In our last night in São Paulo, we met up with my partner’s friend at Nakka in Jardim. This was a sushi restaurant close to our hotel that offers Japanese fusion type food. At first glance at the menu, the items look exactly similar to anything and everything in the US. My partner was adamant that Brazilian Japanese food was much different than what I had. The friend made a reservation for 7 PM, so we were able to walk in and get seated.

A Casa do Porco (translates to House of the Pig) is a homage to pork as a whole. If you love pork as much as we do, this is a restaurant that you need to check out in Brazil. One accolade recently was that Janaína Torres was rated as “World’s Best Female Chef 2024”. The restaurant also has a Michelin green star, which means they are sustainability conscious. They control the entire food chain from farm to consumer.

Mani is a Michelin star Brazilian restaurant headed by chef Helena Rizzo and Willem Vandeven. My partner was adamant at getting reservations for this. Since the restaurant’s reservation system was a little odd at the time, my partner was talking to them through WhatsApp. Since Chef Helena Rizzo wasn’t going to be there during our reservation, she sent a birthday congratulations message thru Whatsapp to me, which I thought was very humble and extremely awesome.

My partner made a reservation for D.O.M. months in advanced because of a Brazilian chef, Alex Atala, featured on Chef’s Table. What was very attractive to me was how he is known for using indigenous Brazilian ingredients in the dishes. My partner had also contemplated bringing me to a Japanese or Asian type restaurant, but that could not really showcase what Brazil is about. D.O.M. was rated at 53 on World’s 50 Best Restaurants 2022 and 33 on Latin America’s 50 Best Restaurants 2022, and it has also received a Michelin 2 Star rating.

Casa de Francisca is located in a rather sketchy part of São Paulo. The area reminds me a bit of the early pages of the Art District in Los Angeles or the early gentrification in Bed Stuy in Brooklyn. They have 2 areas, one which is a regular restaurant, and the other being a second floor space. The second floor has a very interesting, artistic space where all the views are generously focused at the stage.

This is our first trip together to Brazil and São Paulo together. I’ve met many Brazilians at work, but I did not have any idea what to really expect out of the gourmand food scene. Unlike New York City, many of these Michelin Star restaurants were easier to get into. My partner chose this recently rewarded Michelin 2 star restaurant, Evvai, because it was known for showcasing Brazilian ingredients in a refine way.

Long Island City is basically turning into an upscale, modern day Flushing-type environment. There has been a recent surge in the last few years of Asian restaurants popping up all over the place. Close to the popular Vernon Blvd area is a fermentation studio called “Little Banchan Shop”. They sell little Korean side dishes. The owner decided to open a restaurant in the back, Meju. We were able to get reservations a month in advance on Tock for 7 PM on a Saturday evening.

As a splurge due to this incurable money sucking disease of gourmand syndrome, we splurged for Manhatta. Manhatta is known for its gorgeous views at the 60th floor facing up-town. It is part of Danny Meyer’s Union Square Hospitality Group, which includes The Modern, Gramercy Tavern, Marta, etc. to name a few. Aside from the view that the restaurant offers, the last few years they have made an effort to improve the food.

We’re in a mood of exploring some of the food places down near the Financial District. I was looking around, and there weren’t too many options. Le Gratin happened to be from renown chef, Daniel Boulud, so I figure this would be a safe choice. This is located right next to the Beekman Hotel, and there are entrances via the street or through the hotel. We easily made reservations for 2 for 5:45 PM on a Friday without much advance notice.

We had another Broadway show to catch, and this restaurant is located at a convenient “restaurant row” area. This area reminds me a little of St. Marks in East Village, where there is just a street full of restaurants that are also conveniently near theaters. My partner wanted to try this, so they were able to make a reservation for 2 for 5:45 PM on a Wednesday evening. When we walked through the door, it felt like we walked into a shack.