http://www.bardojuarez.com.br/
Av. Presidente Juscelino Kubitschek, 1164
Itaim Bibi (also locations in Moema, Brooklin, and Pinheiros)
You can't get more boteca than this. My friends and I were entertaining an out-of-town guest and wanted to take him the "most Brazilan" place we knew. Bar do Juarez was it.
We had a hankering for picanha, and the sizzle didn't disappoint. The beer is cold, the atmosphere is bustling (sitting on the sidewalk, fumes are free), and the fried foods don't stop coming. If you're a vegetarian, there are not too many options other than Palmito Pastels...but the picanha is so tasty you might just change your mind!
Showing posts with label itaim bibi. Show all posts
Showing posts with label itaim bibi. Show all posts
Sunday, January 31, 2010
Monday, November 9, 2009
Ping Pong (Itaim Bibi)
Ping Pong
Rua Lopes Neto, 15
Itaim Bibi
I'd been wanting to try out this dim sum restaurant for while...ever since I read a review of it on Alexandra Forbes' blog, Brazil for Insiders. Finally, last weekend, some friends and I finally met for a late lunch at the new eatery.
The menu is fun...especially the drinks. With ingredients like lemongrass and goji berries, the non-alcoholic drinks are original and refreshing. On a hot day, they're perfect. They also have "flowering" teas and a menu of party-named cocktails. It would be a shame to order water or Coke in this place!
We were starving when we sat down, so we ordered some wasabi peas and candied pecans to start. We were all being very polite with how much we took, but I think each of us could have eaten the entire bowls all alone!
But on to the dumplings...we each chose two dishes and shared them among the four of us. Our favorites were the seafood sticky rice, the pork shu mai, prawn toast, and the grilled pork. The only problem we had was that each order came with only 3 "unidades", or pieces. So, we suggest only bringing 2 friends with you to lunch. (Or some multiple of 3!) Needless to say, we ordered more when the first round was done. The meal was so tasty...flavors you don't get to eat everywhere in Brasil.
The restaurant itself is chic and beautiful...very modern and sleek. The chairs are actually stools, and they come with a little shelf underneath on which to put your purse. The service was quick and friendly. You can even sit at the bar and watch the chefs at work.
My only gripe is that it is a bit pricey...we each spent about $50 for lunch...not THAT bad, but the portions are small and you'll want to eat a lot! The waiter suggested to order 4-5 dishes per person...and if you're hungry, that's not a bad suggestion.
We left the restaurant talking about how we would come back soon. :)
Rua Lopes Neto, 15
Itaim Bibi
I'd been wanting to try out this dim sum restaurant for while...ever since I read a review of it on Alexandra Forbes' blog, Brazil for Insiders. Finally, last weekend, some friends and I finally met for a late lunch at the new eatery.
The menu is fun...especially the drinks. With ingredients like lemongrass and goji berries, the non-alcoholic drinks are original and refreshing. On a hot day, they're perfect. They also have "flowering" teas and a menu of party-named cocktails. It would be a shame to order water or Coke in this place!
We were starving when we sat down, so we ordered some wasabi peas and candied pecans to start. We were all being very polite with how much we took, but I think each of us could have eaten the entire bowls all alone!
But on to the dumplings...we each chose two dishes and shared them among the four of us. Our favorites were the seafood sticky rice, the pork shu mai, prawn toast, and the grilled pork. The only problem we had was that each order came with only 3 "unidades", or pieces. So, we suggest only bringing 2 friends with you to lunch. (Or some multiple of 3!) Needless to say, we ordered more when the first round was done. The meal was so tasty...flavors you don't get to eat everywhere in Brasil.
The restaurant itself is chic and beautiful...very modern and sleek. The chairs are actually stools, and they come with a little shelf underneath on which to put your purse. The service was quick and friendly. You can even sit at the bar and watch the chefs at work.
My only gripe is that it is a bit pricey...we each spent about $50 for lunch...not THAT bad, but the portions are small and you'll want to eat a lot! The waiter suggested to order 4-5 dishes per person...and if you're hungry, that's not a bad suggestion.
