Occasionally in Rio you come across something so brilliantly different, indulgent and classy that it instantly becomes the benchmark by which you judge everything else. Brunch at the Copacabana Palace is one such experience.  

The limitless champagne is served by creaseless waiters who pour with a smile. The ten metre-long buffet awaiting the mixture of Palace guests, well-to-do cariocas and intrigued others is straight out of a medieval costume drama, piled high with oysters, caviar, slow-cooked lamb, salmon, hams and cheeses. A chef dressed in pressed whites cooks pasta on demand. The desert counter is divine, boasting five types of cheesecake. 

It really is all about the details. Pick up the wide plate (bearing the hotel stamp in gold) and join Brazil’s upper classes dressed in their Sunday best. The buffet is situated in a long air-conditioned conservatory, set against the perfect blue swimming pool on one side and the sparkling green of the Atlantic Ocean on the other. 

Those after a touch more formality will likely prefer the conservatory seating, which also affords closer access to the buffet. But the best seats in the house are poolside, where champagne can be quaffed amidst the occasional waft of Habana smoke, watching the bold and the beautiful soak up the rays, and appreciating the finer things in life.