Main Squeeze Issue 01.

MAIN SQUEEZE MAGAZINE

BUENOS AIRES: A CITY OF AMOR DECEMBER 2023

ISSUE 01

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ABOUT With notes from the editor.

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SALUD! Drinks that will make you salivate for more.

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QUÉ RICO! Unique eats that will put you into a food coma.

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LA CIUDAD A guide to the coolest areas in the city worth exploring.

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NOCHE MAGÍCA Music in the magical Buenos Aires.

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CONSEJOS Local Octavio Sartoris gives us his top tips for his hometown.

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Xoxo Kate

ABOUT Welcome to Main Squeeze. A culmination of all the things I love; that have a squeeze on my heart. Whether that be places, people, experiences, food, drink, art, music, clothes – you name it. If it’s my main squeeze, this is where you’ll hear about it.

This is a place for me to share what inspires me, in whatever creative way I want to share it. I hope you enjoy and if my taste is as good as I think it is, hopefully some of my main squeezes will become yours.

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BUENOS AIRES Buenos Aires truly is a place that has had a grab on my heart since March 2020.

Living there during a worldwide pandemic wasn’t for the faint-hearted but being there during that time was so formative. I learnt so much about myself, about others, about language, about a whole other culture and more.

Whilst most people felt stifled during the early days of the pandemic, locked inside their homes and fearful, I felt this air of possibilities; of discovery. I was in a city I didn’t know with people I’d just met. Walking around the block was an exploration. Going to the grocery store forced me to practice a new language. For one of the first times in my life I was living without many obligations. I felt so free and that’s probably what makes me so nostalgic about Buenos Aires.

When I think of the city I think of a humid concrete jungle full of contradiction.

Where the buildings are beautifully European but the air-cons leak and power lines hang down onto the street. A place where you’re warned to watch your back but the people welcome you like family. Where you’ll struggle to find a decent cafe open before 9am but can eat out until after midnight. It’s simultaneously normal and chaotic. A liberating place full of tradition and history. Nothing makes sense but that’s the beauty of it and once you lean into that, you’ll never want to leave.

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DRINK

SALUD! The drinks that will transport you to the Argentine capital.

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FERNET Fernet Branca is an Italian digestif that maybe you’ve unknowingly glanced past on a stacked bar before. In Argentina, however, it’s a national treasure and there’s only one way to drink it; with CocaCola. You’ll find it in every chino (grocery store) or liquor store around. Sometimes conveniently wrapped in a combo bundle with a 1.25L bottle of Coke.

It’s an acquired taste but it’s one of those the-more-you-have-itthe-more-you-love-it kind of things. A sip of Fernet Cola brings up a strong nostalgia for asados (Argentine BBQ) on a humid afternoon and late-night previas (pre-drinks) before a night out on the town.

D!!!

SALU

HOW TO DRINK IT Serve it in a large glass over ice with roughly a 40:60 split Fernet Branca to Coke. If you want to really drink it like a local, cut an empty plastic bottle in half and soften the edges of the plastic rim with a lighter and pour the ingredients inside the large plastic cup. It’s called a viajero which literally translates to ‘traveller’ — an argentine roadie of sorts.

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MORE

DRINKS

VERMUT

VINO

All I remember from the first time I tried vermouth and soda was how much I loved it. The fortified wine is surprisingly popular in Argentina. A by-product of the bustling wine industry, trendy vermouth bars have been popping up all across Buenos Aires in the last few years serving unique vermouth blends straight from the Andes.

Argentina’s wine scene isn’t a new thing and for good reason. The wine does not disappoint. I honestly wasn’t a big red wine drinker until I lived there but a combination of incredible Malbec hailing from Mendoza in the west and the inflation making it dirt cheap, good wine is readily available and easy to drink.

Sifón Sodería was the joint that got my friends and I hooked. Serving vermouth in silver jugs, the soda comes in an old-school sifón – essentially a soda stream in a bottle. The bubbles stay fresh, the vermouth sweet and with a slice of orange, it’s the perfect drink for a hot humid summer in the city.

Naranjo Bar is one of the hottest natural wine bars in the city.

Situated in the nonchalant neighbourhood of Chacarita, it’s the perfect spot to sip on wine with friends in the afternoon. It gets busy so get there early to nab a spot on one of the highly coveted tables on the street.

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FOOD

QUÉ RICO!

Delicious eats you can’t miss out on in BA.

