5806 Forward Ave., Squirrel Hill,
(412) 421-1390
Everything about the Tango Cafe is intimate. It's tiny, first of all, and suffused with a warm, orange light that seems as far from the cold blues and grays outside as Buenos Aires is from Pittsburgh.
The lilting strains of Astor Piazolla quietly emanate from some indeterminate point, as though he's playing the bandoneon in the next room, and the Argentinian expatriates in the corner table occasionally chime in for a few bars in response.
The wooden parquet floor seems perfect for dancing. In fact, as I was leaving the other night, it looked like they were removing tables for an impromptu tango lesson.
It's safe to say that most of the Tango Cafe's patrons are just there to warm up and sample the pastries, however, and a good way to approach the former is to try a Tango Submarino ($2.80). This is a large, frothy glass of steamed and foamed milk, with a bar of semi-sweet chocolate dropped in it, like a submarine in a crash-dive to the depths. After a minute or two, you have a hot chocolate with real chocolate.
Of course, if you want something a little stronger, try a Cappuccino Mocha (single $2.50; double $3.50), which is less gooey and sugary than its Starbucks counterpart.
For dessert, or a snack before you catch a flick up the hill, try a Turron ($2.35), a flaky, multilayered pastry, with several delicate strata of nuts, oatmeal and chocolate. There's also the ubiquitous Merengue ($2.50), here concocted as two giant globes of crackling, sugary goodness dipped in chocolate, and stuck together with a kind of dark caramel. You'll have to share - it's simply too much for one person to eat. Merenguitos ($1.50) are a smaller version, much more suitable for solo snacking.
The Tango Cafe is open from 9:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Mondays through Fridays and 10:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays.
