annika hagen

in the two months i spent here in brazil earlier this year, i enjoyed many a day eating mouthwatering churrasco cooked by jorge, his family or friends hosting us at their homes. (most houses here are complete with their own permanent outdoor bbq that certainly rivals our flimsy rolling devices). but.... i had never yet visited a proper brazilian churrascaria. yesterday was my lucky day! on our way out of são paulo headed back home, and on appropriately starving appetites, jorge and i went to a now world-renown, authentic brazilian steakhouse called Fogo de Chão (fo-go dèe shoun), or ground fire. feast your eyes on the smorgasbord of awesomeness. notice the gaucho dressed waiters! i only noticed their pants after slowing down on the meal, so many distractions! favorite cut: the picanha (rump cut), least favorite: chicken hearts. salad favorites: palmito! dessert: fried banana! drink: why of course a caipirinha! 

(bottom middle) the old way of doing it, hence "fire on the floor", (right) the best picanha!

(left) sausage and chicken hearts, (right) delicious picks from the salad bar

done like dinner and a fried banana

 waiter's gaucho outfit

last night we drove up into the hills outside of ribeirão preto to have churrasco (bbq) at the home of one of jorge's clients' and farmers of an organic buffalo dairy. as we reached the stunning container house, the dark cloud that followed our car along the road opened up and dumped a lake of water over us. lashing winds and rain did not put this fire out! there was buffalo meat to eat! it was a special celebratory event (as the owners of farm and the hosts of the evening insist) that my arrival into brazil had fortuitous properties, as their third daughter was born on the eve of my landing. the last time i touched down in brazil, jorge's twin's daughter was born on the following day. a delightful suspicion and one i will happily entertain when there is a feast as delicious as this to follow.

here are pictures of the house when the sky isn't black with rain...

a dinner i won't soon forget... incredible. the setting alone, impossible to capture a worthy picture of the giant fig tree that nestles the figueira patio under it's tremendous canopy. epic.

http://www.rubaiyat.com.br/restaurantes/figueira-rubaiyat