To anyone who hasn’t visited in a few years Carilo You will surely be surprised by its growth, which is seen everywhere; in the works underway here and there, in new houses, in the expansion towards the Divisadero area and in its shopping center, which has expanded a lot in recent times adding shops and services.
If the pandemic paralyzed many destinations, it did the opposite with this wooded corner of the Pinamar district, which since 2020 has grown strongly with the impulse of many families who decided to transform this sandy forest into their permanent residence; in many cases, remote work through.
Furthermore, the extension of the highway all the way From Buenos Aires it greatly streamlined the trip and transformed weekends throughout the year into “mini seasons”, especially long weekends.
And this growth had an impact on both its retail offering and its gastronomic circuitwhich became a great differential and today attracts diners from many other beach resorts on the coast.
Because among their at least 60 restaurants, bars and cafes There is everything and for all tastes, with a very good standard; from pizzerias and hamburger restaurants to patisserie y fondue French style, German and Indian food, specialty coffee, grill, “grandma’s” dishes! And with prices for different pockets.
“There are options for everyone, from sushi to fish, seafood, pasta, grill or international food, and all of them top-notch,” summarizes Mauro Moyano, vice president of the local Chamber of Commerce and Tourism, on the outside deck of the cafeteria. Havanna, one of the places where the “breakfast” goes peacocks that walk the most hot things for this enchanted town.
There is, for example, Peppe Napoli, with two premises; one of Neapolitan style pizzas -like eating in a very “tan” warehouse, with shelves full of cans and packages, the pizza oven in sight and tables on the deck under the trees- and another that also adds very italian pasta, meats and seafood. With the added bonus of using Italian raw materials, such as flour or mozzarella without preservatives.
After enjoying a good time on the beach, it’s time to have dinner at Manya pioneering tea house – opened in 1989 – turned restaurant featured in German delicacies like the Oktoberfest board – which includes two pints of beer, German sausages and more -, strudel of Apple; stollen al rhum and hearty meat, pasta and fish dishes. There is also a menu of steps that includes the unmissable goulash with spätzle.
For the youngest – in age or spirit – the night option is Templetona drinks bar with live music and a short menu ideal to share with friends: poultry or seafood basket and cold cuts and cheese board, for example, with live music or video clips that invite you to dance.
The next day our gastronomic tour stops at Tothe restaurant Divisadero spa -one of the four in Cariló-, where you can have breakfast, lunch, snack or dinner with a view of the sea.
In addition to promising “the best salad in the county,” the menu includes everything from sea casserole or very Peruvian flavors such as ceviches, tiraditos and chaufas to dishes such as roasted octopus, salmon in prawn sauce and squid rings or free-range chicken with roasted vegetables and forest ravioli.
Luckily we are very close to our hotel, the Cumelo Resort400 meters from the beach access and with a sector of two-room apartments and another of cabins, and in between the two, an outdoor and indoor pool, gardens and, like most of the hotels in Cariló, games and entertainmentwhich for the boys continue in their kids club.
In addition, in summer its restaurant specialized in “canteen” foods or bodegón, where you can eat abundantly and at quite affordable prices. It is on Ciruelo street between Avutarda and Bandurria, because in Cariló all the streets are named after birds and trees.
Walk through history
And since we are in Divisadero, it is worth a brief tour through the origins of Carilówhere is Big house, the house of the founder and person responsible for turning a desert into a forest on the seashore, Héctor Manuel Guerrero. At the beginning of the 20th century there was a very high beacon in the area that allowed you to see all the land where the first pine trees were being planted. Hence the name, “Del Divisadero”.
As Vanesa Rinaldi, from Pinamar Experience, in his historical tour, “there were also the power plant, the stables of Héctor Guerrero and a small wood supply store in front of the dune of ‘The Ten Children’, where years later the Nuestra Señora del Perpetuo Socorro chapel was built.” Also in the area, starting in 1938, some prefabricated houses brought from England began to be installed.
In the afternoon, there is nothing better than sitting at one of the tables. Masse boulangerie, in the heart of the center, where the specialty is delicacies with breads and fruits in style French. Pan chocolateDanish with cranberries and red fruits, croissants in various versions, sandwiches with chicken, fish or vegetables, tartines, pastas, omelettes and much more. Hat.
Preseason waiting
In the midst of so many flavors, stop to find out how the season comes here which is already beginning: it can be defined as “tibia”, with reservations that, according to two of the main real estate agencies in the area, are between 15 and 25% below from last year.
“We have 15% fewer reserves compared to the same date last year. But it must be taken into account that Cariló has 100 new houses compared to a year agoand there are 100 families that previously rented, so we hope that the season will also be a success with people, because what is not rented is used by the owners,” says Silvia Melgarejo, from the traditional firm Constructora del Bosque.
For his part, Jorge Santamarina, from another historic real estate agency in the area, assures that reservations for January are “25% down” in relation to the same period in 2022, and has availability “in almost all categories of houses for rent.”
In Santamarina, fortnightly rental rates start in $1,900 for four people; There are also houses for 5 or 6 people for US$2,500/3,000, and up to US$5,000 per fortnight for a four-bedroom house with a heated pool.
For her part, Silvia Melgarejo points out that “for 4 or 5 people we have from $1,700 per week a three-bedroom house in January, and from then on; “The closer to the sea or the center, the rate increases.” And he details that there is availability in two-bedroom houses or three-bedroom houses with a dependency, “so any typical family can come calmly and get a beautiful house near the sea or in the middle of the forest.”
Farewell with homemade flavors
The last stop of our gastronomic tour, which continues at night in the restaurant The reservein the middle of the immense green and silence of the forest of Cariló Golfwhere they are a must the various sauces that accompany homemade pasta, fish, meat. And some desserts that melt your mouth just by reading the menu.
A grand farewell, although along the way we write down everything we missed trying: Indian cuisine in the hotel restaurant Ville St. Germain; the restaurant Demuruthe huge and modern Grill“grandmother’s” kitchen Joseph; the fondues of Camellia Sensithe pioneer grill The Pulperíaand a list that continues, as attractive as it is tasty.
MINIGUIDE
● From Buenos Aires to Cariló it is 362 km along highway 2 to Dolores, highway 63 to Esquina de Crotto, highway 11 and highway 56 to Madariaga and then highway 74 and highway 11 (all highway).
● Bus from Retiro to Pinamar (4h 30′), from $34,500 one way.
● Train from Constitución to Divisadero de Pinamar station, with a combination at Gral. Guido, $2,335 one way.
Cumeló Resort: cabin for two people in January, from $1,095,286 per week; for four, $1,246,080 for 7 nights. Dept. two rooms for two, $1,288,569; for three, $1,375,189 (cumelo.com).
● Peppe Napoli: margherita pizza, $12,000; papardelle with seafood, $16,000; arancinis, $8,000.
● Many: Milanese, $12,000; seafood stew, $21,000; vegetable risotto, $12,000.
● The reserve: average dishes, $9,000 per person, without wine or dessert.
● Masse: pappardelle aux crevettes, $10,360; vegetarian sandwich, $6,160
● To: salad, $16,000; seafood casserole, $24,000.
● Cumelo hotel restaurant: approx. $6,000 per person without drinks.