Brazilian approach makes this a fun place to meat

By Charles Passy

Palm Beach Post Staff Writer

Friday, August 27, 2004

Given our area's great love affair with all-you-can-eat establishments, it's hard to believe that we've long lacked a first-rate churrascaria. If you're not familiar with the term, it refers to a Brazilian-style establishment that serves a variety of meats — beef, pork, lamb, chicken — roasted on the spit and then sliced tableside. And, yes, it's all-you-can-eat.

So, it should come as no surprise that the newly opened Fire of Brazil, a mini-chain of churrascarias that comes to Palm Beach County — specifically, the Mall at Wellington Green — by way of Atlanta, is already drawing overflow crowds.

Add in the fact that the low-carb craze plays perfectly into this meat-mad culinary concept and it's further no surprise that waits at the boisterous but jovial establishment can easily exceed an hour without a reservation on a weekend night.

As it was, we had to wait a half-hour with a reservation — not a good omen in terms of the service. The food and concept, however, generally redeemed the experience. If you're looking for a great steak, there may be better options locally. But if you're looking for an adventure South American-style, you've come to the right place.

It's an inviting place as well from a visual standpoint. Formerly home to Prezzo, an Italian restaurant, the room retains a lively, Mediterranean feel. A curved bar is a good place to grab a drink while you wait for your table. (Otherwise, you might end up sitting outside for lack of space.) Once you're seated, you'll find the tables spaced far apart from each other to allow for proper elbow room — no small concession given the heavy demand placed on the restaurant.

Two choices

There's no menu as such. You can either have the full spread with the salad bar for $39.50 — a whopping price by buffet standards, but read on — or you can opt for the salad bar alone for $19.50.

Drinks are extra, but the meal wouldn't be complete without a caipirinha ($6.50): think of it as a South American margarita, a blend of freshly squeezed lime juice, sugar and Brazilian rum. Fire of Brazil turns the beverage into an occasion: a waitress roams the restaurant with a cart stocked with all the caipirinha components and prepares your drink to order. It sets the stage for the theatrics to follow.

Before you get to the beef, a visit to the salad bar is in order.

Actually, "salad bar" is something of a misnomer: This is really a meal before a meal. There are about 40 items in all — both hot and cold — including appetizer-style selections and, as advertised, salads. Some of our favorites included the smoked salmon, garlicky mussels in broth, truly fresh mozzarella and huge chilled asparagus spears. Other items — say, the canned olives — weren't worth filling up on.

The reason, of course, you want to avoid salad-bar overload is because of the main meal. You signal "Go" — literally, with a card that you flip from red to green when you're ready — and the meat starts coming. And coming. And coming.

It's a marvelous ballet of sorts. Servers roam through the restaurant with their giant spits and carving knives, stopping from table to table to slice a bit of this or a bit of that. You play a part as well: The server will typically call upon you to take a pair of tongs and pull the meat away as it's being sliced.

The choices are almost as numerous as those on the salad bar. The beef is the best bet: We stuffed ourselves on slices of wonderfully prepared filet mignon, rare and juicy but with a nice crust. A flank steak, though a cheaper cut, was almost as good. And there are worthy non-beef selections: tasty tiny sausages, chicken cutlets wrapped in bacon, leg of lamb.

As if this isn't enough, you also get sides: rice, beans and terrific fried plantains.

Convivial multi-tasking

Our genial waiter was more than eager to see that such a request was set into motion — and more than eager to explain the restaurant's concept in detail. But he was also clearly overwhelmed.

Details were constantly glossed over: the table wasn't properly cleared and de-crumbed between courses, an order of iced tea was forgotten, and, worst of all, we didn't get our wine until we were more than halfway into the meal. (But to Fire of Brazil's credit, the restaurant is one of the few that understands that wine should be an everyday pleasure; the wine list, heavy on the reds because of the menu's beefy orientation, has a number of bottles under $30. We enjoyed a highly drinkable Columbia Crest Merlot for $27.)

But on the whole, Fire of Brazil is a welcome addition to the local dining scene. The restaurant needs to work out some kinks with service; it also needs to keep that rare meat coming — and to lay off the salt shaker a bit. But all that considered, the $40 price tag seems almost reasonable for a plentiful, fun-filled (and meat-filled) meal.

If you're planning on going, make that reservation: The lines here are bound to stay long for quite some time.

 

R E V I E W

Fire of Brazil

FOOD: B

SERVICE: C

ADDRESS: 10300 W. Forest Hill Blvd., Suite 122 (at the Mall at Wellington Green)

TELEPHONE: 333-8101

PRICE RANGE: Moderate-plus

HOURS: 5-10 p.m. Monday-Sunday (to 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday)

CREDIT CARDS: MC, V,

AmEx

RESERVATIONS: Yes (and highly recommended)

WHEELCHAIR ACCESS:

Yes, including restrooms

WHAT THE GRADES

MEAN:

A — Excellent

B — Good

C— Average

D — Poor

F — Don't bother