The GastroNomad team is presently taking in sights and local culture in the quaint fishing village of Buzios, located 2.5 hours by car north of Rio de Janeiro. This town of 20,000 people occupies a peninsula featuring a variety of beaches ranging from longer stretches of sand to small hidden coves. Conditions are ideal for all water sports from world-class kite- and windsurfing to snorkeling and scuba diving.

Due to its proximity to Rio, Buzios hosts up to 80,000 visitors during the weeklong national holiday of Carnival, and is also a popular weekend destination during Brazil's summer months. The town offers numerous small hotels, bed and breakfast’s called “pousadas”, and an array of private vacation homes and condominiums for rent. Thankfully, there are no high-rise developments due to stringent local building codes, and outside of the high season Buzios remains a place of authentic Brazilian small-town life.

A piece of advice: We arrived in time for Carnival, expecting colorful parades led by samba schools to take over the downtown streets, and live samba and bossa nova music to fill the bars and clubs. Instead, we encountered scarce availability and vastly inflated prices for any kind of accommodation, as well as a week of jammed roads, beaches, restaurants, and shopping venues. There were no organized costumed parades and the music of choice in clubs, and at private beach gatherings or house parties, was definitely electronic house and pop – played 24/7 in highly amplified fashion. It’s best to sit this one out.

Buzios has a lively restaurant scene which profits from the plentiful fresh seafood available every day as well as the quality of most produce and meat produced in the area. Cattle here are pasture-raised and the taste of the beef is outstanding, yet it is inexpensive compared to prices in the US. We purchased about two pounds of top sirloin for the equivalent of two dollars! Brazilian food is characterized by a variety of tropical, exotic, hearty and spicy flavors, reflecting its African, Amerindian, and European racial mix. Restaurants serving local fare, often buffet style and priced on a per kilo basis, are complemented by a variety of more upscale places offering Italian, French, Mediterranean and Portuguese cuisine. Also popular are “churrascarias” which specialize in barbecued meats prepared South American style on large open charcoal grills There is even a Thai restaurant downtown but only one McDonald's and few burger-and-fries type of outlets. Pizza seems to be Brazil’s favorite fast food. There are small pizzerias everywhere and some version of the dish appears on most menus throughout town.

Beer is plentiful and inexpensive with the best brands being foreign ones such as Heineken and Bohemia. The country’s wine production is in its infancy, so better picks are the sauvignon blancs, cabernets, and malbecs from nearby Argentina and Chile sold in most restaurants and stores. The national drink is the “caiprihina”, a mixture of “cachaca”- a liquor distilled from sugarcane – crushed limes and sugar, served over ice. It tastes similar to a margarita and has quite a kick—as we found out.

Buzios boasts numerous places to sip your beverages of choice during a night out on the town, and on the weekend there’s often live music to be found. Thanks to the year-round warm temperatures, most restaurants and bars offer outdoor seating, some near the water or with an ocean view, others bistro-style for people watching. Spirits amongst patrons are usually high, with everybody enjoying themselves, each other, and the beauty of a starry night in the tropics. A word of caution – dinner in Brazil is a late affair and can easily last into the wee hours, so early birds will miss most of the fun. And most clubs do not open until 1 a.m., which may require a ‘pre-club’ rest.

Countless bakeries and ice cream parlors dispersed throughout downtown and the neighborhood areas testify to the sweet tooth enjoyed by many Brazilians. Some of the ice cream and sorbet we’ve tasted is fashioned after Italian gelato and it’s quite good, especially the tropical fruit flavors such as mango and passion fruit. Bread lovers will be disappointed though since whole grain and sourdough varieties are practically unknown here, and even a somewhat crispy baguette is hard to come by.

As we eat and drink our way around town, we’ll keep you posted on our most delicious and otherwise memorable adventures here in colorful Buzios.

Restaurante do Solar

Restaurante do Solar is a very small, eclectically furnished open-air restaurant situated along the Praia Armacao stretch of downtown Buzios. Its candle-lit tables and cozy couches create a romantic ambiance and the made-to-order food is reminiscent of being a guest at a friend’s home.

The restaurant is run by a French lady named Catherine de Jenlis, her Argentinean partner and fellow chef Ramon Barberis, and their amiable and attentive waiter Fabio who is also in charge of mixing drinks such as a delicious passionfruit caipirinha. Premium beer and a short but thoughtful wine list are available as well.

During our first evening, we chose a Viognier (60.00 Reais) with dinner, which was quite pleasing and came recommended by Catherine who happily translates into English the brief, chalk-board written menu. The selection changes daily and always includes a choice of two salads (25.00 Reais), two entrées (45.00 Reais), and two desserts (15.00 Reais). Depending on how many diners drop in, an offering might be replaced by another dish as the evening progresses.

The restaurant stays open late - it is not unusual for the chefs to prepare a meal to order at 1 a.m. in the morning – and patrons, which include many faithful regulars and friends, like to linger watching Catherine and Ramon do their magic in the small open kitchen while listening to bossa nova and soft jazz tunes from a portable stereo and enjoying cool beverages.

Dinner starts with a complimentary serving of Catherine’s own divinely smoky and garlicky aubergine dip accompanied by toasted pita bread chips. On two visits, we tried a salad composed of mixed lettuces and warm figs available with both goat and gorgonzola cheeses. For entrées we selected a delicious pork curry – made spicy on request – as well as a shrimp curry, both presented with fluffy couscous, mango chutney and house-made cooling satziki.

We finished with a nectarine and boysenberry tart, its sweetness nicely balanced by a dollop of crème fraiche.

Other entrée choices included a seared bacon-wrapped filet mignon with cauliflower gratin and roast lamb with a side of potatoes and grilled vegetables. We would have loved to try the duck in orange sauce roasting in the oven one night but it had several hours still to go.

A mixed salad topped with slices of duck and chicken liver pâté is offered frequently as an enthusiastic nod to Catherine’s culinary roots. A generous amount of fresh fish ceviche arranged on a plate of greens looked wonderful when served to a neighboring table, and tasted equally so—as our fellow diner assured us.

All dishes are made to order from ingredients purchased most likely that day in the markets, butcheries, and “peixarias” in and around Buzios by Catherine herself - and everything we've tasted was truly delicious.

Voilà, Restaurante do Solar has you enjoy food prepared with love and served with personality. We’ll surely return for many more meals and good times before leaving Buzios.            

restaurantedosolar@hotmail.com

Reservations: (22)2623-1850 or (22)9217-2539