Skip to content
Voykit

Eat · Plaza de Mayo and Avenida de Mayo

Café Tortoni

Plaza de Mayo and Avenida de Mayo, Buenos Aireslast order: unknownchairscafe

The old café on Avenida de Mayo: go on a weekday morning or mid-afternoon for coffee and churros, expect a queue at weekends and after 16:00, and pay by card or cash in pesos.

Per personARS 3,000–15,000from the menu, 2026 estimate
Best timebefore 10:00easiest walk-in
BookingWalk-in, no reservation OK
DietsVegetarianask for the rest
  • Buenos Aires' oldest café, opened 1858
  • Coffee and churros
  • Historic wood-panelled interior
  • Order: Coffee and churros
  • Table seating
  • Walk-in window: before 10:00
  • Queue risk: weekends and 16:00–19:00
  • Vegetarian options

Highlights come from Voykit's own data and desk notes, not from reviews. Hover a tag to see its source.

Rules in force · 10Above 2,500 m (Bogotá, Quito, Cusco, La Paz) keep the fir…Large bags go by car from door to door
  • South America ↗Above 2,500 m (Bogotá, Quito, Cusco, La Paz) keep the first day light; sleep lower where you can (Sacred Valley before Cusco) and descend if headache comes with vomiting or confusion.
  • South America ↗A yellow fever certificate is required on arrival in French Guiana, and asked for on some routes into Bolivia, Paraguay, Suriname and Guyana, or when arriving from Amazon areas — vaccinate at least 10 days before travel and carry the card.
  • South America ↗Overnight buses are the norm in Argentina, Chile and Peru, but pick top-tier companies and keep valuables on your body; on-board thefts from overhead racks are the common loss.
  • Argentina ↗Check entry rules for your passport with Argentina's National Migration Directorate (Migraciones) or an Argentine consulate before booking.
  • Argentina ↗Since April 2025 the official, MEP and street ('blue') dollar rates sit within a few percent of each other; a foreign card is usually the best-value way to pay, while ATM withdrawals carry high fixed fees. Rules have changed often — check before you fly.
  • Argentina ↗Patagonia (El Calafate, El Chaltén, Ushuaia) is a November–March trip; in winter many services close and hiking is limited.
  • Argentina ↗Since August 2026 non-resident foreigners must show insurance or pay for non-urgent care at nationally run public hospitals, and Buenos Aires City, Mendoza, Salta, Jujuy and Santa Cruz charge visitors for scheduled care; emergencies are still treated. Travel with medical insurance — check the current rules.
  • Buenos Aires area ↗For Colonia by ferry, carry your passport and check the ferry's check-in time and the return on your ticket.
  • Buenos Aires ↗Keep the phone out of hand and off café tables near the kerb: snatch theft from passing mopeds happens in busy areas.
  • Buenos Aires ↗Large bags go by car from door to door: never on the subte or on a walk, because of crowds and theft.
More
Map & directions
Google Maps Apple Maps Street View
Directions
From where I am

Add your hotel to get directions from it. · stays in this browser; shared with the pocket card.

Plan

Open now, when you can walk in, what to order

Go now?

Open?

Hours not published

Easiest walk-in

before 10:00

Reservations

Walk-in, no reservation

Per person (from the menu)

ARS 3,000–15,0002026 estimate · check

Directions (opens Google Maps)What to order ↓

Walk-in windows

before 10:00: highweekends and 16:00–19:00: risky

A walk-in lunch is only planned as primary when your arrival lands outside the “impossible” window.

Menu and prices

2026 estimate
  • Café con leche and churrosThe classic order; churros come plain or filled with dulce de leche.ARS 3,000–15,000
  • MedialunasSmall sweet croissants, the standard local breakfast pastry.ARS 3,000–15,000
  • SubmarinoHot milk served with a bar of chocolate to melt in yourself; a café tradition rather than a novelty.ARS 3,000–15,000
  • Light lunch dishesSandwiches and simple plates are available beyond the coffee-and-pastry order.ARS 3,000–15,000

Build your order

Tap + on what you want, or let Voykit suggest a starting order.

