Pancakes, and Bagels, and Syrup, oh my!

AMARANTA COFFEE & PASTRY SHOP
WHERE? Junin 1559 (Recoleta)
WHEN? Tues-Sun 8am-8pm (bruch til 2 Sat&Sun)
COST? Fixed brunch around 25 pesos, lunch menu around 20-35 pesos
If you made it to my first post, you know that torta means both dyke and cake. This connection, and the fact that I am equally fond of both of these things, will justify why I will be occasionally writing about food, and not about lesbians at all. And if you had discovered the jackpot of US-American style breakfast in Buenos Aires, you´d think it was worth writing home about, too.

Amaranta is a small, homey joint with a welcoming decor owned by a friendly Bolivian guy who did a breakfast-inspiring stint in the States, which turned out to be a winning combo for BsAs expats like myself. Not only does Amaranta serve the almost impossible-to-find delicacies of waffles, french toast, pancakes, bagels and even eggs benedict and florentine, they do it well. And they do it cheap. When you order from their super cheap fixed brunch menu on Saturday or Sunday, you won´t only get a steal of a deal with coffee and fresh orange juice included with your 25-peso eggs or carbolicious breakfast item, but your french toast will be made with thick wheaty slabs of homemade bread (with maple syrup!), your omelet will be stuffed with ham, cheese and even spinach, and your fresh-out-of-the-oven bagel could even be slathered with the oh-so-rare peanut butter!

Expect your server to be a bit overbooked on a busy Sunday, but casually friendly and probably easy on the eyes. Don´t expect your maple syrup and peanut butter to be top-notch quality (just be grateful you have it at all!) or that English is everyone´s first or even second language here. Just because the chalkboard on the wall says ¨Buffalo Wings¨ doesn´t mean shouting ´I want my guacamole on the side´ over and over again at your server is going to get you anywhere. In other words, don´t be an asshole like the rest of the English-speakers that flock to this joint - bring a phrasebook if you really feel that words like ´tostada francesa´ are going to be too difficult for you to crack.

A die-hard breakfast fan myself, I have yet to give their lunch items a try, though their blog reveals hamburgers, nachos, quesadillas and hard-to-find drinks like smoothies and iced tea which all look pretty f*cking delish if you ask me. And if for some reason you haven´t gotten enough of the taste of home for 30 pesos at this place, order sesame, everything, onion, blueberry and plain bagels or their dense homemade scones to go for an extra 3 pesos a pop. Queercentric or not, Amaranta has this dyke expat´s heart.