We left the restaurant talking about how we would come back soon. :)
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Cachoeira Tropical (Itaim Bibi)
Cachoeira Tropical
Rua Joao Cachoeira 275
http://www.cachoeiratropical.com.br/restaurante.htm
Carol, Mary, and I ventured to Itaim to eat brunch in this all-you-can-eat vegetarian buffet restaurant on the recommendation of Carol's dentist, who works in the area. For a place that looks like it belongs in a hospital or high school cafeteria, this restaurant kind of surprised me. Most of all, I was psyched for Mary, who is a vegetarian...it was a great choice for her in this meat-centered city.
It really doesn't look like much from the outside OR inside. A little dingy, old furniture...something from the 80s. But head into the second room towards the back, and...there's the food (same furniture and bad lighting, unfortunately). Two full buffet counters of vegetarian food...one whole side of salad stuff (including veggie sushi), and one whole side of beans, rice, feijoada (carrots and brussel sprouts!), and various meat-substitute items. Plus, there's a "hot food" table with pastas, veggie kibe, pizza, and surprisingly good and spicy veggie sausage.
This place was CROWDED. And interestingly enough, thre were people pf ALL ages in the restaurant...a lot of OLD people, plus young hipsters, families, and lots of kids. (Kids under 8 eat for 1/2 price, by the way.)
My opinion:if you have 15 Reals, this is the place to spend it. All you can eat, HEALTHY, filling, hearty, and mostly tasty eats. Drinks (filtered water, natural juice, coffee, tea) are included, as is the entire dessert buffet (fresh fruit, cakes, puddings, and fresh ice cream). I don't know if I would be rushing back there anytime soon without a vegetarian friend to take...but if you have non-meater in your life AND/OR you are on a budget, this is the place to go.
Rua Joao Cachoeira 275
http://www.cachoeiratropical.com.br/restaurante.htm
Carol, Mary, and I ventured to Itaim to eat brunch in this all-you-can-eat vegetarian buffet restaurant on the recommendation of Carol's dentist, who works in the area. For a place that looks like it belongs in a hospital or high school cafeteria, this restaurant kind of surprised me. Most of all, I was psyched for Mary, who is a vegetarian...it was a great choice for her in this meat-centered city.
It really doesn't look like much from the outside OR inside. A little dingy, old furniture...something from the 80s. But head into the second room towards the back, and...there's the food (same furniture and bad lighting, unfortunately). Two full buffet counters of vegetarian food...one whole side of salad stuff (including veggie sushi), and one whole side of beans, rice, feijoada (carrots and brussel sprouts!), and various meat-substitute items. Plus, there's a "hot food" table with pastas, veggie kibe, pizza, and surprisingly good and spicy veggie sausage.
This place was CROWDED. And interestingly enough, thre were people pf ALL ages in the restaurant...a lot of OLD people, plus young hipsters, families, and lots of kids. (Kids under 8 eat for 1/2 price, by the way.)
My opinion:if you have 15 Reals, this is the place to spend it. All you can eat, HEALTHY, filling, hearty, and mostly tasty eats. Drinks (filtered water, natural juice, coffee, tea) are included, as is the entire dessert buffet (fresh fruit, cakes, puddings, and fresh ice cream). I don't know if I would be rushing back there anytime soon without a vegetarian friend to take...but if you have non-meater in your life AND/OR you are on a budget, this is the place to go.
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Nam Thai (Itaim Bibi)
Nam Thai
Rua Manuel Guedes, 444
Itaim Bibi
http://www.namthai.com.br
As far as I know, there isn't a huge Thai population in SP. Which is unfortunate, b/c I love Thai food! The rich, intense, and explosive flavors of Thai food just don't exist in Brazilian cuisine, so I couldn't wait to experience different tastes for a change. I had heard from folks that Thai food in SP was expensive, but really, it's not that much more than you would spend in any other upscale restaurant...and until there is a dive-y Thai place in SP, the fancy place will have to do.
