If you ever find yourself wandering around the Lower East Side, somewhere along the corner of Stanton and Suffolk Streets and are in the mood for some Argentinean cuisine you are in the right area. At Azul you can find a broader menu of the cuisines apart from skirt steak, empanadas, and parrillada from the southern part of the Americas located within the Spanish eatery.
The owner of Azul, Stefano Villa’s goal for his restaurant is to “explain to Americans that Argentinean cuisine is a lot more than just parrillada and wine.” And so far, Villa has been able to prove this little culinary fact to Americans since Azul is marking its 10th anniversary.
Villa, an Italian-born citizen, also owns two other Argentina eateries one-called Industria Argentina and the other in-which he is a partner in called Novecento. Villa opened Azul back in 2001 after he traveled to Argentina and fell in love with the country’s cuisine upon first bit. As a sign for their 10 years of service, Azul is re-inventing its once traditional menu by incorporating influences from the countryside. Such influences call for meals involving wild boar and venison given a contemporary twist to the traditional Argentinean meal.
Helping Azul give the contemporary twist to their menu is Nicolás López, 27, a chef originally from Salta which is located in the Northwestern area of Argentina. With a decade of cooking under his belt, López brings his skills to Azul after having been the head chef in the restaurant within the Argentine Embassy located in Caracas, Venezuela. “He does the job New York-style,” says Villa describing López’s impressive culinary talents within the kitchen, “He gives you no time to think.”
Taking on the mantle as Azul’s new chef, López recruited two more chefs from back home in order to get Azul’s dish revolution underway. From Salta, Hernán Simesen, 27, and from Buenos Aires, Matias Ramano, 28, join López within the kitchen. Prior to take on the job along with López, Simesen attended culinary school with López and has worked with chef Fernando Trocca at Sucre which is a very renowned restaurant in Buenos Aires. Meanwhile, Romano was mentored by a popular Argentinean TV cooking show host, Juliana López May.
With a trinity of experienced chefs from South America working in Azul, the eatery promises to represent the best of Argentina cuisine since López describes the three chefs share a “concept that the three of us have is to fell pride in Argentina. We simply work with our ideas mixed with the recipes of our aunts and grandmothers.” And to do this, the chefs are gathering produce and ingredients from different parts of Argentina. From the Patagonia they bring wild boar and venison, from the Andes they bring red and blue potatoes and quinoa, from the Falkland Islands they bring a collection of seafood from sea bass to centolla, a South American king crab.
While Azul is undergoing a change to bring forth a new experience regarding Argentine cuisines, Villa promises that some dishes that have made Azul popular within the city will remain on the menu since he assures customers that “We are only adding recipes,” and not changing favorites. One of the newest dishes is a braised lamb tongue, rabbit confit served with an apple slaw, with venison carpaccio, and boar with quince sauce which enriches the dish. So, if you want to try out the new Azul you can do so now since the restaurant is participating in NYC Restaurant Week. Take advantage and get a little contemporized taste of Argentina.
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