry-and-cherry sauce (US$15), though, are well worth minor inconveniences. Special mention goes to the light-crusted empanadas, including lamb and beef.