My wife and I were in Brazil last week and we made the trek up to an area of Rio de Janeiro called Santa Teresa, and we were looking for a place to catch the England-Uruguay match. We were going to go to a different sports bar that was recommended to us, but we saw that it was super packed. We walked down the street and found Portella, and boy were we happy that we stumbled on this place!
Portella is nice sizable restaurant with plenty of indoor seating. It was full of color, culture, and character... we absolutely loved it! The hostess was extremely nice and was able to get us a seat closer to where there was a large screen projector that was broadcasting the games. The place was packed with locals and other soccer fans who were also there to catch the action.
We wanted to munch on some snacks and grab a few drinks, so we ordered the Torresmo (pork rinds) to munch on for an appetizer. These pork rinds were absolutely delicious - deep fried, bite sized pork rinds. They also served them with limes to add a little bit of a sour taste to them, and it was a great appetizer for less than $5 USD. For drinks, we order a tangerine caiprinha for my wife. Words to the wise - caipirinhas in Brasil are really strong drinks. They are basically Brasil's versions of margaritas. We had to ask for a lot more ice to try and water down the drink because of how strong it was! I also ordered the 600mL bottle of Bohemia beer (a Brazilian beer), which wasn't too bad, and it was a huge bottle for only about $6 USD! Not bad!
When one of our friends met up with us, we also got an order of empanadas filled with carne. This was a $18-$19 USD dish, and to had 8 empanadas on it, but they weren't that great unfortunately. This was the only sour spot to what was an otherwise, a really great experience. The game was also awesome, and the soccer fans in there were great. We got to talk to a lot of the locals and they were super nice. Definitely recommend Portella. If we ever go back to Rio, we are paying a visit to Portella. Via Brasil! read more