The best Brazillian food I had during my trip to Rio. Walked in and this place was packed with…read morelocals. It had a good charm about it. We were seated and ordered the cod fish ball which was delicious and the brazillian lamb with broccoli rice and potatoes - this dish was the highlight meal of our entire 10 day trip. The lamb is baked for 8-10 hrs and then deep fried to give it the perfect texture and bring out all the flavors that are balanced by the broccoli rice and garlic potatoes. We also tried their Colorado beer and it paired very well with the meal. Service was quick and if I would return to Brazil, i would definitely stop by here again without a doubt. Highly recommend this gem of a place.

Yelp Review 2025 #204:…read more Nova Capela is one of Rio's oldest restaurants. It's located in the Lapa neighborhood. They serve traditional Brazilian food. This restaurant can get pretty busy in the afternoon to evening so, the best strategy is to come here as soon as they open. When I went, it seemed like the diners were locals and a few tourists. I looked up this restaurant before coming here so I can narrow down what I wanted to try. Fish or chicken filet with broccoli rice was the plan. But that's not what I ended up getting! Octopus: I love octopus so, I had to get it. Tender, perfectly cooked. Not heavily seasoned so you can fully enjoy its natural flavor. 4/5 Bolinho Bacalhau: When in Brazil or Portugal, you have to get bacalhau. Salted cod fritter without being salty. You get some crunch while the inside is soft without being dry. 4/5 Just the right amount of food so I can try more than one dish. Satisfying lunch. This is a very homey small casual restaurant. Service was good. Just wave somebody over if you need something. You must try this place!

If you're looking for a good cold beer (great variety of craft brazilian beers) near the port area…read moreand near the pedra do sal's samba or for a good lunch this place is a no brainer. Menu is really great and this "boteco" is always competing for the "comida di buteco" award.

The best Portuguese restaurant in the neighborhood. Owned by a famous Portuguese, the food is…read moreincredible for a fair price the amazing quality.

While I was very excited to try this place out, I have to admit that I came away a bit…read moredisappointed. The feel is very authentic and I enjoyed pouring over the menu, however the food took over an hour to be prepared even though we were the only customers in the restaurant. I ordered their signature dish (Amazonian fish wrapped in leaves). Unfortunately, there were only a few bites of fish. The rest was kasava, which is not my favorite. The leaves didn't add much in the way of flavor. The drinks we're fine but oversweetened. There were a few bright spots. The banana veggie curry was unexpectedly good and different than anything I've tasted and they make a good ceviche.

I could not speak more highly of this restaurant. From the decor, to the drinks, to the food -…read moreplantains with crab meat?! - to the servers to the wonderful people we met at the restaurant itself, closing it down then going out, Espirito should be high on your list of restaurants to visit in rio. Located in the much quieter area of Santa Teresa but near the best bar scene (if you like less club more grunge) in the city in Lapa, it is essentially the opposite of one of the big steak houses you will probably also eat at (and should by the way). We became close friends with a guy that "sort of" works there named Diego who hung out with us in Lapa afterward and showed us a side of the city that we would never had seen. Enjoy! The fish is particularly good and Gabriela was my favorite drink...

Ambiance: 5/5: The restaurant looks small from the outside but they have seating indoors and…read moreupstairs. It feels local and homey. Service: 5/5: Our waiter checked on us often. Food: 5/5: Food here was delicious. Loved the feijoada. Food tasted like it was homemade Drinks: 4/5: Drinks were good. We had local beer, Caipirinha, and flavored lemonade. Definitely would come back

