Paparoto Cucina
After landing in Sao Paulo, we had some errands to run around town. As the evening gets darker, we finished our errand and were hungry. This item was on my partner’s list for quite some time. This restaurant comes from a Brazilian MasterChef Professional winner, Dayse Paparoto. We were able to walk in at around 9:45 PM on a Thursday evening without any lines or wait whatsoever. We were seated in a 2-seater near the door.
Ambiance & Service
Because we sat near the front, we didn’t see a whole lot of the ambiance. Generally, it looks like the restaurant is upscale and catering to the after-work crowd. Otherwise, the music was not too loud, and the service was extremely quick. After we ordered, the food was out to our table within 15-20 minutes.
Food
The Passion Fruit (R$49 - right) came with passion fruit puree, Sicilian lemon, and St. Pierre tonic water. This was a very refreshing drink. It tasted tart to begin with, but as the ice settled along with the rest of the flavors, it all meshed together into a nice summer-type of drink.
The glass of 100% grape juice (R$18 - left) wasn’t too sweet, and tasted pretty fresh. I always find it funny when restaurants offer a glass of grape juice, but in Brazil, the grapes are very fresh.
The Deconstructed lasagna (R$106) came with sausage ragu and brie. This had the pasta sheets acting as dividers between the sausage ragu. What was nice about this dish was the tartness and flavor of the tomato sauce really comes out. The tomatoes don’t have the generic San Marzano tomato taste, and they have a nice, bold and sweet flavor to them. The pasta was cooked perfectly, and if it were made into a normal lasagna, it would’ve tasted good too.
The Octopus with Potatoes Mousseline ($198) came with grilled broccolis, herbs, sicilian lemon zest, and a crispy tuile. The octopus was very amazing, and it was the biggest star of the dish. The meat was very soft, and not that chewy. The ends were perfectly grilled. Along the octopus, there were blistered tomatoes and charred broccolis. The tomatoes like the deconstructed lasagna had a lot of sweet and tart flavors to them, so they never appeared boring to have. The tuile I am assuming are the 4 pressed little potatoes. These potatoes sat in a hummus-like sauce, which also had some vinegar flavors to. The star of course was the octopus, as it was cooked perfectly, even at the thicker ends. This probably could be shared as an appetizer, but we ordered it for an entree since we weren’t too hungry.
Overall Impression
Paparoto Cucina is a surprising easy-to-access modern take on Italian food. Even though I didn’t order much food, all the dishes and drinks were pretty good for the price. If this were to ever make it into New York City, this restaurant could challenge some of those higher end Italian places.
Yelp & Google Jabs
The food was good but not the most impressive as my sauce tasted a bit too sour for my taste.
I can definitely see the case where someone disliked the tomato sauce because it was too sour. I actually enjoy it because it cuts through the rest of the dish. In my case for the deconstructed lasagna, the tomato sauce’s sourness added a nice complementary sensation to the ragu.
Arriving, we found out that the restaurant is providing a QR code menu. I’m not against it, but this is a fine restaurant… I reckon you should provide a proper menu. Because scrolling a wine list on a phone is not a good experience.
I’m not sure if this is considered fine dining globally, but I found the restaurant’s atmosphere more akin to a nicer suburbia type of restaurant. By no means, would I consider it fine dining.
Revisions
- Mar 5, 2026 - Initial revision.