Iggy James, the New York chef who opened a summer bar and a restaurant: “Argentine cuisine evolved very quickly”

At 23, Iggy James came to Argentina to study the effects of international finance on everyday life. He had been pursuing a master’s degree in political economy at a public university in New York and writing about sovereign debt and the International Monetary Fund. Then the pandemic redirected his plans, and Argentina became home.

James first tried to export Argentine wine to New York, but export controls made the business uncompetitive on store shelves there. The next opportunity came during an informal gathering at his home, where he met another American who wanted to open a bar. The conversation continued, and four years later they remain business partners.

Dimi, their small bar in Chacarita, became James’s laboratory. It operated as a summer sidewalk bar, without gas and with only 32 usable square meters. Even with those limitations, the kitchen developed dishes including boneless chicken and fried chipás. The space helped shape the ideas that later moved into a much larger project.

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You can go and have a good dinner prepared by a good chef, and you can drink and dance.

In 2026, James concentrated his resources on Ámbar, a nearly 500-square-meter venue opposite Recoleta Cemetery. It combines a restaurant, a bar and a booth for live DJs. The menu brings together French techniques and Argentine flavors, while the cocktails favor direct, accessible profiles. The music allows the evening to continue after dinner. “You can go and have a good dinner prepared by a good chef, and you can drink and dance,” James says, describing the New York model he wanted to bring to Buenos Aires.

His own explanation for staying in Argentina is deliberately informal. He says the pandemic, along with fernet, ice cream and romance, diverted him from his original research. “Argentina grabbed me,” he says. The restaurant projects now give that detour a permanent shape, as James follows what he sees as the rapid evolution of Argentine cuisine and the Buenos Aires palate.

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Argentina grabbed me.