A Neighborhood Guide to Once, Buenos Aires

Once is a very busy part of a very busy city.

Its tiny sidewalks are crowded with people hurrying from A to B. Hyper specialized shops sell seemingly random items in bulk from balloons to beads.

An entire block of shops is dedicated to bolts of fabrics, another to party supplies, another to beads.

There are window displays filled with mannequins in sequins from top to bottom for both weddings and quinceañeras.

But besides being an open air shopping mall, Once is filled with history – some of it tragic.

Once is home to a large Orthodox Jewish community and you’ll see synagogues and schools. The Jewish community here traditional worked in textiles here and have had a major impact on the neighborhood.

Today Once has been influenced by immigration from Peru, Bolivia, and China and you can get incredible Peruvian food here.

Keep reading to delve deeper into the history of Once and for the top things to see here.

A Brief History of Once, Buenos Aires

First, we have to clarify where and what is Once, because it isn’t an official neighborhood in Buenos Aires.

Once is part of Balvanera, and is an unofficial name for this busy part of the city. While there are officially 48 barrios in Buenos Aires, the citizens have further divided them. Barrio Norte – the more bustling portion of Recoleta – is a clear example of this.

Like most neighborhoods in the heart of Buenos Aires today, Once (I mean, Balvanera) was once a suburb.

Just over 3,000 residents lived on small rural estates called Quintas and Avenida Rivadavia (the main artery in today’s Once) was called el Camino Real del Oeste.

Today Plaza Miserere is Balvanera’s main square. Over the years it has changed from originally being a quinta called the Quinta de Miserere or the Corrales de Miserere.

The name comes from one of the original residents –  Antonio González Varela – nicknamed Miserere for his mercy and kindness. Which is far different from “miserable” which is what I thought meant for a decade.

But the square is commonly referred to as Plaza Once from the train station here called Once de Septiembre.

This coincidentally is also what gives the neighborhood its nickname – Once.

Jewish History Tour of Once // Once is home to Argentina’s important Jewish population, to learn more about this side of Buenos Aires, I highly recommend this guided tour. In a private half-day tour you will visit a museum, community center, synagogue, and other Jewish institutions in the area.

What to see in Balvanera

There’s more to see in Once than the shops. It really is a fun neighborhood to wander and is excellent for people watching.

Keep in mind that Balvanera very urban. The sidewalks are narrow and there aren’t many shade giving trees here. If you’re exploring in the summer dress for it with a hat and some sunscreen.

Also, this is an area where it is important to be aware of your surroundings. It isn’t dangerous but it is a poorer area of the city, especially when you go through Plaza Miserere – where hundreds of thousands of people come in from the province each day via the train station here.

Please understand that I am not trying to say you should be scared in Once, but you should be cautious with your phone and bag as you would in any big city that is foreign to you.

Plaza Houssay & the Facultad de Medicina

Technically Plaza Dr. Bernardo Houssay is not in Once, it is across the street in Barrio Norte (which is technically Recoleta). But being a mere 10 steps from Once (technically Balvanera), I thought we could let that pass…

This busy square has had a major makeover recently, with a food court being constructed just below street level with an easy (and aesthetic) connection with the Line D subway line.

The largest building you see towering overhead is the University of Buenos Aires’ Medical School – La Facultad de Medicina. Across Avenida Cordoba is the School of Economics.

The hundreds of young Porteños you see buzzing around are likely students running late to class.

Turn to face Uriburu street (with the medical school to your right) and you’ll see three large murals on the Hospital de Clinicas.

These murals pay homage and memory to the horrific terrorist attack on Balvanera’s Jewish Community Center AMIA in 1994.

The first mural, painted by Mariano Antedoménico, shows neighbors organizing to rescue victims from the rubble. The second, by Martin Ron, depicts the doctors treating the victims from a victim’s point of view. It is in honor to the doctors who treated more than 300 patients that day.

The final mural, by Mariela Ajras, is of a blindfolded woman inside a sandglass, which represents the continued fight for justice despite the passage of time.

Palacio de las Aguas Corrientes

📍Museum entrance on Riobamba 750.
⏰Hours: Monday-Friday, 9 am to 1 pm, closed midday, re-opens 2-5 pm, confirm hours here.

The Palace of Running Water is not a mistake or a typo, it is an actual palace housing running water.

On Avenida Cordoba between Riobamba and Ayacucho streets is one of the most impressive palaces in Buenos Aires.

And while you might not have had Sanitation Museum on your Buenos Aires BINGO card this year but when it’s housed in a palace, you have to go.

300,000 terracotta pieces were brought from Great Britain and the iron that makes up the pipes and tanks were brought from Belgium. This depository was inaugurated in 1894.

Today it isn’t in operation but there are two identical (in interior, not exterior) water “palaces” like this in the city. You can see one in Caballito.

The museum is free to enter and I found it worthwhile. It goes into detail on the city’s history with water treatment and sanitation, which sounds boring but if you’ve listened to the cholera episode on This Podcast Will Kill You then you’ll appreciate its importance.

The museum has a number of artifacts – including a room full of toilets – and you can see the huge tanks and pipes that are its reason for existance.

Go Shopping in Once

Go for a wander in the heart of Once.

You’ll find the bulk of the shops in within the confines Avenida Cordoba, Azcuenaga, Avenida Rivadavia, and Ayacuchol, give or take a block or two.

You’ll quickly notice that the blocks are organized by specialty. When we wanted to upholster some furniture, my husband and I headed to Lavalle street.

