Discovery
By Mauricio Llaver - Photographs: courtesy of the estates, posted on 03 February 2025
In just 25 years, the province of Mendoza in Argentina has developed an outstanding gourmet food scene through its connections with wine. Today it stands out as the Ibero-American Capital of Gastronomic Harmony and is one of the two Argentine cities included in the Michelin Guide.
Traditionally, culinary specialists say that where there is good wine there is good gastronomy, as it is impossible for one to develop without being complemented by the other. Some of this has happened in the last few decades in Mendoza, Argentina, where the explosion in the quality of the wine, driven by Malbec, was echoed in a fast-moving gourmet food scene, as evidenced in its first-class restaurants and permanent residency of top chefs and international benchmarks. This culminated in the Michelin Guide rating Argentine restaurants in 2024 for the first time, with its inspectors only focusing on the cities of Mendoza and Buenos Aires.
Mendoza is the ‘Ibero-American Capital of Gastronomic Harmony - Wine as the Main Appeal’, a title awarded by the Ibero-American Academy of Gastronomy. At the awards ceremony, Academy chairman Rafael Ansón Oliart from Spain commented that “the development of restaurants in wineries that has occurred in Mendoza is unique”. In metrics, that equates to over 100 Mendoza wineries opening restaurants over 25 years. The province of Mendoza has thus developed a remarkable connectivity with the rest of the world through the inquisitive people from all continents who come to taste its gastronomic delights.
Casarena Bodega y Viñedos is located in the historic region of Luján de Cuyo, Mendoza, and stands as the ‘interpreter’ and custodian of its terroir. This philosophy is reflected in its restaurant, Savia, through its architecture, its collection of local art, the ingredients and the conception of each dish combined with the wines it produces.
The inception and development of Savia were linked to the vision of Casarena Bodega y Viñedos and the values that guide it, such as the connection with the ecosystem and looking after it. This translates into concepts such as regenerative agriculture and sustainability, which trickle into site-expressiveness through wine and food.
Claudia Piedrahita, Casarena’s CEO and the vice-president of Wines of Argentina – the organisation responsible for promoting Argentine wine around the world – assures that “Savia's menu is the result of a simultaneous creative and analytical focus. We got the kitchen staff and winemaking team on board to design and harmonise each dish”. Piedrahita adds that “in this harmony we seek to showcase each piece of land and each Casarena wine, and therefore the dishes are inspired by our farms – Jamilla, Naoki, Owen and Lauren – where we source many of the ingredients used for our menu”. One example is the desserts: each one represents one of the estates and can be paired with a sparkling wine or a red wine from each one of them.
Claudia Piedrahita, CEO of Casarena Bodega y Viñedos.
Savia Cocina Casarena is located at Finca Jamilla, the same location as Casarena Bodega y Viñedos, and from its tables and terrace you can soak in the local scenery – the mountains, olive trees, irrigation channels, carob trees, jarilla and cacti. Its interior gardens are home to native plants, and its architecture and landscaping are so outstanding that it recently won the Silver Medal in the Great Wine Capitals (GWC) Best Of competition. The gourmet food offering focuses on local products and uses a very sophisticated technique, while seeking to offer an experience for the senses in an environment that is completely connected to nature and the landscape. Claudia Piedrahita expounds further: “Everything was designed so that the architecture, art, furniture, wines and food are the expression of the place and show a broad connection with their origin”.
Casarena Bodega y Viñedos was created in 2011, and in a short period of time has secured an outstanding endorsement among Argentine wineries for its production of premium wines. “Our journey only began quite recently, but we are developing a tradition of high quality wines that is reinforced by our restaurant project”, stresses Piedrahita. “That is why our Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Chardonnay, Semillon, across the ranges, take pride of place in the ethos of our gourmet food offerings”. Casarena Bodega y Viñedos produces approximately 600,000 bottles per year, around 80% of which are exported to more than 50 customers around the world. It is therefore a regular attendee of international wine fairs and events in Europe, Asia and the United States.
