Destination
Type of Restaurant
Type of Meal
Editors Pick
Read More¡Venga!
Fancy tapas bar with very good tapas (the octopus ones are highly recommended) in Leblon. Very crowded at peak times, so it is best to visit around noon or during the afternoon (between 3pm and 5pm).There is another outpost in...
Read MoreAlfaia
Brazil was a Portuguese colony, and the heritage is especially present in the food. This traditional Portuguese restaurant in Copacabana specializes in salted codfish (bacalhau). Don’t miss deep-fried bolinhos de bacalhau (codfish fritters). As a main course, try the “Bacalhau à patuscada”,...
Read MoreAprazível
Perched on top of Santa Teresa, Rio’s Montmartre, Aprazível is known for its dramatic views. The food is OK – and it’s expensive, but even so the place is always packed. The best way to enjoy it is to come...
Photo by Zach Weirich, courtesy IndagareRead MoreAssador Rio’s
With views of Guanabara Bay and Sugarloaf Mountain in the distance, Assador Rio’s is an authentic Brazilian steakhouse. The restaurant follows the traditional churrasco style of Brazilian barbecue, where an array of meats are cooked on large skewers over an...
Read MoreAstor
This great gastropub from the same owners of Bráz made a lot of noise when it opened in Ipanema across from the beach, after years of popularity in São Paulo. The ambiance is casual but hip, with a retro brasserie-style...
Read MoreBar dos Descasados
This is a well-hidden gem in bohemian Santa Teresa. It’s the romantic bar & lounge of the Hotel Santa Teresa, with a huge terrace and an amazing view. One of the best spots in Rio to relax, have a cocktail,...
Read MoreBaretto-Londra
Called only Londra by the locals, this is the trendy bar of the sophisticated Fasano hotel. Beautiful people, celebs and guests mingle in a classy pub-like ambiance, with top service, great music and expertly prepared cocktails. Next door is Fasano...
Read MoreBazzar Bubble Bar
The twelve-seat counter is the place to be for tapas-cum-champagne in Rio. Actually, there’s an array of options by the glass, including a sample of Brazilian best sparkling wines, like Cave Geisse’s Terroir Nature and Miolo’s Millesime Brut. A selection...
Read MoreBira
This outstanding seafood spot is located in the fishing village of Guaratiba, just outside of Rio. Expect ultra-fresh fish and seafood prepared in a number of traditional ways—mostly baked or stewed with fresh herbs and seasonings—to be enjoyed in a...
Read MoreBráz
Bráz is the perfect pizza place: a cantina-like ambiance, fun and trendy, with tasty and perfectly made pizzas. Ingredients are first class, many of them Italian. No wonder it always receives accolades from local magazines. Pizzas are neapolitan-style. Best sellers...
Read MoreCafé do Alto
Anyone visiting Rio should jump on a cab and drive up to Santa Teresa, the bohemian neighborhood par excellence, with dramatic views and lots of character. A nice option for some local flavors is Café do Alto, specialized in food...
Read MoreCeleiro
This is Rio: a restaurant which carries only organic food, served buffet-style (called “por quilo” because the plates are weighed and charged by the kilo), on the expensive side, and adored by all cariocas. It’s always an amazing and fun...
Read MoreConfeitaria Colombo
For a particularly proper high tea (and coffee), visit the centuries-old Downtown location on Rua Goncalves Dias. For a spectacular view, try the outpost at Forte de Copacabana (Forte de Copacabana; 55 (21) 3201-4049), which feels like it’s in the...
Read MoreCT Boucherie
Living in Brazil for almost thirty years, French-born chef Claude Troisgros, of the Michelin-starred Troisgros family, is the father of international cuisine in Rio, praising local ingredients and bringing out their flavors with classical techniques.
Read MoreD.R.I. Café
For sheer ambiance, nothing surpasses this lovely bistro, inside an early-20th-century mansion in Parque Lage. Walls of green, orchids and hummingbirds provide the scenery, and chef Adriana’s pão de mel (honey cake) the gustatory ecstasy.
Read MoreDa Casa da Táta
This small and homey place is perfect to try some Brazilian delicacies, like homemade cakes of carrot or cornmeal (in Portuguese, fubá, pronounced “foo-bah”), and different breads, like the ubiquitous pão de queijo (or cheese bread, a kind of cheese...
Read MoreDia Ferreira Street
This street concentrates a number of good bars and restaurants and is a great option for both lunch and dinner. Some options include: Pipo, CT Boucherie, ¡Venga!, Zuka, Brigite’s, Bottega del Vino and Chico & Alaíde.
Read MoreFasano Pool Bar
The eighth floor rooftop pool bar is only accessible to Fasano hotel guests and their friends but it is one of the best spots in the city to enjoy cocktails. The views of the beach and the city are fabulous...