Another block will focus on party supplies, another has beads and cheap jewelry supplies. You’ll find textiles and bolts of fabric, designers making sparkly wedding gowns and more.

The influx of Chinese immigrants in recent years have added in bazaars selling a bit of everything, reminiscent of a dollar store back in the US.

Santuario de San Expedito

This church, the Santuario Nuestra Señora de Balvanera, commonly known as the Santuario de San Expedito is one of the oldest churches in the city with history dating back to 1797.

It was built for the Virgen de Valvanera, the V not being a mistake but the name of a valley in La Rioja, Spain. The place of worship was built on lands donated by González Varela, known as Miserere (the loved and generous neighbor mentioned earlier).

Today this is one of the most beautiful churches in Buenos Aires, definitely take time to step inside past the vendors hawking San Expedito merch.

You can read more about the history of this church here.

Have a coffee in Cafe de los Angelitos

Café de los Angelitos is the best historic bar notable in Balvanera. It originally opened in 1890 as Cafe Rivadavia and new ownership in 1920 changed the name Café de los Angelitos.

Definitely visit for lunch or a coffee while you people watch. I love visiting these classic bars and watching regulars sip their coffee over the newspaper.

This bar was the regular spot for a long line of historic names from Carlos Gardel to politicians.

The tango show at Cafe de los Angelitos is also one of the best in the city, book it here.

See the Beautiful Architecture

Many of the most historic neighborhoods in Buenos Aires are also currently the most impoverished.

This shift originated with the 18th century yellow fever outbreak, which sent the wealthy fleeing from their city homes to the northern suburbs (suburbs that are now neighborhoods like Recoleta).

That shift left a lot of stunning architecture in neighborhoods like Balvanera.

Here are some of the most impressive buildings to see, I’ve marked them on the map with purple pins:

• Palacio de los Lirios | Av. Rivadavia 2031 | This art nouveau apartment building was constructed in 1905 (and fun fact that is important to no one but me, I used to work in an office here!). The curves of its facade always reminding me of Gaudi and Barcelona. The name comes from the lilies (lirios) that decorate the entire facade.
• Pasaje Colombo | Avenida Rivadavia 2431 | This L shaped alleyway is open only to residents today but when it was built at the end of the 19th century it was open to the public and a number of residents opened shops on the ground level. It’s a beautiful passageway with original buildings to gawk at through the gates.
• Casa Calise |  Hipólito Yrigoyen 2500 | Go out of your way to see Casa Calise by architect  Virginio Colombo, built in Italian Art Nouveau style, Liberty milanés. Interesting fact: this building has the most statues than any other building in the city and was built for a wine making family from Mendoza.
• Casa de los Pavos Reales | Av. Rivadavia 3216 | Another masterpiece by Virginio Colombo from Milan. You can read more about the symbolism of the relief and history of the architect in this article (use Google translate).

Abasto Shopping

You may not want to go to a shopping mall on vacation and I don’t blame you, but Abasto Shopping is worth visiting.

The structure served as the city’s Central Market, or Mercado de Abasto, from 1893-1984. After over a decade of disuse, in 1999 it was converted into the shopping mall you see today.

Go in and walk around, the building is interesting to see from the inside, particularly from the top floor food court where you can appreciate the arching roof.

If you have children, go to the Museo de los Ninos, an interactive museum where they can play in a child sized Buenos Aires. It is easily one of the best things to do in Buenos Aires with kids, but check hours because you have to visit during their set shifts.

💡Interesting fact: The McDonalds in the Abasto Shopping food court is kosher and it is it the only kosher McDonalds in the world outside of Israel.

Want to keep exploring? My Almagro walking route and neighborhood guide ends here at the Abasto Shopping Mall. You can join these two guides for a full day in the city!

AMIA & Cromañón: Tragedy in Balvanera

Balvanera’s recent history has been tinged with tragedy.

The terrorist attack on a Jewish Community Center,  Asociación Mutual Israelita Argentina or AMIA, on July 18, 1994 resulted in 80 deaths and over 300 injuries.

Justice has never been found and over the years there have been various accusations made. The murals painted on the original AMIA location and in Plaza Houssay pay homage to the victims and this continued demand for justice.

Learn more about AMIA on this Jewish heritage tour of Buenos Aires.

On December 30, 2004, a fire in the nightclub República Cromañón during a concert for the band Callejeros led to 194 deaths and 1432 injuries.

The band’s pyrotechnics lit elements on the ceiling on fire. Illegal insulations created toxic fumes and when people tried to evacuate they found one of the main exits chained shut (to keep people from sneaking into the show).

Cromañón was just one block from Plaza Miserere and right on the corner of the square at Pasaje de los Pibes de Cromañón you can see murals and tributes to the victims.

There is a movie on Amazon Prime about the incident called Cromañón: The Night of the Fire. It is a dramatized film, not a documentary, and is understandably very hard to watch at parts, keep that in mind.

Exploring Balvanera & Beyond

Once (aka Balvanera) is a compact neighborhood in the heart of the city, once you’re done wandering here you can keep walking into a number of directions to keep discovering Buenos Aires like a local.

• Abasto & Almagro – Almagro is bustling and busy with a lot of local haunts. I end my Almagro walking tour at the Abasto shopping mall in Balvanera, making it easy to connect to this Once guide.
• Recoleta – My 3 day itinerary has a great walking route of Recoleta. If you end your time in Once in Plaza Houssay you are now technically in Recoleta.
• Boedo – My guide to Boedo is tiny but mighty, it’s a smaller neighborhood and the main historical sites are all within a few blocks from one another.