There are two all-you-can-eat authentic Brazilian steakhouses in Ipanema: Carretao and Porcao. Both restaurants are good places to eat as much beef as you want for a fixed price. Since Ipanema is a small neighborhood, both steakhouses are at walking distance from your hotel or at a very short taxi ride away.

Which steakhouse to choose? Carretao or Porcao? Find below a short review of both churrascarias (Brazilian Portuguese word from ‘steakhouses’).

1. Churrascaria Carretão in Ipanema (mid-range Brazilian steakhouse)

Carretao steakhouse has several restaurants throughout Rio de Janeiro, and the Ipanema branch is the best one. Carretao Ipanema is much more spacious than the other two branches, which are located in Copacabana. Since Ipanema residents are also more demanding in terms of quality, the service and the salad bar are slightly better.

Carretao Ipanema is approximately half price of Porcao steakhouse. That’s a big difference, and the beef-wise experience is not so different than at Porcao. If you can not afford Porcao, then go to Carretao Ipanema. Even if you are staying in Ipanema, combine a visit to this neighborhood with an all-you-can-eat treat at this popular steakhouse in Rio.

Price of Carretao Steakhouse in Ipanema

R$48; US$24; €22 Mon. – Fri., R$54; US$27; €24 per person weekends, holidays and the night before holidays.

Address of Carretao Steakhouse in Ipanema

Rua Visconde de Pirajá, 112 (almost in front of the Ipanema Subway Station at Praça Genaral Osório).

2. Churrascaria Porcao in Ipanema (upscale Brazilian steakhouse)

Porcao is one of the high-end steakhouses in Rio de Janeiro (competes with Marius and Fogo de Chao). The service, the settings and the food are of high standard. The salad bar in particular is huge and excellent, and if you don’t pay attention on the amount of food you put on your plate, there may be little room for the beef cuts the waiter will bring to your table.

Porcao has three branches in Rio de Janeiro that are close to the hotels where tourists stay: Ipanema, Flamengo (this branch is called Porcao Rio’s) and Barra da Tijuca. They are all similar in quality.

Porcao Ipanema: This is the ideal steakhouse for those tourists who are staying in Ipanema. You can, for example, walk to Porcao, and take a taxi back to your hotel if you are going at night (you can easily hail a cab on the street). If you are going for lunch, you can walk back as well instead of taking a taxi.

Porcao Rio’s: This Porcao branch is at a 5-minute taxi ride from Sugar Loaf. The greatest advantage of Porcao Rio’s is its location — panoramic view to Sugar Loaf and Guanabara Bay. If you arrive there off the eating hours (late lunch or early dinner — between 4 and 6 p.m. on weekdays), you may get a table with great views.

If you don’t get a table with view, you can still take great photos just outside Porcão Rio’s. Walking from Porcao Rio’s to your hotel is not recommended, but that is not a problem since there is a yellow taxi stand at the door.

Porcão Barra da Tijuca: This Porcao branch only makes sense to go if you are staying in one of the Barra da Tijuca hotels such as Windsor Barra or Sheraton Barra. Or, if by any chance you are, for example, going to Barra Shopping, the largest mall in Latin America, or planning any other activity in Barra da Tijuca.

Price of Porcao Steakhouse:

R$92; US$46; €40 (Porcao Barra is slightly cheaper and Porcao Rio’s is slightly more expensive).

Addresses of Porcao steakhouses:

Porcao Ipanema: Rua Barão da Torre, 218, Ipanema, Rio de Janeiro
Porcao Rio’s (Flamengo neighborhood): Av. Infante Dom Henrique, S/N, Aterro do Flamengo, Rio de Janeiro
Porcao Barra da Tijuca: Av. Armando Lombardi, 591, Barra da Tijuca, Rio de Janeiro

Opening hours: All branches of Porcao and Carretao steakhouses are open every day from 12 noon until at least 11 p.m.

Reservation: You don’t need reservation if you are a small group. However, to be sure you won’t wait in line, go there for early lunch (precisely at 12 noon), or for late lunch/early dinner (between 4 and 6 p.m.), especially on weekends when locals tend to go to steakhouses.