Yummy: Tucanos Brazilian Grill

I had been wanting desperately to try this place out ever since it opened about 8 months ago. I had heard wonderful things about it from everyone; friends, coworkers, even the reviews in all the papers were great. The only thing that made me hesitate at all is the fact that I am not that much of a meat eater, and their claim to fame is their grilled meats. But then I was told that there is much more there than meat, so I thought, "why not?", and went there yesterday with sis.

This restaurant is simply to die for. The idea behind it is quite simple: no menu. You read right. No menu. They offer one entree: their famous churrasco (the grilled meats, veggies, and the best pineapple I have ever had). The churrasco is served in a rotation of 9 types of meat and veggies at lunch, and 15 types at dinner. The rotation never ends, as the "meat servers" basically just go from table to table and then back around again. The churrasco is all you can eat, so every time they come to your table, you have the choice to take more, or refuse for now. I quickly learned that my favorite items were the beef brisket (a rarity for me), the fish grilled in a mango batter, the grilled veggies, and (of course) the grilled pineapple.


But that's just the beginning. Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you, the Salad Festival (pictured below), which has over 70 hot and cold items ranging from salads to soups to sushi and pasta and everything in between. My favorite? The mini "cheese rolls", which were simply rolls with cheese baked into them, but absolutely mouthwatering, followed by the herb pasta salad. Let's just say there is more than plenty available in the Salad Festival for the non-meat eater.


So I am definitely going back. My birthday is next month, and I think I've decided where I want to spend it. LOL! My best piece of advice to anyone wanting to try this restaurant is go at lunch, not dinner. It is about $8 cheaper at lunch, not to mention the fact that I needed the rest of the day to recover from the amount of food I took in, and so did my sister. Right now, there are only Tucanos restaurants in New Mexico, Idaho, and Utah, but expansion is in the works, so if you're interested, be on the lookout!