14 Best Restaurants in The Northwest, Argentina

Good food and great music roll together at this peña, located in a traditional 19th-century casona which brings in both locals and visitors. Start with tiny empanadas and lashings of spicy llajua tomato sauce then follow up with pizza. Once the live music starts, the conversation stops flowing. 

The menu at this unassuming picanteria (restaurant specializing in spicy foods) has everything from trout to rabbit, but llama or quinoa are the dishes to try: give them a go as an empanada starter. Less adventurous eaters can sample one of the pasta dishes. Named after an Andean god, Viracocha has helpful staff, and the atmosphere amid the yellow walls and arches is happily relaxed.

Folks from Salta and San Lorenzo favor this bright, semi-enclosed brick-and-glass building with a vaulted ceiling for weekend dining. Lo de Andrés prepares a lightly spiced Argentine-style parrillada, but if you're not up for a full-on feast, there are empanadas and milanesas (breaded steak), as well as regional dishes like humita.

Picadas—assorted cured meats and local cheeses, accompanied by home-baked breads—are the star attractions here (be sure to try the smoked boar and trout). Although this deli and wine bar does get busy, the staff is generally friendly, and you can escape the bustle by retreating to the back terrace.  Wash down your meal with one of the hearty Los Morros-brand reds, produced by Casa Moderna’s own small winery.

With three dining rooms, a patio out back, a location just yards from the central plaza, and well-priced regional cuisine, El Patio is one of Tilcara's most popular restaurants. Anita Ponce's menu is an unpretentious yet delectable mix of regional specialties and standard Argentinian fare, and service is friendly. Order beef empanadas to start, and slather in llajua spicy sauce. 

It's an honest little restaurant in Seclantás, with some fine old photos on the walls and good, oven-baked empanadas. Other attractions include a delicious goat stew, corn-based dishes, regional breads, and a warm welcome from your host, Alejandro Díaz.

A great-value restaurant on a bustling downtown corner, Jovi Dos has several airy, high-ceilinged rooms with wood beams and plate-glass windows. Noteworthy starters include marinated eggplant and baked beef empanadas while grilled meats, seafood, pizza, and pasta have equal billing on the ridiculously long menu. Dishes such as the ravioles mixtas (ravioli filled with spinach and cheese, then topped with a creamy sauce) are big enough for two people. The waitstaff is attentive, and the wine list is solid.

Slotted neatly into the tiny Plaza Peloc, La Picanteria’s streetside setting makes for a great lunch spot to watch people come and go about their business. You can, of course, also dine inside, and enjoy the simple yet cozy aesthetic. There’s a brisk business for those after the three-course lunch menu, which might include spicy vegetable soup, llama escalope with salad or delicious handmade pasta. Dinner consists of a decent pizza—and pizza only—menu.

Empanadas, llama dishes, and other hearty regional specialties dominate the menu at this eatery on the main square. Take a seat by the window and watch the scene at the market stalls outside while enjoying jujeño staples such as picante de pollo (spicy chicken) or regional stews, or avoid the bustle on the airy back patio.

A 100-year-old converted school building houses one of Cafayate's more ambitious restaurants. Overseen by the friendly owner Matías, it has three dining rooms themed after the Nanni, Domingo Hermanos, and Etchart bodegas, with wine displays and special cutlery. The decoration is from all around the world, but the food is strictly local—llama, quinoa, rabbit, kid, and Andean potatoes feature prominently on the menu. A convivial wine bar stays open late to serve vino from every bodega in town. There's live music and dancing some weekends.

Ponchos on the walls, old paintings, native artifacts, stucco archways, and Andean background music are clues that this might be one of the best places to sample authentic Northwestern cuisine. Try the locro: a stew of maize, white beans, beef, chorizo, pancetta, and a wonderful red pepper–oil glaze, all of which come together in a mélange of savory, starchy flavors.  Ask for a table at the back for a more authentic and less hurried dining experience.

For jujeña classics with an eclectic twist, head to Pan de Azucár, where an ample menu offers original concoctions of the local staple, llama—think curry, carpaccio, grilled fillet, or stuffed in ravioli. House specialties also include quinoa, pork, and pasta.

This place makes the list for its music rather than its food—though the barbecued meats and empanadas are good deals. Singers, musicians, and sometimes dancers bring Peña y Parrillada de la Plaza to life each night.

The warm service, wooden tables and chairs, cane roof, and stone walls all suggest tradition. Yet Yacón's kitchen shows some innovation by serving up llama meat on skewers and a shepherd's pie made with quinoa. It's just a block from the main square, and doubles as a cute lodging as well.