At Savia, concepts such as regenerative agriculture and sustainability pave the way for site-expressiveness through the wine and the food.
Renacer is located in Perdriel, Luján de Cuyo, just 20 minutes from Mendoza City, in the heart of a wine region steeped in history. Here, the Reich family, originally from Chile, founded the winery in 2003. In 2017, they opened a restaurant which this year achieved a mention in the Michelin Guide’s ‘Recommended’ category. Its chef, Celmira Escudero, explains the guiding principles behind its gourmet food offering: “The aim is to offer a 360º experience, where food and wine pair with the incredible views of the Andes Mountains and excellent service located in a natural setting”. The restaurant is indeed located among the winery’s gardens and willow trees with large panoramic windows allowing patrons to soak in the light and views of the mountains. A deck floating over the lagoon allows you to appreciate the winery’s Tuscan-inspired tower. In the evenings, you can watch the sunset with a glass of wine in your hand.
Renacer's restaurant is located just 20 minutes from Mendoza City.
The facilities also include a wine cellar where you can choose from current vintages, mature wines spanning vintages, and some outstanding labels such as the first wine produced by Renacer. There are also special editions designed for the foreign market or exclusively for visitors. The restaurant’s leitmotiv is to create dishes with the same philosophy and commitment with which the wines are made. Its opening marked a new phase in Renacer’s history, throwing up new challenges for the Reich family who seek to connect the winery much more closely with its foreign and local visitors.
Celmira Escudero, the chef at Renacer.
“The capacity is 50 covers, divided between the indoor lounge, the deck and the gallery, which ensures that every diner can enjoy a unique experience”, explains Patricio Reich, Renacer’s CEO. “Our location, just 20 minutes from the city of Mendoza and easily accessible, combined with our reputation on Trip Advisor, where we have always been in the Top 3 restaurants in Luján de Cuyo, make us a must-visit for tourists from Argentina and other countries”. The restaurant’s architecture mirrors the style of the winery, inspired by Tuscan villages such as San Gimignano, Montalcino and Pienza, in honour of the Reich family's roots.
From a culinary perspective, Celmira Escudero says that “the concept is basically to work with fresh products and to draw on everything we have in Argentina. Our visitors include many foreigners, especially Brazilians, and therefore the rib eye is a must. But we also like to combine different flavours, such as meat, fish and vegetables”. The breads served at Renacer – focaccia, country loaves and carob (a native plant) bread – are homemade. They are baked every day in the restaurant itself and can be tasted together with three varieties of olive oil from the olive trees that line the vineyards. The tableware is handcrafted by Escudero herself and she changes the size and colour to match the dish on the menu.
Renacer's food is prepared with emphasis on fresh produce.
The first generation of the Bonfanti family that moved to Argentina from Piedmont settled in Perdriel, Luján de Cuyo, Mendoza, in 1915. Their story was similar to that of many immigrant families: they acquired 8 hectares of land and planted Malbec vines and olive trees. The first two generations were exclusively primary producers, supplying grapes to other companies, as they did not have their own winery. Change came with the third generation when Roberto Bonfanti inherited his family's estate and undertook to build his own winery. Roberto was married to Stella Maris, with whom he had two sons, Alejandro and Sebastian. Alejandro studied public accounting whilst Sebastian studied agronomic engineering and oenology. In 2004 they built the winery and began to produce their own wines. Today they are in charge of administration and production for the family business.
Stella Maris devoted many years to welcoming visitors personally, showing them around the winery and guiding them through wine tastings. This experience ultimately culminated in a restaurant, Maris Restó, in honour of her middle name. The restaurant opened in 2018 and from the beginning sought to become an expression of Bodega Roberto Bonfanti's wines. The menu was designed as a combination of traditional Mendoza cuisine with the cutting-edge techniques of international haute cuisine. Estefanía Wiche heads up the kitchen. Bonfanti explains how “on our menu we work with traditional products from the region and we are thrilled to serve avant-garde dishes that fuse sweet and salty flavours and show off their full potential. The spices and flowers that we take directly from our garden are grown and harvested conscientiously, respecting the natural seasonal cycles. They inspire us to create unique dishes”. The Maris Restó “encapsulates the love of four generations for work on the land”, says Sebastian Bonfanti. The restaurant serves three and six-course menus, which Bonfanti defines as “a magical way to enjoy a lunch surrounded by family vineyards and hundred-year-old olive trees”.
