For my grad school celebration, my family and I are going to Fogo de Chao in DC for the first time. I've been to places with the same basic format (Rodizio in Denver), but never Fogo de Chao. So, I have a few questions. Is the place at all kid friendly? There will be a three year old (unless its highly recommended we don't bring him), who probably won't be eating the food so much as just hanging out. Anything I should be aware of besides the disc flipping for food? I've already made reservations, but I know we might still have to wait since its hard to determine how long people will be dining. Any general thoughts/comments/opinions/etc. would be appreciated!
If he (or she) isn't going to eat, then why bring them? Think of the most bored they've ever been at a restaurant while the adults talked -- and multiply it by 10 times.
I can't think of too many people (parents or non-parents) that wouldn't be peeved at spending $40+ / person and be seated next to a 3 year old that is "just hanging out."
Well, this is a family thing, CF, so the person seated next to the 3-year-old is likely to be an aunt, uncle, grandparent, parent, or sibling I would think.
The Fogo in Atlanta does not charge for kids under a certain age-- I think it is 6 -- so paying for the 3-year-old to be there should not be an issue. I doubt he will eat anything and he might be bored. On the other hand, the sight of the waiters bringing huge skewers of meat around and cutting off slices of beef could be kinda fun. There tends to be a lot going on which may distract the child. The kid might be ok. Hard to say without knowing the child. My kids have loved it since they were about 5 or 6, but we did not take them before that age.
You are going to have a wonderful time! Make sure you try everything -- and I am not just talking about the meat. The cooked bananas are like a desert, the mashed potatoes are quite good, and I love the fried polenta (a corn meal thing that is sorta like cornbread). Of course, I recommend taking all these items in small doses to leave maximum room for the meat.
Depending on what time your reservation is, you may get seated reasonably quickly. It is like any other popular restaurant in that regard. I have never waited more than maybe 15 minutes after my reservation time at Fogo.
--Jason "great choice for a celebration!" Evans
Thanks Jason! My goal is to try everything, but we shall see if I can make it! As for the child, I guess I should explain. Since he can eat for free, we'll see how he does. On top of being a young little guy, he has Down Syndrome, so how he handles new situations is a little unpredictable. But I only get to see him and my aunt two, three times a year, so I'm hoping he will be fine! If not, he adores my dad and grandfather, so they can always find something to do! Don't worry, Cf, we'll try not to ruin dinner for anyone...
Fogo... someone owes me dinner at Fogo... hmmm...
Since its too late for me to edit my last post, what I originally meant was that the child would be eating whatever his mom brought, not so much the Fogo chow. But he may like the mashed potatoes and some of the salad bar stuff. I'm just really not sure how he'll react to the meat options. And Sue, come join the fun! Although, we're kind of a boring, low-key group!
Fogo de Chao was awesome! If you haven't been there yet, I highly recommend it. I know its pricey, but totally worth it. Everyone in my family really liked it and they had never been anywhere remotely like it before. The favorite by far was the picanha. It is one of the best cuts of meat I have ever had. Other favorites were the frango (chicken wrapped in bacon) and the parmesan encrusted pork. I enjoyed all of the different meats and I would recommend you try to have all of them at least once!
Glad you enjoyed it. But more importantly, congrats to you!
Go for lunch instead of dinner. Half the cost, and when the inevitable meat sweats strike you 6-8 hours later, you're not trying to get a good night's sleep
Why wouldn't the three year old eat anything? My kids (1, 3, and 6) have always loved Brazilian steakhouses. The meat on sticks. The fire. My kids eat a ton at those places, and two of them are free!
He is a beyond picky eater. I mean, I know little kids can be, but he's on a whole different level. He fell asleep on our way there and slept the entire time anyway, so that was good. On a side note, does anyone know how one could go about buying some picanha? I know its part of top sirloin and the "rump cover", but I don't think I've seen it in regular grocery stores. I have never been to a butcher's shop in my life and according to most people on the Internet you can pick this cut up at a Brazilian butcher shop. It was fantastic and I guess just buying some top sirloin is more or less the same thing?
Good advice, although if you go during lunch you have to make sure that you're not planning on getting any work done that afternoon. I did go with my office one Friday (before a holiday weekend) and we all enjoyed ourselves and wrote off the rest of the day. I also had one night where I ate so much that I got only about 1.5 hours of sleep due to over-indulgence. I'd gone with a Brazilian woman who'd been Gisele's personal assistant and had introduced her to the place and received some pretty awesome service as a result. All the best cuts came non-stop, and I just didn't know how to say no.
On a related note, for those who haven't visited Durham in the past few years, there's now a Brazilian steakhouse in Brightleaf Square called Chamas.