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PIZZA Whilst you can still find delicious traditional Napoletana pizza in Buenos Aires (some of my faves include Soler Vino Pizza, Siamo Nel Forno and Atte.

Pizzería), the OG Argentinian pizzerías serve their pizza thick and cheesy. Top your slice off with oregano or some fainá (an Italian pancake of sorts made from chickpea flour) and eat with a knife and fork as the locals do.

PLACES TO GO Guerrín is an institution that has been slinging pizzas since 1932. The stand and eat pizzeria is situated on Avenida Corrientes in the middle of the city giving it a unique hustle and bustle energy.

Past the Obelisco on the other side of 9 de Julio, you’ll find Las Cuartetas. Typically less busy than Guerrín but still with quality pizza.

The staff will ignore you but that’s part of the experience.

La Mezzetta — their speciality is Fugazetta, a type of stuffed cheesy onion pizza, and they don’t disappoint.

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THE FOOD

BODEGONES

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BUENOS AIRES

Now if pizza isn’t your jam, something else to experience are the bodegónes plotted across the city. A mixture of Spanish, Italian and German cuisine, the menu feels like you’re dining at someone’s abuela’s house.

The interiors are something to fall in love with too, with walls usually plastered top to toe with football memorabilia.

There’s something no fuss and unique about each bodegón. Not trying too hard, no one trying to get the best insta pic or complaining about the overpriced food. Just people connecting with their loved ones over a delicious meal. Order some pasta, tortilla de papas (I like mine juicy), milanesa napolitana and a side of potatoes however you like them.

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ISSUE 01 / BODEGÓNES I LOVE There’s still many more bodegónes to discover all across Argentina but here’s a couple of the one’s I highly recommend visiting if you ever find yourself in Buenos Aires.

EL CORRALÓN As you enter, you’ll pass by a statue of a man dressed as a boxer. Now this isn’t anybody, it’s a statue of Rodrigo — a famous Cuarteto singer from Cordóba who visited the restaurant the night he fatally passed in a car accident.

Wall to wall is full of famous faces that have visited the restaurant. It’s kinda meta in a way. After you leave here in a debilitating food coma, I recommend watching El Potro on Netflix, a biopic on Rodrigo’s fascinating career and life.

LOS BOHEMIOS Situated next to the home stadium for the Atlanta Football club, you’ll find Los Bohemios. Named after the hinchas (fans) of the football club, watch people play indoor football whilst you dine and admire the relics on the walls. I recommend wearing a vintage football jersey to match the vibes.

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Areas of the city that tug on the heartstrings.

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La ciudad de Buenos Aires

CHACARITA

RECOLETA

This quaint neighbourhood is truly my favourite area. Quiet streets filled with incredible restaurants and bars, cute cafes and little shops.

Recoleta is the Paris of South America every travel book refers to. It can be a little touristy in parts but it still just as beautiful as the real Paris.

My Top Picks: Coffee: Silvestre Cafe Shop: Facón Eat: Na Num Drink: Sede Whiskey Central Do: Pay your respects to music legends Carlos Gardel and Gustavo Cerati at the Cementario de la Chacarita

My Top Picks: Coffee: Le Moulin de la Fleur Eat: Bis Restaurante Drink: INVERNADERO Do: Watch the sunset at Plaza Francia, check out the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes or catch a live show at the Centro Cultural Recoleta

TIPS Take the subte! The metro train system is one of my favourite ways to get around the city.

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PALERMO

SAN TELMO

A huge neighbourhood of neighbourhoods, Palermo is the classic area where almost every expat lives.

Safe and vibrant with lots to do and see. I called Palermo Hollywood home for months and fell in love with the area.

Another historic, old area worth exploring. Located on the south side of town, it can feel a little sketchy but I love the bohemian energy.

My Top Picks: Coffee: Cuervo Cafe Shop: YEY House Eat: Salvaje Bakery Drink: Casa Cavia Do: Buy flowers and healthy eats at Flora Almacén

My Top Picks: Coffee: punto. café Eat: La Brigada Drink: Nilson Shop: QUORUM Tienda de Arte or Mercado Argentino Vintage Do: Stroll around the Mercado de San Telmo and eat a choripan at Choripanería

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MUSIC

NOCHE MAGÍCA The Soundtrack to the City.

