Confitería Torres has been operating on the Alameda since 1879, making it the oldest restaurant still functioning in its original location in Santiago. It looks it — in the best way. The carved wooden bar, the tiled floors, the mirrors, and the high ceilings are largely intact, and the menu is an exercise in Chilean classics executed with the consistency that comes from 140 years of practice.
Order the cazuela de vacuno (beef broth with vegetables) or the pastel de choclo (a corn-topped meat pie that is one of the defining dishes of Chilean home cooking). The desserts are earnest rather than refined, which is also true of much of the food here. It is not the most sophisticated restaurant in the city but it is, arguably, the most historically significant. Lunch only on weekdays; check weekend hours.