2 people

  • Café con leche and churros

    ARS 3,000–15,000

    0

  • Medialunas

    ARS 3,000–15,000

    Contains (from menu notes, check): wheat

    0

  • Submarino

    ARS 3,000–15,000

    Contains (from menu notes, check): dairy

    0

  • Light lunch dishes

    ARS 3,000–15,000

    Contains (from menu notes, check): wheat

    0

Food and drink

Nothing picked yet.

Menu prices are 2026 estimates (check the board or menu on the day).

Split the bill 2 ways

Pick dishes to see each person's share.

Sit-down restaurants: about 10%, less than the 15–20% US norm. Local custom: About 10% in cash; the cubierto (cover charge) is not a tip. Tipping calculator

Pick at least one dish to make the full-screen list.

Not checked in the last 12 months (no check date on file).

On the ground

How to order, tip and pay, allergies, and booking

Tipping

Sit-down restaurants: about 10%, less than the 15–20% US norm.

Allergies and diets

  • YesVegetarian · Ask staff to confirm no meat stock or lard in the base. · say: “Soy vegetariano/a.”
  • AskVegan · Dairy and egg are common even in vegetarian dishes; ask about both.
  • AskHalal · Not certified; ask about pork and alcohol in the specific dish.
  • AskGluten-free · Not confirmed; ask about wheat-based sauces, breading and noodles.

Paying

  • Check the current bill total, since prices move with inflation faster than any printed guide.
  • Bread and a cover charge ("cubierto") are sometimes added automatically to the bill; check the menu or ask before you assume it is free.

Booking

Booking
Walk-in, no reservation
Reservations
Not taken
Note
Walk-in; a queue forms at peak times.

Not checked in the last 12 months (no check date on file).

Map and nearby

Where this place is, how to get there, and what is around it

Café TortoniCafé TortoniMetropolitan Cathedral (Plaza de Mayo)Teatro ColónSan Telmo MarketPuerto Madero waterfrontGüerrínEl SanjuaninoLa BielaDon Julio

Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors

Map layers
Show only
Google Maps Apple Maps Street View
Directions
From where I am

Add your hotel to get directions from it. · stays in this browser; shared with the pocket card.

Nearby places

Eat nearby

More detail

Everything else we know about this place

How to order here, in full

How to order here

The order of play at the counter or table, what to say, how much to order and how to pay.

No shared language? Point at the dish or a photo of it. For a printed menu, translate a photo of it.

What to say

In EnglishSay or showSounds like
How much is this?Cuánto sale esto?KWAN-to SA-le ES-to
Not spicy, pleaseNo picante, por favorno pee-KAN-te por fa-VOR
The bill, pleaseLa cuenta, por favorla KWEN-ta por fa-VOR
HelloHolaOH-la
Thank youGraciasGRA-syas
Delicious!Qué rico!keh REE-ko

Paying and tipping

Sit-down restaurants: about 10%, less than the 15–20% US norm.

  • Check the current bill total, since prices move with inflation faster than any printed guide.
  • Tipping: A tip (propina) of around 10% is appreciated in restaurants but not obligatory or always added automatically; round up for taxis.
  • Bread and a cover charge ("cubierto") are sometimes added automatically to the bill; check the menu or ask before you assume it is free.

At the table

  • Lunch runs 13:00-15:00 and dinner rarely starts before 21:00; turning up at 19:00 for dinner often means an empty restaurant or a kitchen not yet open.
  • Dinner rarely starts before 21:00; a restaurant that looks empty at 19:30 is not necessarily bad, it is just early.
  • Ask "me traés la carta de vinos?" for the wine list; a good glass of Malbec is affordable relative to many other capitals.
Paying, diet and allergies

Paying

othercheck

Cards accepted; menu prices in pesos, which move quickly with inflation — check the current bill rather than a remembered price.

