Fogo de Chao ****

Rating: 8.4

At Fogo de Chao the understand the art of Churrasco. Churrasco is a Portuguese and Spanish term referring to beef or grilled meat more generally, differing across Latin America. In Brazil, churrasco is the term for a barbecue which originated in southern Brazil. It uses a variety of meats, pork, sausage and chicken which may be cooked on a purpose-built “churrasqueira”, a barbecue grill, often with supports for spits or skewers.

A churrascaria is a restaurant serving grilled meat, many offering as much as one can eat: the waiters move around the restaurant with the skewers, slicing meat onto the client’s plate. This serving style is called espeto corrido or rodízio, and is quite popular in Brazil. Their salad bar is another blast, with a superb collection of greens.

Over the years I’ve been in multiple Fogo de Chao’s including Atlanta, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Las Vegas, Scottsdale and many times like a few weeks ago in San Jose at the back of Santana Row.

I think the price performance of any location I visited so far is good. Absolute great value for money. You pay one price, excluding drinks, for the total Churrasco experience. When in the US, find a Fogo de Chao.

The wine: a Santa Julia Organic cabernet sauvignon from the Familia Zuccardi Estates.

SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES