Picada and Street Art

San Carlos de Bariloche, a city that keeps creating attractions both for tourists and locals, has added a new sight for fine summer days. Known as Paseo de las Picadas, it represents a sequence of pubs and restaurants where visitors may enjoy a meal. For such purpose, traffic on Juramento and 20 de Febrero Streets is interrupted for a few hours, while it is possible to enjoy outdoor shows.

In the past, this used to be known as Rincón Cervecero (The Beer Corner). Today, the same pubs engage in a competition with their homemade recipes and a gastronomic proposal based on regional dishes, including trays of assorted products. All this is completed by rock, folklore and tango musicians and artists, circus performers and the like. Another attraction are the stalls where all kinds of handicrafts are on sale.

We visited one of the breweries, where we had a drink and relaxed. As we noticed the artistic performance, we stayed longer in order to enjoy the nice mood and music in the same place. We saw several shows and, as we were not in a hurry at all, we ordered another beer. German specialties and picadas (trays of assorted products) are usually the most popular orders. However, there are some customers who prefer a good pizza.

We heard that the municipal Culture Office organizes a program for every weekend afternoon and evening of the weekends, including various rhythms and variété. The famous “picadas” mentioned in this article refer to assorted food accompanied by the popular beverage. As well, the same word is used to refer to mountain trails, typical of the area, covered on foot, by bike or on horseback.

“May I recommend that you taste our four kinds of beer and then choose the one you liked best to accompany the picada?”, asked the waiter. We ordered a tray of assorted regional smoked products, including venison ham, wild boar salami and trout patê, crowned by freshly baked rolls. The offer continued and that made us feel even more enthusiastic about staying a little longer and ordering some exquisite tenderloin sandwiches with dry tomatoes and a warm somewhat spicy sauce.

This urban circuit adds up to the already known amusements provided by San Carlos de Bariloche. The space we discovered in our trip gathers the magic of art in the street in its multiple expressions and is ideal to share a beer with friends at sunset, when the pastel hues of the sky change once and again.