Wonderful spot to stop by for drinks and / or food in Santa Teresa! Bar do Mineiro was already…read morebookmarked before I visited and was also recommended by a guide or two from previous days of exploring in RJ. I was unaware / distracted when I had walked past it one day when I was with a tour group. We had pão de queijo at the little shack across the street. When I was back in Santa Teresa on my final day in RJ, I knew I had to make it here! I was there for a late lunch / early dinner. It was not packed like it shows in some of the Yelp fotos which was actually nice for me. That meant no wait to be seated. I had a lovely view facing the outside - I love the restaurant's decor as everywhere you looked, there was something unique and interesting to see and having the giant open windows / doors at the front provide a nice outside-in atmosphere. From the tables, to the items on the tables - love the vibe. What I ordered: - Pastels (the ones I saw in everyone's fotos on Yelp - I wasn't sure which ones they were on the menu, but I pointed them out to my waiter. He said it usually comes in many pieces and because I was alone, he could do fewer pieces for me I think). ***these are a MUST! my favorite thing I ate here*** - Feijoada (again, because I was dining alone, the feijoada for 1 would have been too much food for me if I had that AND the pasteis - my waiter made me a smaller portion where it all came on one plata). Still sooo much food, haha. I tried my best to eat everything before I left, but eventually had to ask for a togo container (they placed my food in this lovely bag with the restaurants name and logo and I was able to enjoy this later that evening). It was good, but I think the first time I try something in Brazil it has alway been the best (this was my 2nd time trying feijoada, still really good!) - Colorado Appia cerveja (this has to be my favorite beer in Brazil!) I found out that I had snatched the last bottle of the day. I really would have wanted to try a lot more things but alas, one of the cons of going out alone... I guess I could have ordered another thing togo since I had a leftovers bag. During the time I was there, I really liked my waiter as he did help me a lot with knowing what I wanted to order. He knew a little English as well so that was awesome. I ended up chatting and meeting the owner and this lady who I think was maybe his wife or really good friend unknowingly as they sat at the two-person table next to mine. The lady was very welcoming and chatted with me a little - asked me where I was from. The owner who is this really cute older man was just so humble and you can really tell a lot of friends go to visit and support his business. As I was about to head out to do more exploring, there was another solo traveler who had came in minutes before, later moved tables to sit closer to mine as it was easier to chat vs. from across the pathway. He had ordered something similar to me I think but it looked like more food... it may have been frango with a side of feijoada? Looked great! All in all, absolute fantastic time here! Will definitely come back here and hopefully I'll have a bigger party so I can try more items off the menu, haha. On my way out, I asked the owner if I could take a foto with him and he said he was okay with it! :] Thank you for existing, Bar do Mineiro!

Literally a few "steps" away from the steps where Snoop Dogg & Pharrell shot the Beautiful video…read more And they accept credit/debit cards if you're like me & never carry cash. The menu they have there is both in Portuguese & English so you know what you are ordering. Being a vistor I wanted to try something I couldn't have at home & I can't say Ive seeing any Antarctica beer so I ordered one of those. It comes in a 600ml bottle. It was pretty easy because there was a picture hanging on the wall that I could point to instead of ordering the typical mojito. The Antarctica was pretty good, it was similar tasting to a Corona but a bit better. It was more than enough that I didn't require a second bottle. For my entree I ordered the chicken fried steak. Pretty much chicken cooked steak style. It also came with rice, French fries, black beans & some kind of couscous with scrambled egg. All of it was delicious. The party next to me had some spicy sauce from a water bottle that the restaurant gave them but it's not for the light hearted it was pretty hot. I was not the biggest fan of the couscous but outside of that a great experience. They never rush you after you finish your meal which makes a great experience.

Typical ENORMOUS Brazilian portion sizes. The Feijoada has good flavor (the sun dried beef was a…read morebit too salty though) and the texture of farofa has a great crispy grainy texture.

The prices are fair, and the portions are huge. I eat a lot and I shared my dish with a friend and…read morewe both were full. I had the kiwi caiperhnha, great choice, I want to try the mango one next time. Everything was fresh and natural, the meat was well seasoned. I went back that same night to drink some "original" beer.

I will still give this place a five stars despite the difficulty of effective communication...we…read moredidn't understand a word of Portuguese so you can imagine the amounts of "obrigados" we exchanged. We order empanadas do queso and camaron....outstanding to say in the least. Plus their hot salsa is fire!! Very spicy and delish! They recommended their national drink "caipirinha." Outstanding! I'm a cheap drunk so one was enough and it was strong!