This is Paradise; awesome beach, spectacular views and dine under the trees. The Moqueca of Róbalo…read moreis one of the best fish stews with coconut ever. The Crab and the shrimps Paste (turnover / empanadas) are also delicious, as well as the fried fresh fish chunks with local mustard sauce. The Caipirinha also wonderfully done. Truly lunch in paradise. Although service was friendly, just make sure they don't get charged your American credit card in USD, charge in Brazilian Reais (better exchange). We could have stayed there all day. Truly worthwhile. What a gem. We don't have this in Miami.

If you're a surfer, friends with a surfer, or simply enjoy watching surfers, this Prainha…read morerestaurant is ideal. The reason for the surfing reference has to do with the fact that's located at the top of a small beach popular amongst wave riders so whether you're going after a great day or simply going to enjoy the view, it's a great spot. Located at a gorgeous lookout along Prainha beach, Mirante da Praia offers a great caipirinha along with some seafood and staple Brazilian snacks. The drive from Rio is relatively easy and will take you about 40 min to an hour by car. Once you leave Rio, you're mostly driving along the coast, so the beaches you'll pass along the way are picture-perfect. While fish is the thing, our table didn't really enjoy ours. It came out slightly raw and rather unimpressive in flavor. The shrimp pastels were excellent and the fried yuca was nice too. This place is ideal for an afternoon gazing upon the water, eating a shrimp pastel and drinking a caipirinha.

I've driven by this place a few times before and was always curious. I was out in Grumari the other…read moreday and decided to give it a go. I'd like to say it's worth the trip and was excellent, but it fell a bit short of the mark in several ways. This restaurant is located on the top of a hill along a windy, narrow road. As a result, the views are spectacular - you can see the mountains, the ocean, and lots of lush green forest. The main dish served seems to be the grilled seafood plate. We ordered that but started with the ceviche. Frankly the ceviche was a disappointment. The portion size was very small, and while the presentation was excellent and full of color, it had almost no flavor. I'm used to ceviche with a lot of acidity from the lime juice, but this one tasted like they used processed lemon juice, the kind you'd buy in the U.S. in the little yellow plastic bottle. Pass on it. The seafood dish was very good. It could easily serve 3 people, maybe 4. It comes with rice, a lettuce/arugula mix, potatoes, melted butter with capers and mushrooms and shrimp. There are two options for the seafood dish, with or without lobster. It came with 2 lobsters (they were halved), shrimp, mussels, octopus, calamari, and fish. The flavors were all excellent, except for the mussels. They just didn't taste right. I found a bone or something in my calamari too, it looked like plastic. Maybe it was. Unfortunately there was just too much food for 2 people, so we didn't eat it all. The real downer was the price: about R$250. It's good, but I didn't think it was *that* good. The menu is pretty big so you have lots of options. Grumari is an excellent beach and a good place to spend the day, so I'd recommend stopping in if you're in the mood for some seafood. It's also good for groups because there's lots of seating. A guy was playing the guitar and singing when we were there, so the ambiance is nice, but it's all open-air. If it's cold outside you're going to need a coat. Overall OK, but I don't recommend making a trip out here just for this place. Oh, one more thing, there is a dude in the parking lot who "helps" you park. You're supposed to tip him. R$2 should be fine.

Looking for the best seafood, here's the restaurant with fantastic views, you're almost envelope…read moreand wrapped around by natural environment, ocean, lakes. Trees and mountains are your surrounding. Full wine bar, their caipirinha of maracuya (passion fruit) is top of the line, best grilled seafood

Wow. This is a true gem…read more Quinta is WAAAAYYYYYY off the beaten path in Rio, you really have to make a whole trip just for the restaurant, but they know they're a destination, and they make it feel like it's a resort, so you can really just spend the whole afternoon and evening here if you want. First of all, the restaurant is kind of off into the countryside outside of Barra/Recreio, so you feel like you're totally leaving the city. It is on a property that is completely walled in, with a gate, and only a very small sign saying what it is. When you get to the gate, there is a porteiro who radios in your name (I'm pretty sure reservations are required), and then opens the gate for you. After parking, you walk along a beautiful garden path that leads past a lovely outdoor sitting area and on up the the restaurant. The restaurant occupies two different buildings, with a patio area and a pond between them (yes there are turtles in the pond!!). When you get to your table, it doesn't just have a "reserved" card on it, it actually has a very elegant name card with the name of the person who made the reservation printed in beautiful font (it looks like hand made calligraphy, but further inspection proved it to be printed). I had their feijoada, but the menu was full of great Brazilian dishes, with a focus on seafood. The drinks were great, and the service was exceptional. If you're looking for a very special meal, definitely come here. We went on a Sunday, and "aproveitamos" the fact that we were all the way out there to go to Grumari, which is a very out of the way and wonderful remote beach, for the rest of the afternoon.

An excellent restaurant located in recreio. The restaurant has excellent ambiance with glowing…read morelights above, live, music, and exceptional service. Our waiter Rafael did an exceptional job. We ordered pastel, a cashew caipirinha, Moscow mule, and escondidinho (the pumpkin dish). The pumpkin dish was exceptional and worth coming to this restaurant for alone. Unfortunately, I'll be leaving the area, but if I'm ever back in the area, I'll be sure to make it back.