The Food!

I could make this an extremely short post by just saying it is unbelievable - but, I am going to try to describe just how wonderful all of our dining has been.

Each morning the hotel has a breakfast buffet. My two favorite features are the fresh fruit and the Brazilian coffee. I don't know if I will be able to drink American coffee after having café. It is extremely strong and a little bitter but I have developed a taste for it. And each morning, I start the day off with fresh pineapple, bananas, and once papaya (only once as it is not my favorite). There is also a wide selection of other fruits, cereals, breads, and pastries along with eggs and bacon and fresh juices.

After this huge breakfast, David would go to the plant for his seminar where a buffet table was set up for the group. The "snacks" consisted of mounds of fruit, candy, nuts, cookies, etc. And then after all of that, the group would go out for lunch. There was so much food that David started bringing some fruit and other goodies back to the hotel for me. It would be enough for my lunch the next day.

Last Friday the seminar group celebrated the end of the course by going out to eat at O Espetão Grill. This translates to The Spit - like a skewer, not the other spit. David was so taken with this place that he arranged for a taxi to take the two of us there on Sunday. It is a huge buffet but with some interesting twists. Each table has a card on a wheel. One side says "Sim Por Favor" (yes please) and the other side says "Não Obrigado" (no thanks). As long as your card says yes, they will keep bringing you meat and potatoes. Even if your card says no, they will still stop and ask. If you hesitate even for a bit, you will have another chunk of meat on your plate. There is also a salad bar complete with all the usual greens plus quail eggs, hearts of palm, green beans, and many other salad type dishes. A pasta bar is also available although I didn't see many people taking advantage of that. In addition, a chef will prepare an omelet if you wish. The waiters that come to the table carry skewers (the "spits") of every meat imaginable. We had lamb, several different cuts of beef, along with pork and fish. Check out the pictures. I did manage to get a glimpse of the dessert cart as we were being seated so I paced myself in order to get dessert. I even talked David into a dessert but he couldn't finish his - I had to help. :)

At each place we ate here in Brazil, the staff was always concerned about how we liked the food and if we had enough. It is apparent they take great pride in their foods. Hospitality is also important and we were treated like royality everywhere.