Read MoreFogo de Chão
Fogo de Chão, the upscale churrascaria from Sao Paulo, is one of the city's traditional "meat temples." It serves top quality cuts, has a great salad buffet and boasts amazing views of Rio's bay. Don't miss the picanha and bottom...
Read MoreGero
Rogerio Fasano has long served as the Sirio Maccioni of São Paulo at the restaurant in his superb Fasano Hotel. The family opened this outpost in Rio to share their brand of refined Italian cuisine with the city’s food lovers....
Read MoreGiuseppe Grill
Great options from the grill (both meat and seafood), affordable wines and great ambiance make this restaurant a popular choice for tourists and “cariocas” alike. As it opens nonstop between lunch and dinner on weekends, it’s the perfect place for...
Read MoreGruta de Santo Antonio
This traditional family-owned restaurant, whose menu is focused on codfish and seafood is located in Niterói, a small city that’s about thirty minutes by car from Rio (crossing through the famous Rio-Niteroi bridge). It’s worth the drive for the expertly...
Read MoreGula Gula
For a light, lovely meal in a mid-century Ipanema beach house, try Gula Gula’s flagship restaurant in Ipanema.
Read MoreLagoon
Come here for the beautiful views of Rio’s emblematic lagoon. You can choose whether to dine in one of the six restaurants of first floor of the complex (I like Giuseppe Grill) or on the terrace, which has a selection...
Photo by Zach Weirich, courtesy IndagareRead MoreMEE Restaurant
The only pan-Asian restaurant to have been awarded a Michelin star, MEE offers a delightful fusion of Asian flavors in a sleek, modern setting inside the legendary Copacabana Palace. The menu features a wide range of dishes from various Asian...
Read MoreMil Frutas
This ice-cream parlor, adored by cariocas, is the best place to sample the huge variety of Brazilian flavors, from sweeter options to tropical and exotic fruits. Try tapioca ice cream together with a scoop of açaí or taperebá. Besides the...
Read MoreMr Lam
This buzzing Peking-style Chinese spot owned by Brazilian mogul Eike Batista is great for a fun night out. The grand dining room has a lounge feel, with its modern design in red and white in three levels – in a...
Read MoreORO
Controversial, modern, intriguing. Oro (which means “I pray” but also sounds like the word “gold”, in Portuguese) has been the talk of the town since it’s opening, in 2010. Felipe Bronze (today a kind of star chef in the country)...
Photo by Zach Weirich, courtesy IndagareRead MorePérgula
Located poolside within the iconic Copacabana Palace, Pérgula is the casual sister restaurant of the hotel’s fine dining Ristorante Hotel Cipriani, and a great spot to soak up the Carioca charm. Pérgula serves a full menu for breakfast, lunch and...
Read MorePipo
This is the new restaurant of starred chef Felipe Bronze in the bustling restaurant-lined Dias Ferreira street. An informal place, with a reduced menu (which also serves as placemats), and the objective of showcasing the chef’s work with lower priced...
Read MoreQuadrifoglio
Pioneering chef Silvana Bianchi’s hearty Northern Italian dishes, paired with a brilliant wine list, are the stars in this understated elegant setting. Her risottos are amazing.
Photo by Zach Weirich, courtesy IndagareRead MoreRistorante Hotel Cipriani
One of Rio’s most-loved restaurants, Michelin-starred Ristorante Hotel Cipriani serves Italian-international cuisine in Copacabana Palace. The opulent dining room overlooks the hotel’s iconic pool, but for guests wanting a unique dining experience, we recommend booking the “chef's table” which can...
Read MoreSatyricon
One of the top restaurants in Rio for seafood and Italian classics like tuna carpaccio, pastas and veal piccata. Satyricon draws the ladies who lunch, businessmen and foodies looking for the freshest ingredients. It’s an elegant, subdued atmosphere with excellent...
Read MoreSushi Leblon
This modern Japanese restaurant has been a hit with the city’s stylish set since it opened its doors twenty years ago. With exceptionally fresh seafood, its rolls are as fantastic as the people-watching.
Read MoreTalho Capixaba
Cariocas come here after a morning jog for strong espresso and bread that makes great build-your-own-sandwich breakfasts.
Read MoreTérèze
The main restaurant at the stylish Hotel Santa Teresa has earned the property a spot in the acclaimed Relais and Chateaux association with a great wine list and sophisticated Brazilian cuisine. If you are staying in Ipanema or Copacabana, it...
Read MoreVero
Probably the best ice cream in Rio: creamy, Italian style, with classic flavors (try the pistachio) as well as many sorbets of Brazilian fruits (like mango, guava or sapoti). Not to be missed.
Read MoreZaza Bistro
This funky multi-level restaurant in Ipanema serves delicious fusion comfort food in a typical hippie Rio environment. There are tables outside on a terrace and others on the main floor under wire chandeliers but some of the best ones are...
