A store since 1769, a tango house since 1969
A general store on a viceregal corner
The building at Balcarce and Independencia went up around 1769, in the last decades of Spanish colonial rule, as a general store — an almacén — serving the merchants and dockworkers of what's now San Telmo.
A British hospital, then a customs house
Around 1840 the same rooms became the British Medical Dispensary, forerunner of Buenos Aires' British Hospital; in 1844 a doctor here gave the city its first operation under ether anaesthesia. By the 1850s it was the General Customs Office, and during the 1865–1868 Paraguayan War it sheltered wounded soldiers.
Edmundo Rivero's tango house, 1969
On 9 May 1969 the tango singer and composer Edmundo Rivero opened El Viejo Almacén as a tanguería, naming it after “Sentimiento gaucho,” a tango that mourns an old almacén on Paseo Colón. Aníbal Troilo, Osvaldo Pugliese and Roberto Goyeneche all played this room in the years that followed.
Almost lost, twice
The building faced demolition plans in 1977 and closed for several years in the 1990s over money; a later road-widening scheme took 140 square metres off its footprint. It was declared a Site of Cultural Interest by the city council in 1982 and still stands on the same corner.
The ledger
The old store kept its accounts by hand. The evening still runs like one — a line for each thing that happens, in order.
- 01 20:00 Dinner, across the street The three-course menu and the first glass are served in the restaurant building on Balcarce, not in the old tanguería itself.
- 02 21:45 Crossing Balcarce Guests leave the restaurant and cross the narrow street to the historic room at the corner with Independencia.
- 03 22:00 The quintet opens A resident orchestral quintet — bandoneóns, violin, piano, bass — opens the show in front of the room's own antique gallery.
- 04 — Four couples Four tango couples dance in turn through the house's classic repertoire, from the 1920s toward Piazzolla.
- 05 — The folklore set A folk-dance group breaks from tango for a run of Argentine regional dances before the room returns to the orchestra.
- 06 23:30 The last tango The night closes on the couples and the full company, and the room empties back onto Balcarce.
Dinner isn't served inside the tango house — it's at the restaurant across Balcarce, at the other end of the block; the show itself happens after you cross the street to the historic room, which has a ground floor and an upstairs gallery looking down over it.
Dinner, across the street
A three-course Argentine menu with wine, served before you cross for the show.
- Three courses
- The dining ticket includes a three-course menu in the restaurant building, timed to finish before the 22:00 show.
- Two drinks included
- Wine, beer, water or soft drinks are poured through dinner; a VIP tier adds spirits and a closer table for the show.
- Vegetarian, vegan and children's options
- Tell the operator when you book — one kitchen serving one sitting means dietary swaps are easiest arranged in advance.
- Show-only, without dinner
- A cheaper show-only ticket skips the restaurant and seats you directly in the historic room at 22:00.
San Telmo, timing and dress
Balcarce and Independencia
The restaurant and the historic tanguería sit across the street from each other at this corner in San Telmo, a short taxi ride from most downtown hotels.
Two starting times
Dining tickets start at the restaurant around 20:00; show-only tickets go straight to the historic room for the 22:00 start.
About four hours
Dinner runs roughly two hours before the show, which is itself around ninety minutes — allow the whole evening rather than planning anything straight after.
Smart casual
There's no strict dress code, though the room's history and the occasion mean most guests dress a notch above streetwear.
Find a date for your evening
Live availability and pricing from GetYourGuide, shown in your own currency.
Check dates on GetYourGuide ↗- Free cancellation
- Reserve now, pay later
- Secure checkout
- Book in your language
El Viejo Almacén vs Señor Tango vs El Querandí
| El Viejo Almacén | Señor Tango | El Querandí | |
|---|---|---|---|
| What it is | A small 1769 former general store in San Telmo — dinner across the street, then an intimate historic room | A purpose-built 1,500-seat theatre in Barracas with a full-scale production | A 1920s Art-Deco building in Monserrat staging tango's history decade by decade |
| Price | From US$56pp, show-only; dinner is an option on the same booking | From US$51pp, show-only; dinner tiers on the same booking | From US$70pp, show-only; a dinner option on the same booking |
| Length | About four hours door to door, including a roughly 90-minute show | A longer evening built around a full-scale stage production | About three and a half hours across dinner and the show |
| Why go | The oldest building of the three and the smallest room — orchestra, four couples and a folklore set up close | The biggest production of the three, built for scale | A history-through-the-decades staging inside a preserved 1920s interior |
El Viejo Almacén questions
Where exactly is El Viejo Almacén?
At the corner of Balcarce and Independencia in San Telmo — the dinner restaurant and the historic show room sit across the narrow street from each other.
Is dinner served inside the tango house itself?
No. Dining guests eat first at the restaurant building on Balcarce, then cross the street to the historic 1769 building for the show.
How long does the whole evening take?
About four hours door to door for the dinner-and-show ticket: roughly two hours for dinner, then about ninety minutes of music and dance.
What's actually in the show?
A resident orchestral quintet, a male and a female singer, four tango couples working through the house's classic repertoire, and a folk-dance group for a change of pace.
Can I book the show without dinner?
Yes — a cheaper show-only ticket seats you directly in the historic room for the 22:00 performance, on the same GetYourGuide listing as the dinner option.
Is there a dress code?
Nothing is enforced, but most guests dress a notch above streetwear for the occasion and the room.
Are vegetarian, vegan or children's menus available?
Yes — tell the operator when you book, since one kitchen serves one sitting and swaps are easiest arranged in advance.
How is El Viejo Almacén different from Buenos Aires' other tango houses?
It's the oldest building of the classic tango houses, dating to 1769, and one of the smallest rooms — an intimate historic space rather than a big production stage.
Can I book with free cancellation?
Yes. The GetYourGuide listing offers free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start time for a full refund, and many options let you reserve now and pay later — so you can hold your evening while you finish planning.
Planning a tango evening in Buenos Aires
The El Viejo Almacén evening, step by step
What actually happens between the 20:00 dinner seating and the room emptying after the last bow.
Read more → The buildingThe house: an 18th-century store, a hospital, a tango house
How a viceregal-era general store on a San Telmo corner became, two centuries later, one of Buenos Aires' classic tango houses.
Read more → The performanceThe show: the orchestra, the four couples and the folklore set
What the cast actually does across the roughly ninety minutes between the quintet's opening number and the closing bow.
Read more → Food and drinkThe dinner: what's actually on the table, and where
The three-course menu, the drinks that come with it, and why it isn't served inside the historic tango house.
Read more → Getting thereGetting to San Telmo: timing, transport and what to wear
The practical side of an evening at Balcarce and Independencia — how to get there, when to arrive, and what the room expects you to wear.
Read more → Beyond the showBuenos Aires evenings beyond El Viejo Almacén
Where an evening at Balcarce and Independencia fits among the city's other classic tango houses — and what else San Telmo has after dark.
Read more →More Buenos Aires experiences
Booked through GetYourGuide, with live availability and the price shown in your own currency.