Today in Las Vegas Magazine

The Way of the Gaucho

Texas de Brazil might very well be the answer to that age-old question, “Where’s the beef?” Never have I seen a concentration of so much meat in one place. Calling themselves a churrascaria, (meaning, “steakhouse”), with churrasco (roughly translated: “barbecue”) being the style of cooking. Those who aren’t new to this type of cuisine or dining know it to be an all- meat extravaganza. Newbies, however, need not fret as you will get a spiel from the wait staff explaining, amongst other things like how to order, a brief language lesson on why it’s called a churrascaria as well as the concept of the restaurant. The short version is this - rodizio is the style of service where waiters bring food to each customer at several times throughout the meal, until the customers have had enough; while the staff who walk around with the various cuts of skewered meat are called passadors, though here, they’re referred to as gauchos (or “cowboys”).

Picanha	Parmesan Crusted Drummettes	Lamb Chops

The premise is simple – one fixed dining price includes all you can eat at a gourmet bar that features salad, salad items, cold-cuts, hot sides and soup, plus all the meat you can eat. In essence, it’s similar to a buffet, except the main course is fresh-off the grill or oven, in this instance and not sitting under a heat lamp.

While the concept is simple and straightforward, the choices are mind-boggling, and as vast as the Pampas region. There are over 50 items in the gourmet bar – with everything from salad and salad items, cold-cuts like prosciutto, specialty cheeses, pasta salads, sushi, pepper shrimp, Brazilian specialties like feijoada (bean stew) and farofa (toasted manioc flour); hot sides like rice, sautéed mushrooms and potato gratin, and a soup of the day.

Be forewarned - eat slowly, don’t rush into it and most importantly, come with a very empty stomach. Now on to the main event – which is meat, meat and more meat. On any given night, there would be about 18 items on offer such as Brazilian sausage, leg of lamb, crispy parmesan drummettes, flank steak, pork loin, filet mignon, picanha (sirloin) – Brazilian or garlic-marinated, rack of lamb, pork ribs, beef ribs, chicken and more.

Parma Ham	Gourmet Bar

On top of the gourmet bar, you are served side dishes of fried bananas, garlic mashed potatoes and pao de queijo (Brazilian cheese bread), which by the way is very addictive. Made of cassava or corn flour, and almost resembling cheese puffs, the bread is at once sweet and salty, with the crunchy exterior a contrast to the very doughy and chewy interior. So petite and tasty, and unlike any other bread I’ve tasted, I had to resist the urge to pop the entire thing in my mouth.

Of the meats, my favorites were the beef ribs, because it was perfectly marbled, fork tender and to me perfectly and simply seasoned, allowing the taste and flavor of the meat to come through; and the picanha was notable too, with the right hint of garlic infusing the sirloin. For those who might want a more “Americanized” taste, opt for the parmesan-crusted chicken and pork loin, or there’s the pork ribs, which to their credit, is not as cloyingly sweet as the ones you would find elsewhere. Meat is obviously the star in this restaurant, and rightly so. Carver leader Luis Locatelli shares that they go through 1,000 lbs. of meat per day.

If you can still muster up some room for dessert, there’s a lot on offer to satisfy your sweet tooth, though I personally would go for Manager Gilson de Oliveira’s recommendation – the papaya crème. A mixture of papaya, ice cream and crème de cassis – it’s a surprisingly light and refreshing end to the meal, almost like a papaya mousse.

In the end, there’s not much Portuguese words you need to memorize in terms of how to order or what to ask for, save for the most important phrase of all, “Sim por favor” or “Yes, please.”

-Rachel M. Sugay

Texas de Brazil
Town Square, 6533 Las Vegas Boulevard South. Tel: 702-614-0080. Open 5-10 p.m., Monday-Thursday; 4-10:30 p.m., Friday and Saturday; 4-10 p.m., Sunday. Fixed-price dining: $44.99 per person which includes all items from the salad and sides bar, plus meat selections. Light meal option at $29.99 per person which includes only items from the salad and sides bar. Dessert items, $7-$9. Opening soon for lunch ($24.99) and brunch ($30+), with light lunch and brunch options.