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ISSUE 01 / Now, I only knew one song by Tan Biónica, Cuidad Magíca – a synth-pop song my friend Maeve introduced me to on exchange. The timer ends and Tan Biónica reunite on the stage. After a lengthy standing ovation, Ciudad Magíca booms over the speakers and gold confetti blows in the wind. Every one of the thousands of people screams every word, myself included.

In the words of my boyfriend, it was ‘one of the most epic moments of the country’. I have to agree. It was a truly magical night in the city of Buenos Aires.

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It’s March 2023 and I’m at Lollapalooza Argentina watching a local artist named Chano perform. He’d just come out of a coma weeks prior to the festival. Weary-looking and sweaty, he sings an acoustic version of his song Claramente whilst the crowd belts out every word in support. He finishes the song, teary-eyed. Everyone in the crowd cheers him on, impressed that he’s even here and performing in a heatwave no less. Suddenly, he makes an unexpected announcement. His band Tan Biónica who hadn’t played together for seven years were coming back to the stage. In the next five minutes! He leaves the stage and a countdown appears on the screen.

Everyone in the crowd is shook, unable to comprehend what is about to proceed.

There’s something about Argentinian crowds — an electrifying energy if you will. Even Billie Eilish said on Dua Lipa’s Service 95 podcast that her set at the festival was one of the best crowds she’s ever performed to. Amongst all the headline acts from Drake to Rosalía, Tan Biónica was the highlight.

It was so sentimental and it’s probably because Argentinian music is severely underrated, at least in the Englishspeaking world.

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ISSUE 01 / Whilst latinos are known for reggaeton, bossa nova and salsa, what the Argentines do best is their rock music. Rock was huge in the 70s, 80s and 90s during oppressive times of military dictatorships, war and economic crises. Icons like Charly García and Luis Spinetta paved the way, one cocaine bump at a time. What I love about Argentine Rock is the timelessness and the deep metaphorical lyrics that almost always make me question my knowledge of the Spanish language.

COMFORT Y MUSICA PARA VOLAR SODA STEREO My go-to album for a melancholic rainy day. Perfect for when you want to be in your feels. The guitar riff in Té Para Tres is literally god-tier.

FITO PAÉZ Fito has this infectious grin and grit that you can hear as he sings and thrashes his piano. An Argentine Elton John of sorts. He’s been through real pain but you wouldn’t be able to tell by his music. If you’re in the mood to be inspired, watch the series Él Amor Después del Amor on Netflix which tells the tragic story of his life whilst featuring all his classic hits.

USTED SEÑALEMELO New-age alternative rock band Usted Señalemelo gives a modern take on the legends of the 90s. Fashionable but angsty, the trio is unapologetically cool and their music exudes that.

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TIPS

CONSEJOS

Find out what the locals love from a real porteño.

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INTERVIEW

OCTAVIO SARTORIS Musician and Audio Technician Octavio Sartoris tells us about his main squeezes from his home town.

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21 / HOME is Castelar, Buenos Aires. It’s where I grew up and made my fondest memories.

THE THING I MISS MOST is my dog, Pelusa and Guerrín because it’s so unique. You can’t find it anywhere else.

A CLASSIC BREAKFAST on the weekend in Argentina consists of left-over pizza and yerba mate.

MY FAVOURITE SPOT is La Bombonera, the home stadium of my team, Boca Juniors.

I’M LISTENING TO Soda Stereo or Tan Biónica during the day but on a Saturday night, it’s reggaeton or cumbia.

FOR LUNCH I LIKE TO grab a choripan and walk around La Costanera.

TO THE PARTY I ALWAYS BRING a bottle of Fernet.

MAKE SURE TO go to the MALBA and have merienda (afternoon tea) nearby in the Bosques de Palermo. Buy a coffee and some medialunas con jamón y queso (ham and cheese croissants).

DINE OUT at El Obrero or El Cuartito. Both are very bostero meaning they’re popular spots for Boca fans to eat at after the game.

I LIKE TO WEAR t-shirts from Bulbenny or Aggiornamiento. If you have an emo heart, go to Galería Bond Street. That’s where I bought my first pair of Dickies – a key moment in my teenage life.

THE PARTY STARTS at 12am with a previa at someone’s house. Then go out at 3am around Palermo. We used to go a lot to Miloca, Niceto and if I am back in Castelar, Pompeya.

SUNDAYS ARE FOR asaditos (Argentine BBQ) with the family or pasta.

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