Mishiguene Fayer, Crazy Fire two sister restaurants making crazy-good Jewish food with Argentinian flair. Fayer, the more casual of the two spots, truly makes fine use of its namesake fire when cooking and even more happily; it is open for lunch! What most drew me to this restaurant was the New York Times article and the story it told of the creative individuals behind this restaurant and how they came to be serving out of this world Jewish food in Buenos Aires, Argentina. I am so happy that my wife and I were able to make it in for lunch. We weren’t sure if we were up for a big meal before spending the next 24 hours traveling home to Maine, but I am so glad we did! Truly excellent food, served in an elegant environment, without any pretense. So very good!
We started with the beet hummus. Our Spanish being limited, our waitress kindly made sure we did not miss it. So fluffy, yet rich, full of sweetness and beautiful color from the beets! And the Arabian flatbreads served warm and soft, were so pillowy that they would be perfect for napping if they weren’t just so good to eat! Especially with the beet hummus! Oh, and the pickles, did I mention the pickles to start?! How could I forget?! They were delightful! I love pickles, and house-made ones are a great way to begin any meal. Then there was the pastrami: full-sized, brined, and spiced on the bone BRISKET!!! The process of preparing it takes 12 days, and it really shows. If G-d were to ask his Bubbie to make him a brisket, I’m pretty sure it would come out a bit like this. It can’t get any better! Full of spice and smoke yet still so tender and moist!! How could it possibly be moist?! Sliced from the bone, thick or thin, with the grain or against, it was one tender morsel after another! So good!!!
Despite being in Argentina, we did in fact have some sides to go with our beautiful meat. The waitress again helped us immensely by suggesting we order a combination of small plates: baba ganoush, cole slaw with raisins, tabouli with tzatziki, a delightful bean salad, and another featuring dill, and more beautifully pickled vegetables. They were all so good; they had to be in order to compete with the pastrami, and compete they did! Just so many good flavors, textures, color! What a meal!!
Arabian Bread and Pickles
So Pillowy
Beet Hummus!
Stone for keeping bread warm
Tabouli with tzazki and picked veggies
Baba Ganoush
Dill salad
Bean salad, and cole slaw
The Pastrami
Demolition in progress, so juicy and tender!