Alejandro, Sebastian, Stella and Roberto Bonfanti of Bodega Roberto Bonfanti and the Maris Restó.
Bodega Roberto Bonfanti is a boutique family winery which produces 85,000 litres per year, 40% exported to the Brazilian market. It recently began to make inroads in Paraguay and the United States. The winery owns two of its own estates, located in Mendoza’s ‘First Zone’. One is Finca Terrada, in Perdriel, Luján de Cuyo, where it owns 8 hectares of 105-year-old vineyards, all of them planted to Malbec. The other is Finca La Capilla, in Barrancas, Maipú, with another 8 hectares planted to 50-year-old vines. Chardonnay is the main varietal here, but there is also Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon. The remaining wines are made with grapes from small producers in the Uco Valley. The winery sources Malbec from Gualtallary, Tupungato, and Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc from Chacayes, Tunuyán.
Roberto Bonfanti, the founder of Bodega Roberto Bonfanti.
Beef ribs at Maris Restó.
Riccitelli Bistró opened its doors in 2020 in a bid to make gastronomy a part of an integral winery experience in Las Compuertas, Luján de Cuyo. Winemaker Matías Riccitelli, who created the venture, produces sustainable and natural wines, and decided to transfer that philosophy to the kitchen. To do so, he partnered with chef Juan Ventureyra, with whom he defined the project as follows: “We work with products from our local organic gardens, from small producers who, like us, believe in a sustainable and natural approach. Each dish is carefully thought through to highlight the authentic flavours of the land and our wines”.
Matías Riccitelli, the founder of Riccitelli Wines.
Their philosophy was so successful that in 2024 the Michelin Guide awarded them its Green Star. The Guide itself highlights that “by offering a gastronomic experience that combines excellence and eco-responsibility, these establishments are shaping an alternative and particularly ethical gastronomic model”. From the ground up, Riccitelli Bistró focuses on environmental simplicity – it is set within containers using sustainable architecture and aims to showcase the ecosystem, surrounded by a vineyard landscape with unrivalled views over the Andes Mountains.
In 2024, the Riccitelli Bistró was awarded a ‘Green Star’ by the Michelin Guide.
“We are not a vegetarian restaurant, but Mendoza is home to excellent vegetables and that is our specialty”, says Ventureyra. “We make cuisine with a local soul, producing our own seeds, so that we now have up to 84 varieties of tomatoes”.
The food is generally vegetable-based and according to Ventureyra “80% of the dishes are prepared with vegetables or fruits and the remaining 20% with flour, dairy or meat”. However, the restaurant caters to all palates, especially in a country where bife de chorizo is one of the most sought-after dishes by tourists: “At Riccitelli Bistró meat lovers, lactose and gluten-intolerant people can eat. We adapt to everyone”.
One of the keys to Riccitelli Bistró is the use of ingredients from its own gardens, where more than 380 varieties of vegetables are grown, all of which are sustainably cared for. “My vegetable garden is the heart of my kitchen,” adds Ventureyra. “We harvest all the leaves, herbs or vegetables that accompany our acequia or farm experience, where we also grow unique varieties of seasonal vegetables and herbs. These small details tell a story about the provenance and care behind each dish”. The restaurant has two different menus (six and seven courses), served with a range of Argentine wines produced by Riccitelli, both in Mendoza (Luján de Cuyo and Uco Valley) and in Patagonia.
Juan Ventureyra, the chef at Riccitelli Bistró, says “We are not a vegetarian restaurant, but Mendoza produces excellent vegetables and that is our specialty".
At Riccitelli Bistró up to 84 varieties of tomatoes are grown using its own seeds.
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