Again, another case of the restaurant itself being really modern and beautiful. There's a bar and a small seating area where you can wait for your table. There's a also a private-ish back room where we ended up sitting with our table of 8. We felt like we were having our own little dinner party, which was great, but it also might have been nice to feel the energy and buzz of the main room.
While we went during Restaurant Week, the menu was quite limited, and since it was a special occasion, we were ready to splurge a little and order off the actual menu. We started out with what they called "Dim Sum" on the menu, but were really just dumplings. No different than any gyoza dumplings you would get a sushi rodizio, and at 8 reals for 2 of them, not really worth it.
Janhavi and split 2 dishes...Pad Thai w/Shrimp (the dish by which I pretty much judge all Thai restaurants...if they can't do that, what CAN they do????), and Beef Massaman. I was shocked at how big the portions were! We could barely finish both dishes between the two of us, and I think we did so only because we felt so guilty leaving the food on the plate with all its glorious flavor! We did have to ask for lots of extra white rice (not a standard accompaniment in these parts, I guess) to soak up the sauce. The Massaman was extremely flavorful and rich, although I do wish it had more potatoes and carrots along with the beef. The Pad Thai was good with a little lime on top, and while it wasn't the BEST Pad Thai I have ever had, it totally passed the test. Again, it was a joy to have those flavors again!
Cristina had the Tom Kha Soup (again, a dish by which I judge an entire restaurant). Extremely flavorful, but did not appear to be strained in any way from all of the bits you DON'T eat in the soup. Probably something you would want to share rather than eat an entire bowl -- definitely big enough to do so!
All in all, Nam Thai gave me hope for non-Japanese Asian food in this city. I am anxious to try other places to compare and report back.
Rua Manuel Guedes, 444
Itaim Bibi
http://www.namthai.com.br
As far as I know, there isn't a huge Thai population in SP. Which is unfortunate, b/c I love Thai food! The rich, intense, and explosive flavors of Thai food just don't exist in Brazilian cuisine, so I couldn't wait to experience different tastes for a change. I had heard from folks that Thai food in SP was expensive, but really, it's not that much more than you would spend in any other upscale restaurant...and until there is a dive-y Thai place in SP, the fancy place will have to do.
Again, another case of the restaurant itself being really modern and beautiful. There's a bar and a small seating area where you can wait for your table. There's a also a private-ish back room where we ended up sitting with our table of 8. We felt like we were having our own little dinner party, which was great, but it also might have been nice to feel the energy and buzz of the main room.
While we went during Restaurant Week, the menu was quite limited, and since it was a special occasion, we were ready to splurge a little and order off the actual menu. We started out with what they called "Dim Sum" on the menu, but were really just dumplings. No different than any gyoza dumplings you would get a sushi rodizio, and at 8 reals for 2 of them, not really worth it.
Janhavi and split 2 dishes...Pad Thai w/Shrimp (the dish by which I pretty much judge all Thai restaurants...if they can't do that, what CAN they do????), and Beef Massaman. I was shocked at how big the portions were! We could barely finish both dishes between the two of us, and I think we did so only because we felt so guilty leaving the food on the plate with all its glorious flavor! We did have to ask for lots of extra white rice (not a standard accompaniment in these parts, I guess) to soak up the sauce. The Massaman was extremely flavorful and rich, although I do wish it had more potatoes and carrots along with the beef. The Pad Thai was good with a little lime on top, and while it wasn't the BEST Pad Thai I have ever had, it totally passed the test. Again, it was a joy to have those flavors again!
Cristina had the Tom Kha Soup (again, a dish by which I judge an entire restaurant). Extremely flavorful, but did not appear to be strained in any way from all of the bits you DON'T eat in the soup. Probably something you would want to share rather than eat an entire bowl -- definitely big enough to do so!
All in all, Nam Thai gave me hope for non-Japanese Asian food in this city. I am anxious to try other places to compare and report back.
