Buenos Aires Restaurant - Bar - Bakery — Restaurant in Shawnee

Downtown Shawnee has really grown over the past few years, so I was excited when I heard that a new restaurant was going in next door to my favorite brewery (Servaes Brewing Co). I had high hopes of saving on Door Dash deliveries by running next door to pick up food to enjoy with my beer. But after a recent series of events, I am afraid that will not be the case.

One afternoon, my husband and I went over there for a snack (we didn't really want/need a full meal). The decor is popping - very busy and a lot to look at. I was thrown a little off by the open table of desserts (do some of these need to be refrigerated?), but they looked amazing.

We first started with a hot tea. I don't know what I expected for $4, but a tea bag and hot water wasn't exactly it (I later looked up the tea, and I could order a whole box of 25 bags for $4.29. 🤷‍♀️)

I'm vegan, so I asked the server if there were any options, and she suggested a bean soup. It was a chilly day, so that sounded perfect. My husband opted for an empanada, supposedly voted (by whom?) the best in the U.S. - I couldn't find record of that accolade anywhere. He enjoyed it, but it wasn't a lot for $4.50 - it didn't even come with any sauce for dipping. It reminded me of when I warm up my girls' frozen burritos in an air fryer. It just didn't taste as fresh as "homemade," like it was frozen and reheated.

My soup - which was an off-menu item - was delicious. In fact, I would have given the "food" category 5 stars, if the soup didn't cost $18! That didn't come with any bread - it was just a bowl of really expensive beans and water! Since it wasn't on the menu, I wasn't aware that it was that much, but maybe shame on me for not asking.

After finishing our food, we sat there for a good 10 minutes. No one came by (we saw our server leave during our visit, with no mention of who would be taking her place). Finally, we told one of the other people walking around that we were ready for our check - it turns out that you have to go to the counter to pay.

Another thing that seemed odd was the "kitchen" - I'm not sure if you can call it that. It's out in the open. I didn't get a good look - I just saw it on my way to the bathroom (since it's right outside). But I'm sure they take proper measures to keep things sanitary - I just point it out because it is a configuration I'm not familiar with.

After that visit, I started following Buenos Aires on Facebook to keep up with the event schedule. Their Facebook page probably falls outside of the realm of a Google review, but I felt like there were a few noteworthy things. And if you've read this far, I applaud you!

First, the posts are very confusing. The times change all of the time. I can't figure out when they're open, when it's tea time, when it's tango. Additionally, there are mixed messages about reservations required vs. walk-ins allowed (we were a walk-in when we went). There were only 2 or 3 other tables there when we came in - maybe during a busier time, they prefer/recommend reservations.

But the thing that really got me was that I noticed a lot of pictures on posts that looked too commercial. I saw that some had some IG handles (not belonging to them) or copyright watermarks. I did some Google image searches, and there were hits on every single one. And none of them were from the restaurant.

The thing that motivated me to write this review happened today - I asked on one of the posts with these pictures if they were really from the restaurant. I want to know that if I order a dish, that it is going to look like the picture as promised (or something close). I would rather see their pictures instead of something they pulled off of a Pinterest board.

Instead of responding to my innocent inquiry, they blocked me from their Facebook page. They'll probably try to block this review or have it removed as well.

The food was overpriced, but that's not the reason for my 1-star. I prefer to give my money to small businesses, but only if they have integrity. They feel...

tl;dr Very authentic and tasty, great for hanging out too

I stopped in for lunch after hearing that Claudia was transitioning from Mom's Empanadas to a full-blown restaurant, and had a truly delightful experience. The ambiance was relaxed and designed to invite visiting and chatting, much like the culture of the restaurant's namesake. I sampled several empanadas that were all were very flavorful with a perfect savory pastry dough, however it was the milanesa napolitana that really did me in. The meat was soft but not chewy, the breading crispy but in no way overly so, and the sauce was perfectly seasoned to go along with the cheese and onions on top. The Spanish potatoes were a fairly standard side (though not unwelcome), but served as the perfect base upon which to demonstrate the depth of flavor and aromatic essence that traditional chimichurri brings. If you're a first-time visitor to the restaurant, the milanesa napolitana is the perfect dish to see what the restaurant has to offer, and as a gateway into Argentine cuisine in general.