Diet and allergies

Yes means there is something for you; ask means possible with care; no means go elsewhere.

  • Vegetarianyes

    Ask staff to confirm no meat stock or lard in the base.

    Show: Soy vegetariano/a.

  • Veganask

    Dairy and egg are common even in vegetarian dishes; ask about both.

  • Halalask

    Not certified; ask about pork and alcohol in the specific dish.

  • Gluten-freeask

    Not confirmed; ask about wheat-based sauces, breading and noodles.

What is in the dishes

  • Medialunaswheat
  • Submarinodairy
  • Light lunch disheswheat

Read from the menu names and notes; recipes vary and cross-contact is not tested. Check with the kitchen.

Make an allergy and diet card for Buenos Aires →

Who it suits, booking and the kitchen

Who it suits, booking, closures

goodWho it suits — Visitors who want to sit in the city's oldest café (opened 1858) rather than just pass by; less suited to anyone in a hurry or avoiding tourist-priced spots.
Dress code
No dress code; casual.
WhenStatusNote
Weekly or holiday closurescheck before you goNo weekly closure reported; confirm locally.

Show the kitchen

local-language lines from this guide

Tap a need to get a large screen you can hold up to staff. The wording is the guide’s; a helper who reads the language should confirm it if your allergy is serious.

Comfort, facts and cons

Hygiene and comfort

Restrooms
Restroom on site · accessible restroom: check
Seating
Chairs at tables
Kids
kids' menu: unknown · stroller: caution · Churros and medialunas are an easy order for kids; the queue and busy tables are the harder part with a stroller
Access
step-free: partial · Street-level entrance; ask about step-free access to all seating areas

Facts

Reservations
Not taken — Walk-in; a queue forms at peak times.
Capabilities
food · seated_rest · toilet
Getting there
Walk from Plaza de Mayo along Avenida de Mayo · ~8 min walk

Cons

  • Queues at weekends and in the late afternoon.
  • Tourist prices and busy tables.

Dish glossary

On the menuWhat it isOrder it how
Café con lecheMilky coffee, the standard order.Ask for it "grande" for a larger cup.
CortadoEspresso "cut" with a small amount of milk.A quicker, smaller coffee than a café con leche.

Price check

2026 estimate
locals pay
A well-known, tourist-visited café; prices sit above a plain neighbourhood café for the same coffee and pastry.
tourist price
The menu price is the price; there is no separate tourist markup, but this is not the cheapest coffee in the city.
rule
Check the current bill total, since prices move with inflation faster than any printed guide.

Deep dive

Questions, alternatives, and where our facts come from

Questions and answers

Questions and answers

answered by Voykit editors · dated
Is it worth the queue?

For the historic interior and the churros, most visitors say yes once; it is not the cheapest coffee in the city.

Checked 2026-09-28 · Voykit desk

When is it quietest?

Before 10:00 on a weekday; weekends and the late afternoon bring the longest queues.

Checked 2026-09-28 · Voykit desk

Do I need to book?

No, it is walk-in only; go early or mid-morning to avoid the queue.

Answers come from Voykit editors, not from other travellers.
If it is closed or full

Nearby alternatives

walk minutes · estimate

If it is closed or the line is too long

Go to Güerrín, about 10 min on foot (straight line × 1.3); no reservation needed.
  1. Güerrín10 min walkA century-old pizzeria on Avenida Corrientes: eat standing at the counter for the fastest slice, or take a table for a full pie; go for the thick, cheese-heavy Buenos Aires style, not a thin Italian crust.

Places without an authored walk are ranked by straight-line distance × 1.3 at 5 km/h (3 mph).

All places to eat in Buenos Aires, with filters →

Used as a seated rest node in Buenos Aires in 4 days.

Sources

Was this useful?

Directions
63 pages, for the metro and roaming-off days
Not saved offline