He rescued his grandmother’s rice pudding recipe and sells it from a window

Ezequiel López Batista was studying engineering in Los Angeles, but one day he decided to change his lifestyle. He dropped out, and almost automatically, his parents stopped sending him money. "I started working as a valet parking attendant at a restaurant. Eventually, they needed me in the kitchen. That’s where a world of aromas and flavors opened up for me. I never left that environment again. I felt like it was where I belonged,” he explains in an interview with Time Out.

López Batista spent 30 years working in kitchens around the world until he opened an event space in the heart of Palermo. When the pandemic hit, his business couldn’t survive the months of lockdown due to Covid-19. With his back against the wall and no money left, Ezequiel combined his passion for cooking with memories of his Italian grandmother, Bambina Curia. That’s how he started selling rice pudding from the window of his home, using the recipe from the woman who used to cook for him when he was just a child.

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“The single-product concept and selling from a window is something I saw in Europe, and it’s not yet fully developed in Buenos Aires,” López Batista explains. “You have to do it with very high quality. But it brings many rewards because people love it, and you can also do it alone, which is what I needed to cover my expenses after the event space closed.”

Ezequiel credits Ada Concaro from the legendary Tomo 1 restaurant as the woman who taught him and passed down her love for desserts. “With her, I learned the precise techniques for sweet dishes, the right combinations, and the exact chemistry—for example, with the rice pudding I now sell from my window,” the chef says.

"From Ada Concaro, I learned the precise techniques for sweet dishes"

“The rice pudding my grandmother made, without lemon, finds its magic in the slow cooking of the milk. It’s another world of aromas, where smoky harmonies reign, enhancing the silky, aromatic concentration of the milk protein, stirred in figure-eights and evaporated over high heat with sugar, while the guy who stirs and stirs witnesses this and gets closer to his grandmother’s love,” Ezequiel wrote in one of his first social media posts when he introduced himself to the public.

A dessert with family history

“This dessert has a family history. In our house, in old Palermo, my grandmother’s rice pudding was the centerpiece of family gatherings. The secret lies in patience, in constantly stirring the mixture to achieve the perfect creamy texture,” he shares. At those family tables sat his grandmother Bambina Curia and his aunt Ana. “They used to compete during Sunday family lunches, with the classic long table full of cousins and uncles,” Ezequiel recalls.

The chef reminisces about the hands of his two culinary mentors. Bambina made rice pudding with just vanilla essence. “The whole house would fill with that sweet aroma, which only this dessert has during its three-hour cooking process,” Ezequiel says. Meanwhile, Ana made a unique dessert that Ezequiel is considering adding to his business. “Crustolis, which are like gnocchi soaked in port and egg, then fried,” López Batista details.

From event space to “window” selling rice pudding

Ezequiel’s routine starts in the morning. The event space has become his home in the heart of Palermo. On Honduras Street, amidst towering trees and right in the middle of the gastronomic hub where dozens of locals and tourists stroll daily through Buenos Aires.

“From 9 to 12 every morning, I prepare the rice pudding in a 25-liter pot. This dessert needs constant attention. You have to stir it the whole time to get the best consistency,” López Batista explains.

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His engineering studies gave him a certain level of automation and discipline in maintaining processes. “I have a single product, and I have to make it brilliantly every time, so that all customers have the same experience every time,” Ezequiel says.

"I have a single product, and I have to make it brilliantly"

Ezequiel improved his grandmother’s recipe

He added his own tips to ensure the product flies off the shelves when he opens his window from Thursday to Sunday. “I use sushi rice, which creates a very creamy starch,” reveals the chef. “I also switched the classic wooden spoon for a spatula made from the same material. This helps me scrape the bottom of the pot, where the sugar crystallizes over the heat and fuses to achieve that characteristic flavor.”

Cooking this dessert isn’t easy. “Many times, my back gets stiff from stirring the heavy, dense pot,” explains this born entrepreneur. “Rice pudding is a dessert that has the potential to evoke emotions and memories in people. My hope is that when they try it, they’ll feel drawn to that connection with their childhood,” Ezequiel explains.

"Rice pudding has the potential to evoke emotions and memories in people"

On weekends, lines form in front of his window in Palermo. “There are days when I’ve sold up to 50 kilos. Porteños come because it reminds them of their childhood, but also Brazilians, Colombians, and Venezuelans, who recall similar desserts from their countries.”

The business is a success without any advertising investment

The shop is just a tiny window that opens onto the street, where customers ring a bell to get their portion. On many days, Ezequiel sells out. The surprising thing is that all this success came without any advertising investment. Ezequiel named his project Arrozconlechería, and word of mouth did the rest.

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The product is priced around 10,000 pesos per kilo, but it’s also available in small cups for 1,800 or medium ones for 3,800 (prices subject to change). The chef offers the product dusted with cinnamon, and there are other versions that include citrus zest or even dulce de leche.

“There are two types of consumers. Some pass by and grab a portion to try. Others buy by the kilo to take to a dinner or share while watching a series on Saturdays,” says Ezequiel.

A hit with both locals and tourists alike

López Batista is satisfied. He believes his idea struck the perfect chord with hundreds of consumers, who, with the aroma and texture of the rice pudding, recall their childhood. “I feel like I hit the nail on the head with the product at the right moment and in the right place for tourists to enjoy as well,” highlights López Batista. Meanwhile, the chef prepares for another weekend, ready to open the window of his home to offer the precious dessert and transport dozens of people back to their childhood with that unique sweet aroma.

"I feel like I hit the nail on the head with the product at the right moment and in the right place for tourists to enjoy as well"

Where: Honduras 4141. Thursday to Sunday from 2 pm to 7 pm.