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Aoyama Temaki Hall (Itaim Bibi)
Aoyama Temaki Hall
Rua Adolfo Tabacow, 269
Itaim Bibi
no website
This place was such a find that the first time I went, I returned less than 3 days later. I have to admit, the only reason we went in the first place was because its "big sister" sushi restaurant (Aoyama, around the corner on Mario Ferraz) was packed and we did not feel like waiting. That's not to say that sometimes there isn't a wait out the door (the restaurant doesn't have THAT many tables, although there is an upstairs and there's room for about 10 at the "sushi counter"), but on that particular evening, we sat down right away.
I guess the thing to do here is the rodizio (that's Portuguese for "all-you-can-eat"). You can order as many temaki rolls as you want, and then all of this other stuff comes with it, too. Tiny little fried spring rolls (veggie), guioza (pork dumplings), and a tray of assorted sushi-like (but kind of unidentifiable) items. And you can't forget about the near perfect and refreshing marinated cucumber salad (which I saw an entire family drown in soy sauce...gross!). But my advice is really to save room for the temaki rolls.
If you are a vegetarian, or if you don't eat raw fish, you are in luck here. There's grilled salmon, shimeji (mushroom), kani (fake crab), and pepino (cucumber) temaki. There are some weird choices, too...like mixing different fish with mayonaise, and even one with salmon, strawberries, and whipped cream. When I gave the sushi guy an interested look about the strawberry one, he shook his head at me in warning to stay away. I did.
There are also some combinations that come mixed with cream cheese. Unless you REALLY love cream cheese, either stay away or ask for "um poco de cream cheese"....just a little. They oblige, and it's actually pretty good. Like what you would get on a bagel, but wrapped inseaweed instead.
I really enjoyed (and am, in fact, craving right now) the straight up salmon and ginger, peixe branco (white fish with drops of lime, camarao (shrimp), and california roll (it's really pretty, too). Fresh, tasty, healthy.
***Only thing that weirded me out was that there was not one single Asian employee in the whole restaurant -- not even the guys making the temaki rolls! I made the comment to Janhavi, "I hope there's some really old Japanese man in the back telling everyone what to do in here!".
The service is quick and friendly. Can't wait to go back again.
Rua Adolfo Tabacow, 269
Itaim Bibi
no website
This place was such a find that the first time I went, I returned less than 3 days later. I have to admit, the only reason we went in the first place was because its "big sister" sushi restaurant (Aoyama, around the corner on Mario Ferraz) was packed and we did not feel like waiting. That's not to say that sometimes there isn't a wait out the door (the restaurant doesn't have THAT many tables, although there is an upstairs and there's room for about 10 at the "sushi counter"), but on that particular evening, we sat down right away.
I guess the thing to do here is the rodizio (that's Portuguese for "all-you-can-eat"). You can order as many temaki rolls as you want, and then all of this other stuff comes with it, too. Tiny little fried spring rolls (veggie), guioza (pork dumplings), and a tray of assorted sushi-like (but kind of unidentifiable) items. And you can't forget about the near perfect and refreshing marinated cucumber salad (which I saw an entire family drown in soy sauce...gross!). But my advice is really to save room for the temaki rolls.
If you are a vegetarian, or if you don't eat raw fish, you are in luck here. There's grilled salmon, shimeji (mushroom), kani (fake crab), and pepino (cucumber) temaki. There are some weird choices, too...like mixing different fish with mayonaise, and even one with salmon, strawberries, and whipped cream. When I gave the sushi guy an interested look about the strawberry one, he shook his head at me in warning to stay away. I did.
There are also some combinations that come mixed with cream cheese. Unless you REALLY love cream cheese, either stay away or ask for "um poco de cream cheese"....just a little. They oblige, and it's actually pretty good. Like what you would get on a bagel, but wrapped inseaweed instead.
I really enjoyed (and am, in fact, craving right now) the straight up salmon and ginger, peixe branco (white fish with drops of lime, camarao (shrimp), and california roll (it's really pretty, too). Fresh, tasty, healthy.
