On one of the quietest corners of Villa Crespo, Madre Rojas offers a premium take on the country’s typical meat dishes — with a twist.
Featuring a wine selection from across the country and beef cuts from local producers who prioritize animal welfare and biodiversity conservation, Madre Rojas honors two Argentine dining landmarks — meat and wine — according to the vision of prestigious chef, sommelier, and livestock producer Juan Ignacio Barcos.
Barcos, who worked as a chef at the Alvear Palace and Sofitel hotels in Buenos Aires, is also the president of the Institute of Meat Sciences and Professions, which runs a meat sommelier school supported by the University of Buenos Aires.
Its menu is a good reflection of Madre Rojas’ mindful approach to Argentine local cooking and terroir landscapes, featuring a meat glossary that indicates the anatomical location — muscle and bone composition — of each cut. Another section details the area of origin and how the animal was fed to promote its wellbeing and the use of environmentally friendly production systems.
The menu begins with a charcuterie offering of cured beef, bresaola, and cured Wagyu bacon, the house’s signature meat. The appetizers offer classic options with innovative touches, such as the empanadas, Wagyu tartare, blood sausage terrine with watercress, béarnaise and apples, and the classic parrilla options: provoleta, sweetbreads, and artisanal chorizo. The side dishes are designed to pair smoothly with meat preparations, like the green leaf salad with nuoc cham sauce, the original Caesar salad with chitterlings, the Wagyu fried potatoes, or its Waldorf salad with Lincoln cheese and walnuts.
This and cover photo: Madre Rojas
Madre Rojas’ main courses include grilled meats such as picanha, flank steak, center roast, and ribeye, along with the Wagyu cut and Wagyu steak, from Barcos’s own family farms.
The extensive wine list from the chef and his team of sommeliers boldly proposes that meats can be paired with white wines. Choices include light, medium, and full-bodied reds, rosé, sparkling, and orange wines from Mendoza and Salta, but also lesser-known regions such as San Juan and Catamarca.
The dessert menu also honors tradition: pancakes with dulce de leche, the cheese and quince jelly dessert known as vigilante, and the tempting Copa Rojas, which has ice cream, peaches in syrup, cream and dulce de leche.
Displaying a few shelves that showcase books and pickle cans, the atmosphere is similar to the classic Buenos Aires bodegón, with sober and simple decor in pale rose and white.
Madre Rojas
Rojas 1600, Villa Crespo, Buenos Aires.