Next to the Metro station in Botafogo, I have recently noticed a little line of stalls selling burgers and hotdogs. Not especially interesting in itself – Rio is full snack bars and street stalls. But this sign caught my eye.
As the burgers get bigger, so the names get more impressive. "Big" (2 patties), "Tri" (3), "Mega" (4) and "Montanha" (5!). "Montanha" means Mountain in case you hadn't worked it out. Also notice the rather excellent signs behind saying "Fala Comigo!!!" (Speak to me!) and "Parada Obrigatoria!" (Stopping Required!).
Back in my England days there was one thing you could almost always rely on: somewhere in my fridge you would find half a lemon. Always half a lemon. When you have a whole lemon, there are all kinds of uses (for half of it) – squeeze it over some fish, slice it for drinks, the list goes on… But what about the other half? That would sit in my fridge for days, slowly shrinking and shrivelling and becoming increasingly useless.
Here in Brazil things are different – we have limes! Aren’t limes great? Not only do they have an amazingly fragrant, tangy, zingy flavour, but they are just the right size! You won’t find half a lime in my Brazilian fridge.
But what about lemons? Here in Brazil (in Rio at least) they seem to be very rare. After learning that the Portuguese for lime is limão, I wondered what the word for lemon was. The answer? Limão. Huh? “You use the same word for both lemons and limes?” I asked incredulously. It was like the moment I found out that Portuguese (and Spanish) uses the same word for fingers and toes! (Dedos).
Well, that is the simple answer anyway. In fact there is a way to distinguish between your limões (and your dedos). You get specific.
Apparently these limes are from Tahiti! Well, I guess the variety is at least. These particularly large and firm limes are very handy if you want to make yourself a decent-sized caipirinha - the extra juice will ensure that you can still walk after you've polished it off.
https://eatrio.net/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/eat-rio-logo.png00tomlemeshttps://eatrio.net/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/eat-rio-logo.pngtomlemes2012-05-29 16:23:392012-05-29 16:23:39Lemon-Lime confusion in Brazil
Remember I was talking about Comida di Buteco recently? Well today I thought I’d tell you about one of the participants that I visited recently. Bar do David is located in Chapeu Mangueira, a favela in the neighbourhood of Leme, right next to Copacabana. It has been on the ‘favela food map’ for a while now, renowned for its excellent food, in particular a seafood feijoada.
So, last weekend we decided to go and see what all the fuss was about. The idea of seafood feijoada had already piqued my curiosity and when I realised it was involved in the Comida di Buteco competition I had one more reason to go!
One of the best favela restaurants in Rio, Bar do David is situated in Chapéu Mangueira, not a million miles from Copacabana.
https://eatrio.net/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/eat-rio-logo.png00tomlemeshttps://eatrio.net/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/eat-rio-logo.pngtomlemes2012-05-12 16:55:462024-01-23 19:15:06Great food in a favela: Bar do David
Back in 1999, a guy called Eduardo Maya came up with an excellent idea. Eduardo has a rather inspiring story I think – a native of Rio, he spent some of his adolescence living in London during which time he developed an interest in food. After graduating in Mathematics, he moved back to Brazil to work a job in finance (we haven’t got to the inspiring bit yet, that’s coming up next).
After some time, Eduardo realised that he didn’t want to work in finance anymore and somehow landed himself a job hosting a culinary themed radio show (I had no idea such things even existed!). And then came his idea: A competition between all the botecos (bars) in the town of Belo Horizonte, state capital of Minas Gerais, where he was working at the time. The competition was dubbed Comida di Buteco.
Eduardo Maya. Chucked in his job in finance and decided to do something he loved. Seems like it worked out well for him. When I look into those spooky eyes though, I'm just glad he decided to use his powers for good...
https://eatrio.net/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/eat-rio-logo.png00tomlemeshttps://eatrio.net/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/eat-rio-logo.pngtomlemes2012-05-09 00:35:382012-05-09 00:37:28The great Brazilian bar food competition
One of the first things that many people want to do when they arrive in Rio, is try a genuine caipirinha (cai-pi-REE-nya). I was exactly the same when I got here – I had indulged in Brazil’s most famous cocktail many times in England, but now I wanted to know what a real one tasted like.
In the two years that have since passed, I have been researching this topic with (ahem) diligence and dedication and today I will share with you some of my findings.
1. Caipirinhas don’t necessarily contain cachaça
When you order a caipirinha in Rio, it is quite normal for your waiter to ask “With cachaça?”. The first time this happened I was confused. Would he ask me if I wanted gin in my gin and tonic? The reason is that many people here have their caipirinhas made with vodka instead of cachaça. “Aha!”, I hear you say, “But that is called a caipiroska (or caipivodka). A caipirinha, by definition, is made with cachaça”. Personally, I agree with you – it’s just that most of the waiters and bar staff in Rio don’t. Every so often, if you don’t specify, a caipivodka will arrive. Don’t say I didn’t warn you!
https://eatrio.net/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/eat-rio-logo.png00tomlemeshttps://eatrio.net/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/eat-rio-logo.pngtomlemes2012-05-06 22:46:592018-08-10 13:02:305 things you should know about Caipirinhas
