Rio’s street food

Our stay in Rio was rather short, but we discovered a lovely little secret place: Praia Vermelha, a small beach just at the foot of the Pao de Acucar, the Sugarloaf mountain. Not only the view of it from the beach is beautiful, especially at sunset, there is also a fantastic array of street food on offer. One afternoon we tried pretty much all of what was on offer. We had corn two ways; cooked corn on the cob with butter and fresh pipoca (popcorn), served either sweet or salty. For a ‘main course’, I had grilled cheese on a stick (queijo quente) which can also be enjoyed marinated in herbs. The Carnivore had ‘churrasco’, a skewer of beef chunks and linguica, a garlic sausage vaguely reminiscent of Toulouse sausages. Dessert was fried churros filled with doce de leite (absolutely delicious). They were slightly different from the Spanish version of churros I am used to, the dough is slightly lighter and they are filled, not dipped. They are absolutely delicious. All of the above was washed down with a cerveja for the Carnivore and a coco for me. Cocos are coconuts with the husk on, with a hole cut on top by a machete-wielding vendor. Similar to those found at Notting Hill carnival in theory, but much tastier in reality. The juice can be drunk before returning the coconut to the vendor which chops it open and cuts a bit of shell to scoop off the flesh inside. The image of a coconut with a straw might scream tourist, but Brazilians are the first to enjoy this beverage which contains electrolytes, useful to prevent dehydration after a day at the beach. The only street food we didn’t sample was beijinhos de tapioca, sweet or savoury tapioca pancakes which are a specialty of the Northeast, where we’re headed next.

Amazement in Brazil: Rio de Janeiro and Porcao

How can I start writing about a place as beautiful as a dream, a place I have dreamt about for almost a decade. Everything, from when the luggage tag with GIG on it was applied to my backpack, when we caught the first glimpse of light after landing at the airport, to when our bus approached the city at night time, felt like a dream becoming true. Having dreamt of Brasil since childhood, I had high expectations for Rio. And I was not disappointed. Exploring the place during the time we spent there, two words came to mind to define the place; kindness and simplicity. Kindness, gentileza, is a quality of Rio’s people. We found the people to be kind and welcoming, favela children are happy to offer a smile and casual passer-by are ready to give a helping hand. Simplicity, as Rio is beautiful in a simple way. The stunning backdrop of the city is one of the most spectacular on Earth, amid limestone hills and a bay that was mistakenly believed by the colonisers to be the mouth of a river (hence the name, Rio de Janeiro). Simple was also the best adjective to describe the food we were able to sample during our stay in Rio. Simple but delicious. Before leaving for this trip I made a vow not to fall into tourist traps; now, after only a week in Brasil, I am aware this is likely to be an extremely hard task. I care about my bowels too much to be enticed to try food from a dodgy-looking lanchonete. However, our first dinner in Rio was in a place which is not only a tourist trap, but also an amazing restaurant. I am talking about Porcao, THE churrascaria. A churrascaria, or rodizio (I am yet to understand the difference, if there is one) is a restaurant where meat is served to one’s hearts content. The meat is freshly grilled and served carved from a sword. There was also a salad and sushi bar included in the fare, but neither of us decided to partake from it. We wanted to have as much meat as possible. The buffet, however, did look interesting; featuring seared tuna with cayenne pepper and passionfruit sauce, mozzarella rolled around sundried tomatoes and basil and mango salad with toasted sesame and nigella seeds amongst many others. The meat was memorable. A piece of sirloin was truly the most amazing piece of meat I ever had in my life. It was perfectly rare inside, but not oozing blood, grilled with merely a smear of salt, pepper and olive oil. The meat itself had that distinctive taste that only South American grass-fed free range beef has. Carnivores in Rio, go there. That’s all I can say. Other highlights included skirt, picanha (the cap of the rump, Brasil’s favourite cut of beef), the interesting ‘baby bifi with garlic’ (another piece of skirt smothered in garlic paste) and ostrich in parsley sauce. Pork was delicious too, especially ribs and what we named ‘pork potatoes’, a piece of loin marinated in lemon, garlic and thyme. We left R$200 (about £65) poorer, but happy.

My London

As the day of our departure approaches, here are my London favourites for you.
I guess only know I can fully appreciate what this great city has to offer, as nostalgia becomes more and more palpable each day.

10 great London experiences:
1. The Albert Bridge at night time
2. South Bank at sunset
3. Admiring the City from the top of St Paul
4. Walking along the Regent's Canal, from Camden to Little Venice
5. Looking for deer in Richmond Park, and then finding scores of them grazing together
6. Exploring a market, Portobello is my personal favourite
7. Hyde Park (my park) on a sunny Sunday afternoon
8. Sunrise over the Thames, Battersea Bridge and Battersea Power Station are magical
9. Visiting a neighbourhood like Brixton or Southall and then understanding why London is 'the world in one city'
10. Hearing Big Ben chime

My favourite 10 gastronomical experiences:
1. South Indian at Hot Stuff, Vauxhall
2. North Indian at Tayyabs, Whitechapel
3. Roast and crispy duck at the Four Seasons, Bayswater
4. Sushi at Sushi Say, Willesden Green
5. Pizza at Franco Manca, Brixton
6. Tapas at Barrafina, Soho
7. Rib for two (with peppercorn sauce, chips and bearnaise) at The Butcher and Grill, Battersea
8. Anything at St John
9. Visiting a secret restaurant (more to come on this subject)
10. Borough Market, especially Brindisa's chorizo