Who doesn’t love a good date night? I can definitely tell you it ranks high on my list of things to do. (pre-pandemic that is) As the world begins to open up in new ways, I’m reminded to remember to hang on to things that were. Like spending time with the ones we love.
Enter in great restaurant experiences like the one I had at Fogo de Chão. Did you know there are over 30 Fogo de Chão restaurants in the United States? But what is Fogo de Chao exactly? It is a truly fine dining experience. Fogo de Chão prides itself on being a full-service Brazilian steakhouse sometimes known as churrascaria, serving rodízio style, in which waitstaff serve barbequed meats and seafood from large skewers directly onto the seated diners’ plates. This is a time honored and honed cooking style that dates back to 1975 for the Fogo de Chão brand. But the gaucho cooking style is centuries hold.
Our experience started with a tender and juicy shrimp cocktail appetizer with some extras from the staff and their Market Table salad bar buffet featuring marinated vegetables, salad greens, several dressings, prepared salads, tropical fruits, sweet and smoky bacon and tons of cheese. I would consider this a slice of foodie heaven. One thing to note is currently, due to Covid precautions, the salad bar is limited to 2-4 guests at a time and it is serviced by staff, who are more than helpful.
After enjoying our appetizers and salads, our server brought back house made sides of: Garlic mashed potatoes, caramelized bananas, polenta and soft cheese rolls called pao de queijo. The soft cheese rolls are too tasty, if you’re not too careful, you’ll have eaten three before you know it. Following our sides, gaucho servers began coming around with beautifully skewered meats such as roasted lamb and lamp chops, garlic beef, mouth watering ribeye, tender filet mignon, top sirloin, bottom sirloin, pork ribs with lime, parmesan pork, and spicy house sausage. All of which is carved expertly tableside. One key point is that your server will not only keep the delectable meats coming to your table, but they will also learn the temperature and style of meat you love the best. Can we say handpicked experience anyone? Fogo gives you a true taste of Southern Brazil. The gauchos are not only skilled at carving, but they were quick to offer suggestions and in the event that they didn’t have the cut we desired, they would make note to retrieve it took the exact cooking style and temperature of the meats we were enjoying-every single time!! We tried so many options! After saving a tiny bit of room, we enjoyed two desserts- The Chocolate Briagaderio a decadent slice of chocolate ganache heaven and my personal favorite, the creamy burnt custard of the Creme Brulee. The value in price, added to the ambiance of the space and the service from the staff makes Fogo de Chão a huge win for us for date night! My only regret? Life comes at you fast, I enjoyed so many options that I didn’t take as many photos as I’d planned to. Make it a point to stop by Fogo de Chão, your belly will thank you!
DISCLAIMER: The great folks at Fogo de Chão invited me to fine in their restaurant in exchange for this post. While the post is sponsored, the thoughts and opinions are my own.
