Fayer

If you have a winner, what do you do? A sequel!

And that’s exactly what the guys over at Mishiguene did. They’ve gained a moderate amount of fame and favorable reviews since opening their restaurant on Lafinur a couple of years ago. Allie over at Pick up the Fork and I both love the place.

So, while there was still a little luster on first restaurant, they decided to open a second restaurant a few blocks away. I suppose it was getting a bit too crowded on Friday nights over on Lafinur.

That’s good news for all the diplomats visiting the U.S. Embassy, which happens to be immediately across the street from the new restaurant, called Fayer. Younger sister, Fayer, is just as pretty as big sister, Mishiguene. Maybe even prettier.

The décor is a bit more elaborate in the new location, but similar. The menu is similar too. You can get their much bragged about mezze dishes. Things like babaghanush, hummus, tabbouleh and roasted cauliflower. Best versions in the city if you ask me.

The menu is devised to utilize four popular cooking methods in middle-eastern cuisine and one that is claimed to be Argentine: tannur (wood-burning open-top or open-faced oven, similar to a tandoor in Indian cuisine or a pizza oven), mangal (middle-eastern grilling, usually on skewers, ahumador (smoking of meats), parilla (Argentine grilling, arguably the same as “mangal”), and speido (slow roasting on a spit).

I’ve been to Fayer on several occasions. I’ve had the mezze salads. Like I said, they’re the best in the city, and a great choice for vegetarians. I had a roasted-lamb sandwich on flatbread that was on the lunch menu. Very good, but the lamb was a bit overcooked. Not sure if that was done on purpose to satisfy the local patrons, or just a faux pas.

I’ve had both the beef and lamb kebobs. I note that neither of those were overcooked. Everything was delicious.

I’ve only tried one dessert at Fayer, the Baba de Almibar y Pistachios, a popular middle-eastern dessert. Honestly, I’m not a big fan of either middle-eastern or Asian desserts. I’d rather have a dip of dulce de leche ice cream after a meal like this. Which is what I’ll do next time I dine at Fayer. Maybe I’d be singing a different tune if I’d have had the baklava.

This genre of cuisine is so good. It shouts “flavor”. And Fayer does it best. The restaurant is classy. The service is near-flawless. The menu is unique and well-executed. And if you stay away from the more exotic items on the menu (like the bone-in pastrami) you can easily eat for under US$25 per person ($475 ARS).

Honestly, I think the prices, except for those few expensive dishes on the menu, are lower than at other local restaurants that serve middle-eastern fare, like Sarki’s. And the ambiance and décor at the other places aren’t even in the same class with Fayer.
You can't use a third party booking site for reservations but they co have an automated online procedure on their website for making reservations and you can make reservations by email and phone. No menu is posted. Hours are posted and to the best of knowledge are honored. Due to the lack of posted menu and prices, Fayer has scored slightly lower on Logistics than

What’s missing at Fayer? The stuffed-grape leaves!

Big sister, Misiguene has gained a lot of publicity lately and for that reason it will be more difficult to score a table at Mishiguene. So, do the logical thing and head over to Fayer and few blocks away.

Which one do I prefer? I’ve always favored the younger sister!