We visited Ramma Cozinha Natural (Lorde Cochrane, 76 – Barra, Salvador – BA, 40140-070) so many times when we were in Salvador, it’s a great surprise that we never wrote up a post about it (seems like a lifetime ago!). Brazil is a country crazy for meat, and on top of that, Bahia is a state that loves fried foods and heavy palm oil – well, so do we, but sometimes you need a little something different. That’s where Ramma comes in, offering a vegetarian and gluten-free-friendly oasis in the thick of it all. Like many casual spots in Brazil, Ramma is a kilo restaurant, which means you select your food and, pay buy the pound. Check out our complete guide to eating in a kilo restaurant, and don’t be intimidated!
Tag Archives: kilo restaurant
Ramma: Vegetarian-friendly in Salvador, Bahia
Filed under Reviews
Bella Paulista, something for everyone in São Paulo
Bella Paulista Casa de Pães
R. Haddock Lobo 354
São Paulo – SP 01414-000
No matter what kind of food you a craving, from cake to Italian, to health food to hearty traditional Brazilian fare, chances are 24-hour Bella Paulista in the Jardins neighborhood of São Paulo has it. The full name of the restaurant is Bella Paulista Casa de Pães, (House of Bread), but that really doesn’t tell the whole story. Bella Paulista is kind of a riff on a kilo restaurant – where you pay by how much your food weighs – but a little more high tech. You are given a plastic card, and everything you order – whether through a waiter or at a counter – is added to the card. At the end of the meal, you bring your card to the cashier near the exit when you are done and they then add up the final total. Pretty spiffy.
There is also R$ 29.95 for the all-you-can eat (as opposed to kilo) lunch buffet – which seemed to mainly consist of cold cuts, yogurt, breads and fruit, so we skipped, though it would be excellent for the healthy eaters around (not us, I guess). There was also more of sit down lunch counter for typical Brazilian fare of hot sandwiches and comidinhas. On the menu there were pages and pages of options, including diverse juice drinks, omelettes, pasta, waffles, Gourmet sandwiches such as mozzarella and arugula (all about $R 25+), Traditional sandwiches like turkey, cheese or tuna (around R$ 15). Of course, there is also a huge assortment of bread, like the massive pao de queijo we enjoyed above. We enjoyed sandwiches and fresh squeezed juices for a pretty good deal in this posh area of Sampa.
However, our favorite part of Bella Paulista was the dessert counter. Actually just calling it a counter is a misnomer – it actually formed a big circle, with an attendant inside the middle of the counter, waiting to weight your purchase. You could buy whole round cakes in a myriad of flavors, simpler strawberry or chocolate loaf cakes, as well as cookies, cakes and pies by the slice (you paid for these by weight). We went for the passion fruit cheesecake (below), which we found through experience is one of the most popular and consistently delicious Brazilian desserts. M was also happy to encounter a wide variety of filled doughnuts, not too common of a sight in Brazil. Bella Paulista was certainly one of the more impressive kilo restaurants we encountered in Brazil, and there certainly was something for everyone!
Filed under Reviews
How to Eat at a Kilo Restaurant in Brazil
One of the things you have to do before you leave Brazil is eat at a kilo restaurant. One of the quintessential Brazilian dining experiences, we long for places in the United States where you can get great food by the pound. While you can find kilo restaurants on nearly every street corner in Brazil, our absolute favorite kilo restaurant is the vegetarian-friendly Ramma in Salvador. 
But here’s the big question. If you find yourself in a kilo restaurant, what do you do? Where do you start? What do you order? Here are the basics. What happens is this: you are given a plate and a little order form/ticket. With this, you are welcome to serve yourself at the buffet, much as you do in a typical American-style buffet. However, be careful that your eyes are not bigger than your stomach, because it will end up costing you! At the end of the buffet your plate is weighed and you are charged by the kilo. The price is then written on your ticket, or sometimes at fancier places the scale has a machine that prints an automatic sticker. “Extras” like drinks, coffee or single-serve desserts are marked on your ticket as well, and sometimes you can order these from your table once you have sat down.
The offerings at Aipo e Aipim, a fancy kilo restaurant in Copacabana, Rio de Janeiro.
After getting your ticket, you sit down to eat your food. This can sometimes be tricky at more popular kilo places, which can get absolutely packed around lunchtime, especially in the business districts. As such, don’t worry about filling up the first time: if you want more, you can add to your ticket, or get a second one. When you’re done, you pay the cashier on the way out by handing them your marked ticket. It is absolutely imperative that you do not lose your ticket, and it is the only way that you can exit the restaurant. If you happen to lose your ticket you usually have to pay an exorbitant fee (fortunately this has not happened to us…yet) though we noticed that at certain other kilo places the fee is not too high (maybe 50 reais or about US $25 at the time we were there). Maybe this would encourage people to eat a ton, and “lose” a ticket?
All this for only about $8
There are different types of kilo restaurants for all different tastes – including salad places, vegetarian places, pasta places (Spoleto) and places with homestyle Brazilian food (Aipo e Aipim), and many have several branches in Rio. Sometimes there is a whole separate dessert buffet or even a churrasco (grilled meats) station, which may be offered at a different kilo rate (the churrasco at Aipo e Aipim is great). The selection varies by price, but most restaurants will have at least a dozen options.
Cake buffet at Aipo e Aipim
The menu at a kilo restaurant varies daily, so if you find a favorite kilo place you can go there a few times a week and not be too bored. Prices vary, but the lowest price at a decent kilo restaurant was about R$20 ($10) ranging up to about R$50 ($25). Prices are cheaper outside the tourist areas, obviously. The prices may also vary inside “peak” hours (12-2 or so), and off hours may cost less. At first we were bewildered, but we grew to love the kilo restaurant. It may seem like a lot to consider, but you’ll be eating at kilo restaurants like a native Brazilian in no time!
Filed under World Eats
Eating The World 