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Rodízio

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Rodízio meat is typically presented and served from a vertical skewer.

Rodízio (Brazilian Portuguese: [ʁoˈdʒiziu]) is an all-you-can-eat style of restaurant service in Brazilian restaurants where waiters bring a variety of grilled meats repeatedly throughout the meal, until the customer(s) signal that they have had enough.

Description

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In this rodízio restaurant in Germany, patrons turn over green/red cylinders to indicate to staff whether they require more food.

In most areas of the world outside of Brazil, a rodízio restaurant refers to a Brazilian-style steakhouse restaurant, where customers pay a fixed price (preço fixo). [1]

In churrascarias or the traditional Brazilian-style steakhouse restaurants, servers come to the table with knives and a vertically-held skewer, on which are speared various kinds of premium cuts of meat, most commonly local cuts of beef, pork, chicken, lamb, and sometimes atypical or exotic meats.[1] The exact origin of the rodízio style of service is unknown, but the traditional story is that this serving style was created when a waiter delivered a meat skewer to the wrong table by mistake but let the guest take a small piece of the meat anyway.[2]

Rodízio became increasingly popular in Brazil in the mid-20th century and spread around the world as experienced servers moved to open their own restaurants.[2] In Brazil, the rodízio style is sometimes also found in Italian (Italian restaurants serving pizza are especially common) or more recently Japanese restaurants.[2] Rodízio of crepes are also common in Brazil,[3] as also rodízios of other types of foods.[4]

In a churrascaria, the rodízio courses are served right off the cooking spit and are sliced or plated right at the table.[1] Thin slices are carved from the roasted outside layer of large cuts; the diners may use a pair of small stainless-steel tongs to grab the slices as they are cut, and then place them on their plate. Alternatively, the server will push smaller kebab-style chunks off the end of the skewer onto a serving plate.

Often, the meat servings are accompanied with fried potatoes, fried polenta, fried bananas, collard greens, black beans, rice, salads, or other side dishes (usually self-served buffet style).

In many restaurants, the diner is provided with a colored card or token. Green, on one side, indicates to servers to bring more meat. Red, on the other side, indicates that the diners have enough for the moment.[1] This does not necessarily signal that the diner is finished eating, but only indicates that no more meat servings are desired at that moment.

Fare

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The following foods are often seen at a churrascaria served rodízio style:

  • Filet mignon chunks wrapped in bacon
  • Turkey chunks wrapped in bacon (these two are usually two-bite sized)
  • Sirloin steak (cut semicircular and served in slices)
  • Roast beef (served like sirloin steak)
  • Rump cover (called picanha in Portuguese)
  • Flap steak (called fraldinha in Portuguese)
  • Beef short ribs
  • Lamb
  • Pork ribs
  • Chouriço or some other spicy Iberian pork sausage
  • Chicken hearts
  • Grilled dark-meat chicken
  • Grilled pineapple or banana (meant as a palate cleanser between courses)

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d Ro, Herrine (2016-08-03). "The complete guide to Brazilian barbecue". Archived from the original on 2018-05-02. Retrieved 2018-05-01.
  2. ^ a b c Tonon, Rafael (2016-10-06). "'Meat-Eater's Mecca': How the Brazilian Steakhouse Swept America". Archived from the original on 2018-05-02. Retrieved 2018-05-01.
  3. ^ "Depois viagem internacional, casal decide investir rodízio de crepes, prato de origem francesa". G1 (in Brazilian Portuguese). G1. 23 April 2023. Retrieved 2023-11-05.
  4. ^ "Melhores rodízios em São Paulo para se esbaldar de comer". quantocustaviajar.com (in Brazilian Portuguese). 13 September 2023. Retrieved 2023-11-05.