Yerba mate leaves steeped in a hollow gourd and sipped through a metal straw (bombilla). Argentina's daily ritual: an infusion drunk hot or cold, shared in a circle, the original social caffeinated beverage.
Yerba mate is indigenous to the Guarani people of the Parana basin in pre-Columbian times. Jesuit missions cultivated it commercially in the 1600s in northeast Argentina. Today the average Argentine drinks 6.5 kg of yerba mate a year, more than any other country; the ritual remains intact (the cebador prepares and passes the gourd around the circle).
4 editor picks for Mate in Buenos Aires, ranked by editorial score. All Buenos Aires signature dishes · Mate across every city.
Las Violetas ★ 4.5
almagro · Avenida Rivadavia 3899, C1204 Buenos Aires
Voted best Cafe Notable in Buenos Aires, opened 21 September 1884 at Rivadavia and Medrano. Belle-epoque stained glass, Italian marble, legendary merienda.
Gran Cafe Tortoni ★ 4.4
microcentro · Avenida de Mayo 825, C1084 Buenos Aires
The oldest cafe in Buenos Aires, founded 1858 and on Avenida de Mayo since 1880. Cafe Notable, a Site of Cultural Interest; Borges and Gardel were regulars.
La Biela ★ 4.2
recoleta · Avenida Presidente Manuel Quintana 600, C1014 Buenos Aires
Cafe Notable opposite Recoleta Cemetery, on Quintana and Junin since 1850. Renamed La Biela in the 1950s for its racing-driver clientele; Borges wrote here.
Cafe de los Angelitos ★ 4.1
microcentro · Avenida Rivadavia 2100, C1034 Buenos Aires
Cafe Notable at Rivadavia and Rincon, opened 1890 and rebuilt in 2007 after demolition. Gardel and Pugliese were regulars; upstairs tango show runs nightly.