***Only thing that weirded me out was that there was not one single Asian employee in the whole restaurant -- not even the guys making the temaki rolls! I made the comment to Janhavi, "I hope there's some really old Japanese man in the back telling everyone what to do in here!".
The service is quick and friendly. Can't wait to go back again.
Forneria Sao Paulo (Itaim Bibi)
Forneria Sao Paulo
Rua Amauri, 319
No website
I had been told that this place was kind of fancy for a pizza place, and Abby and I were freaking out just a little that our shoes wouldn't be up to par for an upscale SP crowd on a Saturday night. Not to worry, though...even though this hip and BUSY restaurant definitely attracted a trendy, young crowd, you can come as you are. Apparently, you can also bring your young children at 11 at night, too. And if you're 16 and your driver is with you, it's okay to hang out there late on a Saturday with a bunch of your high school friends.
Oh, and I don't think it's a pizza place.
I can't find a website, so you'll just have to go and check out the menu yourself. Not being a fluent Portuguese speaker (or reader, for that matter) I was looking for the PIZZA. But it seemed that there were just SANDWICHES. They are sort of like calzones, and there's 3 or 4 different kind of encasings for your 30 or so choices of "toppings". Being at the table with two vegetarians, we all opted to share two salads and one pizza-sandwich. The special salmon (grilled) salad was light and perfect. The pizza-sandwich split perfectly into 6 equal (if not small) pieces, but I really was missing a vat of marinara dipping sauce. Why can't this city get it straight that marinara sauce is delicious and should be put on everything Italian??! Especially something resembling a calzone. I am still on the search for a good red sauce to stain the front of my shirt as I slurp up spaghetti.
The prices were a little high, but the place is cool. Very modern...you feel hip just sitting there, like you are in on some cool little secret. It's a great energy, a wonderful buzz, and I am sure the place is packed until 2 am...we left just before midnight and there was a line out the door. (I also like that there's a Starbucks right across the street.)
Great dessert menu, too. We split a white chocolate mousse cake, which was served with fresh, warm chocolate sauce drizzled all over the top. I could have eaten the whole thing by myself (and then some) if there's hadn't been other people at the table digging in.
Rua Amauri, 319
No website
I had been told that this place was kind of fancy for a pizza place, and Abby and I were freaking out just a little that our shoes wouldn't be up to par for an upscale SP crowd on a Saturday night. Not to worry, though...even though this hip and BUSY restaurant definitely attracted a trendy, young crowd, you can come as you are. Apparently, you can also bring your young children at 11 at night, too. And if you're 16 and your driver is with you, it's okay to hang out there late on a Saturday with a bunch of your high school friends.
Oh, and I don't think it's a pizza place.
I can't find a website, so you'll just have to go and check out the menu yourself. Not being a fluent Portuguese speaker (or reader, for that matter) I was looking for the PIZZA. But it seemed that there were just SANDWICHES. They are sort of like calzones, and there's 3 or 4 different kind of encasings for your 30 or so choices of "toppings". Being at the table with two vegetarians, we all opted to share two salads and one pizza-sandwich. The special salmon (grilled) salad was light and perfect. The pizza-sandwich split perfectly into 6 equal (if not small) pieces, but I really was missing a vat of marinara dipping sauce. Why can't this city get it straight that marinara sauce is delicious and should be put on everything Italian??! Especially something resembling a calzone. I am still on the search for a good red sauce to stain the front of my shirt as I slurp up spaghetti.
The prices were a little high, but the place is cool. Very modern...you feel hip just sitting there, like you are in on some cool little secret. It's a great energy, a wonderful buzz, and I am sure the place is packed until 2 am...we left just before midnight and there was a line out the door. (I also like that there's a Starbucks right across the street.)
Great dessert menu, too. We split a white chocolate mousse cake, which was served with fresh, warm chocolate sauce drizzled all over the top. I could have eaten the whole thing by myself (and then some) if there's hadn't been other people at the table digging in.
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