By Greg B. One of Mankind’s most primal instincts is to eat, and there are few better sources of energy and nutrition than meat. Meat comes in many sizes, shapes and flavors and being able to capture the individuality of the different forms that Meat takes is a skill that requires a good cook and a good butcher. As a consumer of Meat, I am always searching for better ways to cook and clean it, eating at different restaurants, preparing Meat in many different ways. But I have to say, Fogo de Chao takes Meat to a whole new level. The experience here was almost like experiencing the philosophical idea of ‘Meat”, or one of Plato’s forms of “Meat” in both quantity, quality and flavor. (Image: USCA Choice standing rib roast (2 bone). Photograph made by Michael C. Berch (User:MCB) on 2006-11-25. )

First of all, I think we should cover a little bit of some geography here. Yes yes, settle down now, you might learn something here today. A vast area of Brazil and Argentina are extremely suitable for producing cattle. This set the stage for a restaurant to open up in the gaucho tradition of cattlemen (caballeros), known as a churrasco. Based on good quality meat, good customer service and large portions, this restaurant idea soon became very profitable (as if anyone would doubt it!). Knowing that Jessica was celebrating her birthday and that she is a supreme lover of Meat, the local Fogo de Chao seemed like the ideal place to bring her to feast for her celebration. Thus, we gathered some friends, made a reservation (probably a wise idea, though people were coming and going continuously the entire time) and arrived.

The restaurant has a very fast tempo to it. Follow your host/hostess attentively or you may get lost among the many tables, servers, busboys, servers with various cuts of Meat sabered and other patrons walking around. The decor was very nice, fairly simple but with nice dark wood trim and darker lighting. Once sitting down, a waiter will be over rather quickly to explain to you how the procedure works. So, let me tell you now to save you some time! Basically, you sit down and get a circular cardboard disk. Cherish this item, as it will become extremely important to you. One side is green, the other is red. If you want people to stop at your table with the meat they are carrying, flip it to the green. If not, flip it to red. My recommendation: keep it on red until you are down to 4-6 bites of whatever Meat you have left. At that time, flip it to green, and really, someone will be by very soon to give you some food.

Now, you dont have control over what meat comes by your table, but trust me, you will get offered a lot of it. I have a hard time remembering all the different cuts of meat and types of meat I had that night. But first, I feel almost obligated to tell you they have a salad bar. I investigated this salad bar, though I did not partake of the green items. I tried a few of the cured meats and cheeses, they had a softer styled, what looked like manchengo cheese, a giant wheel of Parmesan cheese and some smaller balls of fresh mozzarella. I did take two sun-dried tomatoes and a small red pepper, to go with the cheeses.

By the time I returned to the table, the wines had arrived. I must admit, I am a bad writer at this point since I neglected to write down what wine we were drinking. I originally had a clos du bois merlot from the bar, but a few bottles of an Argentinian Malbec were opened at the table, reasonably priced in the upper $30′s (*update* Gabi has informed me it was $36 a bottle). It was a pretty nice wine and went well with many of the cuts of Meat, since a stronger flavored wine was needed to cut through the spices and Meatiness of the many Meats. To be fair, it was difficult tasting much of it considering the spices and animal juices and fats I was consuming, so I recommend checking it out for yourself.

The table comes with a few side dishes which I felt obligated to taste, though I certainly saved room for every cut of Meat. There were really good fried plantains, a mashed potato dish, and a some very nice mini pop overs as a bread dish at the table. For non-Meat courses, these were all delicious, but it’s important to keep the eye on the prize here. Wait for the meat, you wont be disappointed.

Pork ribs, Sirloin and Lamb

When it started to arrive, I got two pork ribs. While these were very delicious, I recommend trying these with some caution. At first I was trying to use my silverware like a more-or-less civilized individual, but was unable to extract all the Meat from the bone and had to resort to using my hands. Then I had a small pile of bones on my plate, which grew throughout the night and I kind of wished I could have changed plates, only for the following reason: the bones took up valuable Meat storage and cutting space. However, the pork was really good and nice and salty which is how I like it. Next I had lamb chops, followed almost immediately by part of a Lamb shank. With the larger cuts of meat, you get your options of what temperature you want to eat, and the server will cut you off a piece (you have tongs to grab the meat as it slices off, so you can place it on your plate rather than let it fall). I stuck mostly with Rare cuts of meat that night, though I do think on the second coming I tried a medium part of Lamb shank. after the first few cuts, it kind of becomes a blur. There was Filet Mignon, bacon wrapped beef, a Ribeye cut, flank steak, sirloin and prime sirloin, a bacon wrapped chicken, bacon wrapped lamb, a Parmesan cheese encrusted pork tenderloin peice, just to name a few. What a feast.

Dessert... for those who had room!

Throughout the night we would cheers many things. Jessica’s birthday being one, Renee finishing up her dissertation work being another, and just being out with friends to a feast. This is not a restaurant you want to come by yourself or with just one or two other people, but a place to sit with a lot of friends and really get down and dirty with food. While the atmosphere is very nice, the setting elegant and servers prompt, polite and courteous, it is nice to really let loose a bit at a restaurant and tackle some serious, yet also very delicious, food. I can say this is a very reasonably priced restaurant, for the quality and amount of food provided. A flat rate of $55 per person may sound a bit steep sometimes, but you will certainly eat your fill. The desserts were excellent as well, but I was too full from the meal to really partake, though I did have a Mexican coffee, made with Tia Maria (They did a nice job writing ‘happy birthday’ on one of the desserts for Jessica). To give you an idea, I immediately fell asleep at home for 10 hrs (abnormal for myself) and I did not eat for 23 hours (also highly abnormal) following the start of this meal. Worth every penny? Yessir. Do it again? Absolutely.

Fully Saited.