Eli and his Brazilian friend recently discovered this new restaurant, which just opened in TriBeCa. Last week, Eli and I went to check it out, and it was charming and fun with excellent food, so I wanted to share it with all of you.
Leo Funderburk, an American model who has worked for a long time in the restaurant business, was originally going to open the restaurant as an expansion of Casa, which his Brazilian ex-wife runs. Instead, he decided to make it a separate entity, though I'm not clear on whether the name is in fact Barzinho, or the name used in several articles and on Yelp (Leo's Bar & Restaurant), which the owner says is easier for people to understand. I personally prefer Barzinho, which is what the restaurant has been using for advertising. Read more about Leo and the restaurant here.
Located right next door to Plataforma TriBeCa, a fancy churrascaria which charges upwards of US$50 per person, this restaurant is more moderately priced and more relaxed, with home style cooking and a family-like atmosphere. It's small but cozy, with simple furnishings and great Brazilian music. Also, on Thursdays, Chris Barreto and her band play live samba, forro, chorinho and bossa nova. The cook is an extremely sweet mineira, who scolded us for not warning her beforehand that we were Brazilian (I apparently fooled her) so she could "caprichar um pouco." Leo, the owner, was chatting with everyone and made us feel very welcome.
The restaurant has standard Brazilian fare, with delicious salgadinhos for appetizers (think coxinha and camarão ao alho e óleo) and great main courses. There's feijoada, of course, but Eli and I had the moqueca and the peixe frito, which were both amazing. One of my favorite things is a drink the owner invented -- a mixture of Brugal (rum from the Dominican Republic) and Guarana Antartica. While in theory, it's kind of an odd combination, in practice, it's surprisingly delightful.
The only two downsides are that it's cash only and slightly understaffed, so the service is a bit slow. They should theoretically start taking credit cards soon, and it's possible service is better during more crowded meal times. Overall, it's a wonderful way to matar saudades or to just eat some really delicious Brazilian food.
For more info on Barzinho, click here.
I always thought that would be a perfect name for a hip little place downtown. Hope they do well. That beer- guarana drink reminds me of the French panache or the English shandy - beer with lemon soda. On hot summer days I put fFresca together with a nice amber beer. Soooo good...
Speaking of matar as saudades, Have you been to the oddly named Brasilianville Cafe in Astoria? Seriously delicious por quilo food plus a churrasco window at unbeatable prices. A big eater will stuff himself for $15.
Posted by: Dennis | May 20, 2010 at 01:02 PM
Hey Dennis,
Like I mentioned, it's rum, not beer - it's really good. I haven't been to any Brazilian places in Astoria but I hear that's where I have to go :)
Posted by: Rio Gringa | May 20, 2010 at 10:48 PM
Oops, I guess I read what I wanted to see :)
Definitely check out Brasilianville - it's really like being in Brazil, no kidding.
Posted by: Dennis | May 21, 2010 at 12:59 AM
HI GRINGA,
Thanks for your information on our band, but i think we had a mistake with my name!
IAM CHRIS BARRETO, i am a BRAZILIAN GIRL, I AM A WOMAN and THAT IS MY BAND,"BRAZILIAN SOUL",THAT PLAYS AT BARZINHO.
i would love you please to correct the information if you could , cause by coincidence have a male musician that lives in NYC, and calls CHRIS BARRETO as well!
My myspace adress is: www.myspace.com/255454255 CHRIS BARRETO BRAZIL
contact@chrisbarreto.com or chris@chrisbarreto.com
thank you very much for your understanding!
CHRIS BARRETO BRAZIL
Posted by: chris barreto | May 21, 2010 at 03:08 PM
Desculpa Chris! Aqui nos EUA, Chris com H normalmente eh homem. Tambem tenho um flyer do restaurante Barzinho que tem o endereco errado da banda (o do outro Chris Barreto). bjos
Posted by: Rio Gringa | May 21, 2010 at 11:42 PM
Boa noite sou dj (de Recife)e gostaria de deixar minha Demo para voces ouvirem,gostaria de saber qual o enderesso do Barzinho,Obrigado
Dj Marmita
Posted by: Artur Emilio Pinheiro | November 09, 2010 at 08:27 PM
I totally agree.
We had diner last monday in Barzinho and had a delicious meal, started with fried garlic chicken starters and Yucca with cheese, a fresh salad with palm heart and a carpaccio and continued with the Feijoada, the steak, the peixe frito and a dish with squid, shrimps, fish and beans. To summarize it was excellent brazilian food and we really enjoyed the good brazilian music and the performance of John F (writer/ poet). Also the Jazz and Blues played by DJ Richard was nice.
The owner and his staff were very friendly and gave us a warm welcome.
Posted by: Dick nahar | December 16, 2010 at 10:55 AM
Awesome Restaurant! Definitely will be going there.
We also posted this on our website:
http://rodamagazine.com/Capoeira/News/Barzinho-Restaurant-New-York.html?Itemid=13
Posted by: Roda Magazine | March 02, 2012 at 02:15 AM