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[title]There are places you don’t just visit—you live them. Angélica Cocina Maestra is one of those. From the moment you arrive at the Catena Zapata Wines restaurant, you feel transported to a universe where history, architecture, wine, and gastronomy merge with impeccable mastery.
The experience begins long before sitting at the table. Upon entering, the host invites you to take a guided tour of the impressive building that recreates a Tuscan villa in honor of Nicola Catena, the Italian winemaker who arrived in Mendoza in 1902 to lay the foundation for the family legacy. His son Domingo continued that legacy, and together with Angélica Zapata, they gave this world-renowned winery its name.
As they narrate the clan’s story and the philosophy of the place, you walk through hallways displaying pages from the book Gold in the Vineyards, written by Laura Catena, illustrating stories of some of the world’s most important vineyards.
The path leads to the dome, where the largest obsidian stone in Latin America is housed. Continuing onward, you come across an intimate room that opens only on very special occasions, and its wine cellar, which showcases all the winery’s wine lines and a display table featuring “clippings” of important moments in the family business—old photographs, accounting documents from 1924, the first Catena Zapata wine logo, and even a painting of the family tree.
Angélica Cocina Maestra: A “Wine First” Experience
The tour ends in a Mediterranean-style courtyard, whose pathway leads to the restaurant entrance. A maître d’ awaits warmly at the door, offering a sequence of gestures that promise excellence. Everything here is designed to pay tribute to the Mendoza land and its wines. Thus, amid ambient music and the design of windows offering a 360-degree view of the landscape, winery, and garden, one of the most fascinating culinary experiences begins—one that has been awarded both a red and a green star by the prestigious Michelin Guide.
At Angélica Cocina Maestra, the guiding principle is clear: “Wine First.” The wine does not merely complete the menu; it inspires it. Each dish is crafted to dialogue with Catena Zapata’s labels, creating a sensory synergy that surprises with every one of the 13 steps in the culinary journey. The sommelier and waiter explain in detail the exclusive pairing at each stage, with sparkling wines, whites, reds, and Pera Grau Sherry. They guide diners to perceive the combination of flavors that reveal Mendoza’s very DNA.
“Wine sets the pace of the kitchen—not the other way around. We start from the glass to arrive at the combination of products with different textures and cooking methods on the plate,” says Josefina Diana, the chef leading the restaurant alongside chef Juan Manuel Feijoo.
"Wine sets the pace of the kitchen—not the other way around"
The experience begins with snacks that awaken the senses. From a hydrolate made with water sprayed into a glass so that the scent of rain can be smelled, to a sort of stone-shaped box that opens in two to reveal a reimagined stuffed Mendocino sopaipilla and a gel accompaniment made from delicate baby herbs and flowers gathered from the garden.
The cured trout aged for five days; the dish called “expression of the garden” with all green leaves, fennel flowers, chamomile pollen, and a vinaigrette sorbet; the goat and saffron arancini evoking grandmother’s cooking; and the crispy pork roll with a slice of black apple—all moments that evoke amazement and countless expressions of happiness on diners’ faces.
Each dish is part of a story written with local ingredients, global techniques, and a stunning aesthetic palette. The jewel of the menu—and the favorite of both chefs—is the combination of beetroot and sweetbread, a sophisticated dish that shows how well these two ingredients come together: a crispy sweetbread wrapped in foam and covered with a veil made from three proprietary vinegars, beautifully accompanied by flower petals and beetroot root both pickled and puréed—more like velvet.
Pairing it with an Adrianna Vineyard White Bones Chardonnay 2022 was a pleasurable and aromatic journey. This Catena Zapata wine is currently ranked as Argentina’s second-best wine and the country’s best white wine.
Terroir, Technique, and Fun at the Table
The chefs who came to Angélica Cocina Maestra from the iconic Chila share: “We always design the seasonal menu with products from Mendoza. Our great goal and challenge is to communicate about the territory, which we approach with responsibility and great respect.” They add: “We always start designing the proposal from the product we want to cook or show, then develop the rest of the dish.”
"Our great goal and challenge is to communicate about the territory, which we approach with responsibility and great respect"
Josefina and Juan Manuel bring a contemporary, playful, and sensitive perspective to Mendoza fine dining; they make their dishes “stand on their own” because among the many preparation ideas they suggest, those that make sense come together, shaping what they present at the table.
“Menu design becomes a conversation, and that feels very natural to us,” they emphasize. “We like to play, to have the diner interact with the dishes. Each bite can awaken different emotions and surprises,” adds Juan Manuel. Indeed, the cheese course experience is on another level; on a wheeled table, they bring different varieties and origins to invite tasting and pairing with sweets, honey, and nuts.
"We like to play, to have the diner interact with the dishes"
The truth is that at Angélica Cocina Maestra, diners choose the menu, which varies in the number of courses depending on the wine pairing selected: the Angélica Zapata tasting with 5 labels; the D.V. Catena with 4; the Roller Coaster honoring Domingo V. Catena; the Wine First in tribute to Angélica; the Memorias with 7 lines; or La Famiglia Unita, Parcelas, and Escalera al Cielo with Catena Zapata Wines’ premium lines. Notably, there is also a non-alcoholic pairing option.
Angélica Cocina Maestra is part of the Catena Zapata Wines ecosystem, one of Argentina’s most emblematic wineries
Its imposing pyramid-shaped structure, inspired by Mayan culture, faces the Andes like a modern temple to wine. Here, Nicolás Catena Zapata is crowned the “father of Argentine Malbec” and turned the winery into an icon of the country’s viticultural innovation.
Laura Catena, the family’s fourth generation, is one of the driving forces behind this new gastronomic concept that pays tribute to her grandmother Angélica, a woman who fervently believed in education as a universal right. Architect Ricardo Zumel designed the project, built in the basement of a 1920s winery, with hand-cut stones, handcrafted bricks, recycled wooden beams, flooring made from barrels, and railroad sleepers. The aesthetic highlights the family’s Italian heritage.
Thus, the Wine First concept restaurant stands as a sensory experience that combines the best of Argentine wine with a gastronomic proposal of the highest standard—worthy of a Michelin-starred restaurant.
Where: Catena Zapata Wines, Cobos s/n°, Agrelo, Luján de Cuyo, Mendoza. Reservations: reservas@angelicarestaurante.com or +54 9 2615 07-6901. Open for lunch and dinner Wednesday through Saturday; Sundays and Mondays only at midday. Transportation to and from the winery can be arranged upon request.