Get FREE email communications from Fodor's Travel, covering must-see travel destinations, expert trip planning advice, and travel inspiration to fuel your passion.
São Paulo's dynamic social scene centers on dining out, and among the 12,500-plus restaurants, most of the world's cuisines are covered. The most popular options include Portuguese, Japanese, Italian, French, and Lebanese; contemporary fusions are popular and plentiful. The city also offers a massive selection of pizza and hamburger joints with some world-class offerings. Most places don't require jacket and tie, but paulistanos tend to dress to European standards, so if you're going to pricey establishments, looking elegant is key.
On the domestic front the Brazilian churrascarias are a carnivore's dream, with their all-you-can-eat skewers of barbecued meats and impressive salad buffets. For in-between times, just about every bar offers a selection of grilled meats, sandwiches, and deep-fried favorites for casual grazing. On Wednesday and Saturday, head to a Brazilian restaurant for feijoada—the national dish of black beans and pork. Ask about the other traditional and regional Brazilian dishes as well.
This traditional cantina catches the eye with a decoration full of knickknacks that give the place its charm. An abundance of wonderful wines to choose from, along with a menu of mouth-watering options, including homemade artisanal pastas, is on offer. The tagliatelle with filet mignon and four-cheese sauce is absolutely divine and one of the house specialties.
Arguably the best Japanese restaurant in a town famous for them, Jun Sakamoto stands out for serving fish of the highest quality and for employing the most skillful of sushi chefs to slice them, with a Michelin Star. Waiters wearing futuristic earpieces will guide you through the omakase, a sushi chef--curated menu.
Contemporary cuisine, attentive service, and a luxurious, secret-garden charm help Kaá maintain its status as one of São Paulo's leading fine-dining establishments. The crayfish au gratin in endive cream is a top choice among the appetizers; appealing entrées include rack of lamb ribs and beer-cooked duck.
Contemporary Japanese plates with international influences are the draw at Kinoshita, where foie gras might accompany a Kobe beef hamburger or truffles might enliven salmon roe and shellfish. The freshness of the ingredients available on any given day determines the suggestions of chef. For 7 consecutive years the restaurant has received a Michelin star.
Because São Paulo isn't on the ocean, most restaurants here don't base their reputations on seafood, but Amadeus is an exception. Appetizers such as fresh oysters and salmon and endive with mustard, and entrées like shrimp in cognac sauce make it a challenge to find better fruits of the sea elsewhere in town.
Cantaloup's converted warehouse has two dining areas: oversize photos decorate the walls of the slightly formal room, while a fountain and plants make the second area feel more casual and nice to have a meal. Try the low-temperature roasted pork ribs, pumpkin puree, asparagus and lemongrass sauce or the shrimp with curry, jasmine coconut rice, and mango chutney. Another great choice is the octopus with wild potatoes, caramelized onions, and Provençal sauce.
Regularly named among the best restaurants in South America and the world, celebrity chef Alex Atala's D.O.M. is synonymous with exclusivity in São Paulo's gastronomic circles—its popularity is limited only by a self-imposed cap on the number of customers served. The focus is on Brazilian fare with added flair, such as filhote (Amazonian catfish) with tapioca in tucupi (manioc root) sauce and sweet potato in a Béarnaise made from maté, a South American tea.
Good and simple Italian food is what you'll find at this traditional spot. Choose from a great variety of pastas, salads, and meat dishes. Try the Gorgonzola bruschetta.
A snug bistro on as secluded a street as you're apt to find in São Paulo's hip southern neighborhoods, Enoteca triples as a wineshop, restaurant, and live-music venue. The kitchen's specialty is a risotto with wine-braised beef, whose plain appearance belies its exceptional flavor.
A family-owned Northern Italian classic tucked away behind the elegantly modern lobby of the hotel of the same name, this restaurant is as famous for its superior cuisine as for its exorbitant prices. In the kitchen, a 20-strong brigade of chefs, butchers, and bakers commanded by Luca Gozzani sends out exquisite, sinfully rich dishes like agnollottis of Angola chicken on heart-of-mozzarella cream.
A pioneer in bringing French cuisine to São Paulo, Freddy opened originally in 1935. Despite moving from its original location, Freddy has managed to retain the feel of an upscale Parisian bistro, thanks to a number of small touches as well as some larger ones, like the grand chandeliers hanging from its ceiling, and traditional French dishes such as escalopes Foie Gras au Porto.
This Italo-French restaurant with a partially enclosed garden isn't just a place for businesspeople and impresarios to see and be seen. It also has some of the best food in town and is one of the most classic restaurants around. Popular dishes include the pan-seared foie gras over apricot and dried fig chutney, and grilled shrimp with curry sauce, saffron risotto, and pine nuts.
Low-key, dependable, and well-loved, Nagayama consistently serves excellent sushi and sashimi. The chefs like to experiment: the California uramaki Philadelphia has rice, cream cheese, grilled salmon, roe, cucumber, and spring onions rolled together.
The family that owns and runs this restaurant serves meat from its ranch in Mato Grosso do Sul State. Charcoal-grilled fare— steak, chicken, salmon, and more—is served at the buffet, and options abound at the salad bar. Wednesday and Saturday are feijoada nights, and on Friday the emphasis is on seafood. It was so successful in Brazil that it opened restaurants in Madrid, Chile, and Argentina.
