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Originally an immigrant neighborhood, San Telmo continues to be revamped with establishments popping up to cater to the latest wave of visitors to the city—backpackers, expats, and tango hunters. Now home to dozens of trendy bars, the bohemian district is coming into its own again. La Boca to the south, on the other hand, is still best avoided at night.
Once a bohemian haunt, this bar went international after serving as a major location for Wong Kar-Wai's cult indie film Happy Together. The move to the mainstream has led to glitzier dancing, as well as increasingly bad food and indifferent service. Still, the worn checkered floor and Old World bar make a charming backdrop.
Rousing live orchestras keep even nondancers entertained at the nontraditional milongas that are this club's hallmark. La Orquesta Típica el Afronte provides the music for Maldita Milonga ( www.instagram.com/malditamilonga), while Tango Queer ( www.instagram.com/tangoqueerba) draws both gay and straight dancers looking to escape the confines of more conservative dance floors. There's also a different turn with Latin American music; on weekends doors open at midnight.
Classic trios and quartets share the stage with young musicians performing hip tango and folk sets here. There are also milongas on weekends.
The polished shows at this classic café trace the history of the tango. The dancing and costumes are great, although the stagy interludes might make you wince.
This place was founded by legendary tango singer Edmundo Rivero, though he wouldn't recognize the slick outfit his bar has become. Inside the colonial building a tireless troupe of dancers and musicians perform showy tango and folk numbers while you dine.
In the heart of the low-key Boedo neighborhood, 30 blocks west of San Telmo, La Esquina was once a traditional café favored by the barrio's old men: in fact, the famous 1948 tango Sur begins by mentioning its location on the corner of San Juan and Boedo. After getting the Disney-tango treatment, it's now a kind of 1940s concept bar—though its checkered floor and original bar remain. Performances are showy but reasonably priced.
The unashamedly theatrical show at this tango-concept hotel dances you through the history of tango. It's a fascinating look at how the dance evolved, and the hotel's art nouveau architecture is pretty fantastic, too.
It doesn't get much glitzier—or much tackier. Performed daily, the unashamedly tourist-oriented shows are so eager to cash in on stereotypes that they even include a number from Evita (shock, horror). Still, you can't fault the fishnetted dancers on their footwork. Rather less glam is its location south of San Telmo, in the Barracas neighborhood, which can be sketchy: take a taxi here and back.