For context, I lived in Buenos Aires for a couple years as a young man, and spent most of my time talking and visiting with people in their homes. Because of the warmth and hospitality of the Argentine people, most times I was invited to eat with the family I was visiting. Rarely did I eat at restaurants while I was there, so my experience with Argentine cuisine was one of family recipes and traditional comfort foods. During that time I was steeped in the language and culture of the people, and ever since it's felt like a second home to me. I've tried to rediscover that experience here in the states but I've found most times restaurants adjust recipes to cater to American palettes, or are aiming for such an upscale dining experience that - while very good - are far removed from what the average person eats day-to-day in Argentina (this was my experience at nearby Piropos). All this exposition is to help you understand my full meaning when I say: while eating, if I closed my eyes, I was back in Buenos Aires sitting at a dining table eating food lovingly prepared by the family matriarch in a home kitchen.

The other part of what made my experience feel so authentic was the ambiance and design of the restaurant. Many restaurants today have evolved to suit the fast-paced way of life that has become the norm in America, focusing on quick service times and incorporating maximum efficiency into our dining experience. The Argentine way, however, is one of relaxed ease and enjoyment, focusing on good food, good drinks, good company, and enjoying life. Decorations are homey and eclectic, invoking Argentina's Spanish-Italian dual heritage. Guests are welcome to look around, socialize, and linger if they like, making it feel somewhere between a restaurant and a lounge.

I highly recommend the culinary and cultural sampling offered here, and I'll be coming back regularly myself for other Argentine comfort foods I've gone far too...

Not sure what is going on with this restaurant but I would be very careful trusting all of the reviews as something seems extremely odd. I don’t normally take the time to review restaurants but this was a real let down. I had heard about this when it opened and knew people that had enthusiastic comments about their visit, so it was on my list for some time before we made it out. Unfortunately it wasn’t meant to be. Not sure what other people are eating here to come up with 5 stars, but not knowing where to start and the server suggested this was very popular, so I ordered the Taste of Argentina for $39. It came with 3 plates. The first plate had an empanada that was cold inside, a cold gas station style half sandwich (?), a scoop of potato salad, a barely dressed salad, and a red pepper. This was edible (and I was hungry) but not a strong start. The next plate was even more confusing, to contain an onion and green olive slice of pizza, and piece of a chorizo sandwich, and two very sad borderline inedible Milanese pieces covered in cheese. This was followed by two decent if not great desserts, which I doubt were baked at this restaurant, let alone any dessert baking had gone on that day, as they suggest daily baking in their marketing. The chorizo sandwich was probably the best out of these items, though the bar was pretty low and I was hungry. This specialty sandwich can be purchased for $33, which one of our party ordered, which also seems pretty expensive for what they got. I don’t know if anyone would believe me if I try to articulate how low quality / reheated seeming everything was, I don’t know that I believe it either, it’s nothing like anything I’ve ever experienced at any establishment, let alone at this price point.

The service was strange, I don’t want to focus on that too much as I think the server did his best in the situation, it just reflects poorly on management. We had (not needed, clearly) reservations and when we arrived there were two other active tables (and one table in the process of leaving). Despite arriving at 6:20p, no other guests arrived after us. It was a full 30+ minutes before the server was ready to take our orders, as he was with the two other tables. But he was apologetic and we weren’t in a hurry, and everything more or less sped up after that.

The atmosphere was also unusual. A fairly large space for the volume of customers, made the server have to walk a lot more than necessary. Just like you stepped into a junk store with some chairs and tables thrown in, and a makeshift bar area. We didn’t order anything from the bar though no one was running it, so I’m not sure what we would have gotten if we did.

It pains me to write a review like this, but sorry to say we won’t be returning and...