The first time I went to Adega Pérola it was a Thursday night and it was busy! We put our names down on the list and had to wait 15 minutes for a seat, but it was definitely worth the wait.

The walls are lined with huge bottles of wine (best avoided), but the real attraction is the long, glass-panelled bar that runs along the left side of the room. Behind the glass panels you will see dozens of mouth-watering delights, mostly hailing from Portugal and Spain – pérolas do mar (an amazing marinated seafood dish), several different varieties of escabeche, marinated octopus, half a dozen different varieties of olive, fava beans, anchovies, rollmop herrings, the list goes on and on.

Adega Pérola is a great place to share – many of the dishes are served in 100g portions (roughly measured out onto small plates) – pick 2 or 3, order a basket of bread and enjoy with a few beers (or try the spicy caipirinhas, laced with chilli!). Sharing also helps spread the bill – at R$20 for 100g of octopus, the bill can grow quickly!

Address: Rua Siqueira Campos, 138 – Copacabana (map link)

Website: N/A