Rio de Janeiro's Top 10 Luxury And Fine Dining Restaurants

Brazil’s history of Italian immigration has left a welcome culinary legacy and Bráz produces delicious, thick pizzas with a wide-range of carefully selected vegetable and meat ingredients. There are also a host of delicious dessert pizzas, filled with delicious Brazilian brigadeiro chocolate. Wood-fired ovens cook your pizzas in open view; whilst the draft beer selection is excellent, with options of light, dark or mixed.

Established in 2011, in a reformed town house in Rio’s traditional Botafogo neighbourhood, Irajá Gastrô strives for relaxation and informality, from a waiting area resembling a living room to casual dishes served in style. The house burger, made of Angus beef and served with bacon compote, is considered to be one of the best in the city, whilst dishes such as its galinheiro evoke Brazilian home cooking with a twist, poached egg with a chicken glaze and corn purée. Finally, Irajá Gastrô has an adventurous list of cocktails to accompany its dishes, such as the Tropicalista, gin and coconut water with wasabi, basil and cucumber; or its variation on sangria, Malbec red wine with grapefruit-flavoured ice, berries, port and soda.

The old-world restaurant of O Navegador is set above Rio’s naval officers’ club on Rio’s main thoroughfare, a suitable location for a place of such elegance. There is a dress code (no shorts or t-shirts) a rarity in Rio, but even more surprisingly, despite its ostensible pretensions, O Navegador does not attempt to rehash European dishes. Rather, chef Teresa Corção’s creations are Brazilian through and through: pork ribs, dried beef, fish stews and the national dish, feijoada, a hearty stew of beans and salted meat, are all served with excellence, without being suffocated by pomp.

Founded by émigré French chef Claude Troigros, Olympe brings the haute cuisine of France to Brazil, with a few local twists along the way. Traditional dishes such as foie gras with pears served in red wine, or chicken breast with mushrooms and herb jus come straight from the finest French cooking schools. Meanwhile, the duck is garnished with the tropical passion fruit, and the salmon with manioc sauce and cilantro. The wine list is thoroughly traditionalist, bringing fine wines from France, which together with an elegant interior help make Olympe an old-school, fine-dining experience.

‘Big Pig’ may not sound like a fine-dining experience, but when sat out overlooking the Bay of Guanabara and the magnificent Sugar Loaf Mountain, drinking a caipirinha cocktail and enjoying Brazilian picanha beef, you’ll understand why Porcão Rio’s has such a sterling reputation. An extensive buffet offers elegant salads using fine ingredients and even an excellent sushi bar. In the tradition of a Brazilian rodízio restaurant, waiters come to your table with skewers of any meat imaginable, still sizzling from the barbecue and with unbeatable flavour.

Amid the chaos of Rio’s central Rio Branco avenue, enter into an unassuming office building and go up to the third floor. You’ll soon understand why Shin Mura, despite running for 40 years, is one of Rio’s best-kept secrets. This Japanese Brazilian restaurant serves traditional dishes from Nagasaki, along with modern experiments. The highlight is the tasting menu, producing the likes of kobi beef, lobster, and exquisite combinations of grilled tuna sushi with foie gras, and soy and honey ice cream.