Buenos Aires asado, by the open fire.

The Buenos Aires asado we recommend is a fixed run of 9 courses, every one of them grilled within arm’s reach of a bar where the diners line up facing the coals. There is no menu to choose from: the restaurant serves fixed tasting menus only, so the whole room eats the same sequence. A host or greeter speaks English, Portuguese and Spanish.

A cocktail greets you, and from then on the cook narrates: which part of the animal is on the grate, why it is handled that way, and where the habit of the asado began. Wine is an optional pairing of Argentine bottles rather than a list to order from, and GetYourGuide markets it to grown-ups. You choose between a 12.30PM sitting and an 8 PM one.

A stool at the counter is held without a charge, and a change of heart is free until the 24-hour mark. Wheelchair users are catered for, and a small-group version can be booked too. Our guides cover the price, the menu course by course, whether it is worth it, and every other way to eat asado in the city.

The city tourism board calls Buenos Aires temperate and sunny, with an average of around 18ºC (64°F), and a good place to visit at any time of the year. For a meal by a fire that is good news: the tasting runs indoors at a counter, so the season changes the walk there more than the dinner.

The city observatory station logs average afternoon highs of 29.6 °C in January against 15.1 °C in July. High summer feels sticky and nights stay mild, while midwinter calls for a jacket on the way home, as the tourism board puts it.

Spring and autumn are the rainiest seasons, says the tourism board, though the rain tends to be light. The rain record for the city area gives April 123 mm on average and May just 45 mm. A taxi to the door solves a wet night, and the fire inside makes the cold months the cosiest time to book.

Water is on the house all night, and a hot cup arrives with the sweet course. Wine costs extra and is always your choice; the flights are purely Argentine, Malbec first among several grapes and regions.

For $40 you get four Reserva-level pours; for $60, five wines picked by the sommelier from small productions. You can add either online when you confirm or at the restaurant, and a beer, a soda or one glass of red is just as welcome, though nobody sells you a whole bottle.

Keep in mind that there is no corkage, so your own bottle stays at the hotel, and the city tourism board notes that drinking alcohol is prohibited for anyone under 18. A single glass with the beef courses is a good middle way for anyone pacing themselves.