There's no rational reason why the Braseiro da Gávea is one of the best bars in Rio. It just is. The decor is plain, the food is heavy and you have to get there before 8pm to have a prayer of getting a seat, but a young, trendy mob fill the pavement outside. The food is deliciously filling and fatty, and the marvellously informal atmosphere has helped Braseiro earn the reputation as the best place in town for flirting, along with hoards of students piling in from nearby PUC University.