Maria Florence Perez
09/04/2021 6:00 AM
Clarín.com
Gourmet
Updated 09/04/2021 6:00 AM
“This is
the story of the friendship of two who launched themselves
when the old school said that restaurants had to be pretentious and that their idea was not going to work.
Also, how a street was put together
that we feel like creators ”, summarizes
Pedro Peña
with the same ease with which he synthesized flavors, aesthetics and ideas in the concept of each place that he opened together with
Germán Sitz
since 2014.
The story of
"the hipsters who opened the fashion grill"
-as they were cataloged until just a few years ago- starts at Hernán Gipponi's Tipula restaurant.
The enthusiasm of the first experiences in a kitchen, the youth and the exile - Pedro is from Colombia and Germán from La Pampa - were the bases of the bond that became
one of the most prolific societies in the gastronomic field.
Peña and Sitz in La carnicería.
Photo: Fernando de la Orden.
Were still sub-30 when decided be
freeing butchery (Thames 2317) posed unusual formula for the time.
They borrowed money from Fanny, Germán's grandmother, and they
bet a small place on Thames street
, canchero but unpretentious and
with a solid basic idea: to renew the
Argentine
grill
.
The trigger was to think what a foreigner who comes to these latitudes expects to taste the famous Argentine meat: “
We did things that had not been done
.
For example, present a giant bone-in steak to make it more eye-catching.
We put a billboard with hanging cattle that was super strong.
The architect told us that it wouldn't work and we insisted ”, says Pedro.
This is how you eat at La Carnicería.
“At that time, places like Don Julio had not yet evolved to what they are now.
We were in a trance between the old and the new and that benefited us
”, explains Germán, who before inaugurating, began with his partner a procession that took them from Santa Fe to learn how to make sausages to a refrigerator in Malvinas Argentinas to train in the art of shelling a cow.
"
It was a huge piletazo
: we were without money, we owed two kidneys because we had to return the money we had borrowed, we had gotten ourselves with the most emblematic product of Argentina and
the brand had to be a success,
" recalls Pedro.
Fat boy, a place with high visual impact.
That first shot was risky but successful:
La Carnicería
(which has just entered the 50 Best Discovery international list, which brings together the best restaurants from around the world)
was filled from day one
by dint of strategy and arrogance of work. “At one point we were in the New York Times and the place exploded. Yankees came with money with the newspaper clipping, "says Pedro.
Days of 18 hours a day with the only help of two employees
- who by the end of September when their three new projects are in operation will become 80 - cemented the beginning of a society in which, after some initial encounters, each one found their role.
Pedro, as the creative one and "The Russian" (as his partner nicknames him), as the administrator who allows to sustain and realize those ideas.
Then came
Chori (Thames 1653), the cool choripanería that already has three franchises and is opening a fourth in Madrid;
Fat boy (Thames 1810) that in May will disembark in Miami and the Juan Pedro Caballero taqueria and churreria (Thames 1719),
all on the street that was designated by the international publication Time out as
one of the coolest in the world.
-All your proposals are very different but they have a disruptive imprint in common: how do you summarize the identity of what you do?
PP: We make places speak for themselves.
It doesn't matter if this or that person cooks.
It is not just giving good food, that is taken for granted.
All our projects have a previous work and a reason for being that makes them work.
We work a lot on the image of restaurants.
We want to do things with content.
We live that people want to invite that person they met to this new little place that they opened.
Fewer and fewer people prefer a great hotel or a great restaurant.
-Why of all your brands choose Niño Gordo to set foot outside the country?
GS: Actually this year we opened a store outside of Argentina.
We set up, set up and opened Café de Nadie in Mexico City, but in that case the operation is not our responsibility, we are minority partners.
This is how you eat at Niño Gordo.
PP: Fat Kid is our strongest brand and America is the number one market to target.
We invented a concept that is Asian cuisine with Argentine products.
The Thames venue is so eye-catching with all its oriental clichés that it is still a bomb.
We thought it for Instagram.
We wanted everyone who came in to upload a photo.
It was starting and having whole weeks reserved.
GS: We have been planning to go to Miami for two years and we want to open in May next year, in Wynwood (N. de la R: a neighborhood with a bohemian stamp, renowned for its street art works).
It is a much bigger investment than we are used to.
Surely part of the team will go there too, we want it to be a faithful copy of the Buenos Aires venue.
- How much does the price-quality ratio influence the success of your proposals?
GS: In gastronomy it is key.
For this reason, they exploit places like Sarkis (N. de la R .: traditional still life of Middle Eastern food) that recontracts you with the food you pay for.
We make structures to the limit.
I am the grill man from La Carnicería.
We have the right teams and we prioritize the direct relationship with the suppliers to be able to bring the client an honest price.
The taqueria and churreria Juan Pedro Caballero.
PP: Something very important is that we make reservations in two shifts from 20 to 22:15 and from 22:30 to closing.
Because we have small places and we do not want to charge a mud for coming to eat.
So we need the five or six hours of service to be profitable.
Today it is important that the Argentine understand what is usual for foreigners.
-Why did they always bet on Thames Street?
GS -When we opened La Carnicería there was only Las pizarras.
This area was very different, it was not Borges who would be like our rival, and where there was already a lot of movement.
The tourists all went there.
We are good friends with the guys from 3 Monkeys who push together to do more things in Thames.
And it's great because in a street where there is a restaurant there are far fewer people than where there are ten.
PP -We put a lot of fun in it and we feel like Thames makers.
In addition, we have grown here because it is more comfortable to have your places within a few blocks than in different areas of the city.
Chori, on Thames Street.
-For the first time you are going to open a store in Puerto Madero, are you going to continue operating in the same price segment?
GS: Yes, in El Dorado we want to target the same segment more or less what is a place setting between 2,500 and 2,800 pesos.
PP: It's going to be a grill and barbecued rice.
The type of product is going to vary a bit because the context demands it.
For example, we are going to have caviar, truffle.
It is the first project we do outside of the public that we already know, so it is more risky for us.
-What can you anticipate about Paquito, the new bet on Thames, and Delta, in Rosario?
PP: Paquito is my most personal project.
The concept goes through tapas and wines.
We want to revalidate something classic and deeply rooted in Argentines.
We will have an underground cellar with lockers for rent.
Winemakers like Alejandro Vigil are going to curate.
We want wineries to take out those special barrels that they make to try something and sell it at good prices.
Peña y Sitz, on the facade of their first store.
Photo: Fernando de la Orden.
GS: Delta will be on the 15th floor of the Rosario Puerto Norte hotel.
It has an impressive view, we are going to make river food, not only from the Paraná, but also from the Mississippi, from the Mekong in Southeast Asia, to be able to mix flavors.
And the cocktail bar will be in charge of Tato Giovannoni.
-Who are the chefs who believe that they are aligned with the concept of gastronomy that you have?
GS: I go out little but I really like what they do in the Great Dabbang (Scalabrini Ortiz 1543).
PP: I recently went to Anafe (Virrey Avilés 3216) and it seemed incredible to me.
Orei (Echeverría 1677) with Roy Asato's ramen seems to me a goal from midfield.
It closes everywhere, with a small investment it explodes every day.
I feel like we are getting old.
It is very hard and very strong for us because we were the forerunners of many things.
There are many young boys who break it and who are preparing great food.
We believe a lot in the chef who undertakes and sets up his premises so that people become part of it.
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