This was my second visit to Nabrasa in Tooting, the first being within moments of my discovery that there was halal rodizio in London. My first visit was better (they had sliced mango then), but the second visit was good enough to warrant a third in the near future.
Brazilian rodizio is--hands down--my favourite food, taking me to the pinnacle of meat-eating nirvana. I have been to more churrascaria joints than I can count on all my fingers and toes, carving and gnawing my way across the US and South America in pursuit of the perfect Picanha. Did I find it at Nabrasa? No, if I am honest. It wasn't perfect, but it was quite good--and impossible to find elsewhere as a halal option.
Before I get into my experience here, I want to clarify something for anyone with complaints about the salt content. Salt and garlic are virtually the only ingredients in true rodizio seasoning. Not just salt, but coarse ROCK salt, encrusted across the meat and only lightly undusted with the sweep of a hand before putting the meat over coals. It is also blanketed in fat to keep the meat from drying out. This is where the halal factor sort of precariously balances on its knife tip. Nabrasa does a very good job of attempting to circumvent dryness and proportion the sodium against meat that is very hard to find in halal form, let alone graded for rodizio (and without the traditional method of draping fatty pork over cuts to keep them succulent). For this, I applaud them.
Here's my breakdown:
The good: The chicken, sausage, and Picanha (ask for the fatty bits) are amazing. In general, the beef dishes are winners, and the rodizio pineapple is perfect.
From the salad bar: the olives, mushrooms, and cherry tomatoes are excellent.
The not-so-good: The lamb is pretty heavy in the dry zone and sometimes it is evident that meat has been circulating and reheated multiple times. I stick with the beef and sausage, but my husband who doesn't eat either wasn't impressed with the lamb.
Also, despite a heavy list of meats offered on the paper placemat, several weren't in circulation either time I visited.
The bad: The removal of mango from the salad selection shouldn't have happened. There has to be a cool, fresh option to offset the sodium. If mango is too expensive for a buffet, at least put out some decent sliced oranges--anything.
The mocktails are wildly overpriced.
And lastly, have a Brazilian dipping sauce! Nabrasa is the first rodizio I have ever been to without a basic chimichuri sauce, which is, frankly, a staple and an absolute shame (tsk, tsk).
As a halal venue I give Nabrassa 4 stars. In reality, if it was truly up against its non-halal counterparts, it would be in the 2.5 star range. But it is halal, so four stars it gets. read more