Maripili
850m
Brazil’s best-known barbecued meat franchise has three restaurants in São Paulo, plus branches in Brasília, Salvador, Belo Horizonte and across the USA. The owners are gaúchos, from Brazil’s South – the country’s cattle hotspot. So unlike some rodízios, Brazilian steak house restaurants, they don’t bother mucking up the menu with irrelevant sushi: just the best cuts of Brazilian meat, like picanha, fraldinha and maminha.
Grab your pincers and select the bits you like the look of from the big chunks of deliciously salted flesh the waiters bring around. Note that Fogo has one of the most extensive wine lists in the city. For dessert, try the chocolate mousse with port.
Other locations Avenida dos Bandeirantes 538, Vila Olímpia (5505 0791); Avenida Moreira Guimarães 964, Moema (5056 1795); Travessa Casalbuono 120 (Shopping Center Norte), Vila Guilherme (2089 1736).