We're still here in Buzios, weathering the occasional tropical storm, high humidity and relentless mosquitoes, but nevertheless are happy and content thanks to the natural beauty and friendly people of this Brazilian gem. We’re settling for more home-cooked meals these days, because moonlit nights on our terrace overlooking the ocean and fresh local lobsters ($4.70 apiece at the fish market) grilled over charcoal and served with a chilled, crisp Chilean sauvignon blanc are pretty hard to beat.

Weekends usually have us out and about further exploring the town's restaurant scene and stopping in our favorite places for some music or conversation with acquaintances. Last week's highlight was a motorboat trip along most of the peninsula’s coastline – on the occasion of my sweetheart's birthday - with an onboard lunch of grilled chicken, fruit and baguette, along with a few cold Heineken beers and some snorkeling while anchored off a tiny sandy cove called Lover’s Beach. Our captain and proprietor of the boat, a local fellow named Jonas, surprised us with freshly made caipirinhas and a mix of Brazilian hip-hop music sounding from some hidden speakers – that’s the life. Also, it was fun seeing Buzios’ various settled and unsettled bays looking in from the water, and we took note of a few harder-to-get-to beaches worth exploring. Jonas had us back on shore in time for a short nap before we headed out again to a surprise birthday dinner at a chef’s beautiful private home - there definitely will be a review of this evening!

Jonas and his boat – the ITAUNAMAR – can be found at the Marina Azul just outside of town, and the hourly rate is negotiable depending on the season and the overall length of the charter. Phone: (22)2623-6672 or (22)9909-7598

On a more sober note, President Bush's recent visit to São Paulo highlighted Brazil's precarious humanitarian and economic situation. Even though this is a vast country with seemingly inexhaustible natural resources, including the Amazon, a 4,600 mile stretch of coastline, and the inland high plains of Mato Grosso and Rondonia, Brazil still largely depends on foreign aid to solve its problems of widespread poverty and a lopsided economy. Here the richest 1% of the population earns 12% of the country's income, while the poorest 50% earns just 10%. This translates to about 40 million people living on $48.00 US dollars or less a month, with a third of the population surviving on less than a dollar a day. We’ve all seen pictures of Rio’s famed “favelas”—the shantytowns home to the city’s less fortunate inhabitants—and reportedly there are countless communities not as well-off as Buzios, with its influx of tourism, where elderly women search through garbage along the roads to survive on money made from recyclables. So, if you make your home in a metropolitan or rural area where you are witnessing growing disparity and poverty, and you wish a reprieve from it, Brazil might not be the place you want to visit.

We try to hold this reality in our consciousness and be appreciative while walking on the sunny side of the street here in Buzios. And in practical terms, we make sure to also patronize and support some of the more entrepreneurial local eateries and shops. One of them is a bistro-like small restaurant, complete with a French waitress originally from Marseilles, called Bar do Mangue.

Bar do Mangue

Bar do Mangue is tucked into a grove of shade trees just off Manguinhos Beach next to the “Colonia de Pescadores”, the town’s small commercial fishing pier and market.

An open kitchen is attached to a small glass pavilion which houses the bar and a few tables while the majority of them are scattered on an expansive wooden deck, protected by huge canvas umbrellas from the occasional rain. The atmosphere is casual and convivial, and the friendly, attentive waitstaff treats its regulars like family – we look forward to Virginia’s warm welcome, delivered in an endearing mix of her native French, Portuguese and English, as much as to the good meals and drinks she serves us. During Carnival season the restaurant occasionally offered live music, and since then we've always enjoyed the background music selection.

Bar do Mangue’s menu specializes in grilled meats and seafood, and features a small but attractive selection of appetizers, salads and sandwiches. Servings here are generous and the quality of the food is consistently good. All entrées are served with a side dish of one’s choice. There’s a full bar, beer on tap, and a small selection of bottled wines which your server will bring out to the table for inspection. Prices are moderate compared to restaurants downtown, with entrées ranging from 22.00 to 48.00 Reais and a decent bottle of Argentinean red to be had for 45.00 Reais.

Appetizers include a beef and a salmon carpaccio, appetizer portions of a grilled filet mignon, grilled sausages and grilled chicken breast, as well as breaded shrimp, shrimp Provencal and calamari Provencal. There is a choice of a simple green salad, a seafood salad with shrimp, calamari and tomatoes, or a mixed salad with tomatoes and Gorgonzola called Salada Pierre. The menu lists three sandwiches – chicken, filet mignon and vegetarian – prepared with lettuce, tomatoes and sliced cheese. Gorgonzola and arugula are added to the vegetarian one.

Grilled entrées include filet mignon, chicken breast, duck breast, lamb chops, and white sausage or “Currywurst”. Usually three choices of fish are offered – dorado, salmon (imported from Chile), and a local sea bass called “badejo”, whose tender white flesh is truly delicious. The duck is served in an orange sauce and the lamb chops are prepared á la Provencal. The filet and the chicken breast can be ordered in a variety of preparations – grilled simply with Herbs de Provence, in a peppercorn sauce, with Gorgonzola, or in a wine sauce with a choice of either button mushrooms or shiitake mushrooms. The fish options are either grilled with olive oil, garlic and rosemary, or accompanied by a mustard-yogurt sauce, or in a sauce with shrimp and calamari. Side dishes include grilled mixed vegetables, roast potatoes, mashed local sweet potatoes, potatoes Provencal, and potatoes with rosemary.

On our first visit, we ordered the mixed salad with Gorgonzola (15.00 Reais), the filet of badejo grilled with olive oil, garlic and rosemary (38.00 Reais), and the filet mignon with shiitake mushrooms (35.00 Reais). As sides we chose the grilled mixed vegetables and the roast potatoes extra crisp. We enjoyed the food although the fish was salted rather heavily (a Brazilian custom), the filet was slightly overcooked, and the vegetables were somewhat saturated with olive oil. With a bottle of tasty Chilean reserve cabernet sauvignon for 130.00 Reais (the most expensive wine offered) and two beers and a caipirinha at the beginning of our meal, the bill came to 250.00 Reais including tax and a 10% tip.

Since then we've been back to Bar do Mangue many times and have enjoyed many good meals. After asking Virginia, our favorite waitress, for less salt and oil in our dishes, as well as a steak a touch more on the rare side, the food has been consistently right on, and the sea bass grilled with garlic and rosemary is so divine it's hard to pass up in favor of another dish. We've also discovered that the restaurant serves very yummy desserts (not on the menu), bought from a local pastry chef. So far, we've tasted a semi-frozen tiramisu and a chocolate cake with a warm molten center – both served with quality vanilla ice cream, and quite addictive (14.00 Reais)! We now mostly order an Argentinean malbec for 45.00 Reais which stands up well to the food, and have been averaging about 160.00 Reais for dinner – a true bargain for a fun and satisfying evening on the town.