New Post Every Wednesday

Restaurant Spotlight: Barcito

Home / Restaurant Spotlight / Restaurant Spotlight: Barcito

Restaurant Spotlight: Barcito

DS_7.10.15

Greetings, Readers!

For a change of pace this Friday, I thought I’d take a look at an amazing restaurant that will be opening soon in DTLA (Downtown Los Angeles for you outsiders).

As much as I love sandwiches, and constantly seek out fantastic ones throughout the world, I do also stop in at regular restaurants. I’m a huge fan of a variety of cultural food styles and I am always looking to try something new in my quest for delicious food.

Here in Los Angeles, the restaurant scene is legit. We have a wide variety of styles and cultures represented in our restaurants, as you’ve seen just from the variety of sandwiches I’ve reviewed on this site.

That’s not stopping restaurateur Andrea Borgen who is ramping up to the opening of her Argentine restaurant Borcito in the revamping of Downtown. I chatted with this veteran of the restaurant industry to find out more about this great new addition to the LA food scene.

She is currently running a Kickstarter campaign to help fund Barcito, which you can find here. Some of the amazing backer gifts include dinners when the restaurant opens all the way up to a private event for you.

And yes, there was also discussion of Argentine sandwiches.

Obviously.

 

The Danger Sandwich: LA is known as a city of great restaurants and a healthy appreciation of all food and food styles, what would you say is the defining characteristic of barcito that will make it stand out against the competition?

Andrea Borgen: Sometimes, I talk about Barcito, and people already have pre-conceived notion of what it’s going to be. Unfortunately (for them), I’m not trying to create the next food trend. What’s hip today, is gone tomorrow, and I hope that my place has a bit more resilience than that.
What I believe, is that Barcito will provide such great value, not only because of the prices (which will be much lower than most of the competition) but also because of the quality of the food and beverage, that people will start to take notice. I hope it’s the kind of place that will become a classic. You go because you know you’re going to get great food, and better service, at a price that’s sustainable. No one’s doing that anymore. And as a person who loves to go out to eat, I think that sucks.
TDS: Have you planned dinners before around pairings with wine or beer? What would create as a delicious tasting pairing of Argentine food and beer? I’m a huge craft beer fan and homebrewer, so beer pairings always appeal to me.
AB: We’re currently in talks with Barrelhouse Brewery in Paso Robles on collaborating on a private label beer – probably something crisp, refreshing (either pilsner/lager/kolsch). But will probably have 3 taps, one private label, one IPA, and something seasonal – so a varied selection, at about $6/beer to choose from.
Our entire menu is going to go great with beer – it’s mostly salty, savory, beer-wanting food – that will pair really well with whatever we have on draft.
I actually dabble in homebrewing myself, and am a big believer in food and beverage pairings. Although our menu will be simple and streamlined, finding that perfect pairing for our guests will continue to be a priority of mine.
TDS: You’ve hosted a few pop up dinner events, what has been a crowd favorite from these?
AB: The pop-ups have ranged in theme – from Thai to summer to argentine. We did the Argentine thing more than once (especially because my uncle Flavio, also from Argentina, owns the gallery they were hosted in) so there are some thematic trends. We’ve done sweetbreads more than once, which always tend to be a hit. And anything with dulce de leche – once a flan, another time sandwiched in a thin crepe –  it’s really hard to resist sugar, milk and carbs. Assuming you’re human.
TDS:   For those that don’t know, what are some of the characteristics of Argentine food?
AB: It’s heavily Italian and Spanish influenced. There’s this unfortunate “steakhouse” assumption with Argentine cuisine that is fine, but not wholly accurate. And, as far as barcito is concerned, a bit irrelevant.
We’re planning on serving up several finger foods, shareable items, and vegetarian-friendly dishes that will be much more reminiscent of a great Italian or Spanish menu. Very simple, but fresh and seasonal cooking style, utilizing citrus, garlic, herbs, etc.
TDS: This is a sandwich blog and all, so are there any irresistible Argentine sandwiches and will one be on the final menu?
AB: Choripan, FOR SURE. We’re still tweaking the final recipe. But, basically an Italian-style sausage, served on baguette, with some kind of chimichurri (parsley-garlic magic). It’ll be a much more interesting version of this classic, I promise.
TDS: That sounds amazing, and one I will definitely have to stop in for.
DS7.10.15B
*****
And so basically, I’m sold on this place with the promise of a Choripan sandwich, but everything else sounds like this will be an amazing hot spot when it opens in DTLA.
Give Andrea’s Kickstarter campaign a look and help her and her incredibly talented crew bring their dream of Barcito to life.
Until next week, Readers…
By dangersandwich On July 10, 2015  0 Comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *


More Story
Hot Dog: Summer In The City
 Greetings, Readers! With the 4th of July being tomorrow, and celebrations starting earlier...

July 3, 2015
Read More