Rio de Janeiro is the perfect escape, offering perennially warm/hot weather, a bustling nightlife, and dynamic food scene. Most distinctively, life in Rio revolves around the beach. Locals head to the beach at all hours of the day, whether it be for an early morning run on the beach, post-work relaxation, or an all-day family affair. It replaces a park, diner or cafe as the setting for a casual hangout. This is apparent in Rio’s fashion—I can’t think of anywhere I’ve visited where they wear less clothing—as well as it’s laid back vibe. Some of our highlights were the Jardim du Botanico (a gorgeous botanical garden), a helicopter ride for a unique view of Cristo Redentor, and wandering around Lapa, a gritty neighborhood with incredible street art and nightlife.
Where to Stay: If it’s your first time in Rio, you may want to stay in a beachfront hotel for the signature experience. You can’t go wrong with centrally located Ipanema or Leblon. The Hotel Fasano is considered the gold standard, but make sure you book an ocean view room which have balconies. Janeiro is a relatively new, 5 star eco-friendly option in Leblon with a chic rooftop pool and spacious suites. This is arguably the best location of any hotel on the beach in Rio—Leblon is where most of the chic restaurants, shopping and nightlife are concentrated. A gem of a budget-friendly option is the airy Hotel Arpoador in Ipanema, located next door to the Fasano. If you’re looking for a historic hotel, the beautiful Belmond Copacabana Palace is the grand dame of Rio, but Copacabana is a touristy area that can get feel a bit seedy and generally isn’t really the “cool” place to stay. If you don’t mind the Copa location, we did have an amazing experience in the suites at the Emiliano Hotel. It’s a little closer to Ipanema and a beautifully decorated hotel with amazing service. If you have enough time to stray from the beachfront or not visiting for the first time, the Santa Teresa Hotel RJ is in the upscale, artsy neighborhood of Santa Teresa, perched on a hill with views of the entire city. It’s a historic hotel that offers a quieter and more tranquil respite from the busy beach scene.
Where to Eat: Both the high and low end food options in Rio were absolutely amazing. For a casual bite on the beach, head to Barraca du Uruguay located at Posto 9 on Ipanema beach. They offer incredible Uraguayan style sandwiches and cold beers—we went at sunset and set up a picnic for a late lunch, and it was one of my favorite moments of the trip. The laid back vibe captured my heart so much that I even had a beer myself, which I’m pretty sure I haven’t done since high school. If there’s anywhere that will turn a high maintenance city girl into a lover of an ice cold lager from a plastic cup, it’s Rio.
Another one of our favorite casual spots was Bar Urca, a Bourdain-recommended restaurant in a neighborhood north of Copacabana. We went to a small nearby beach before lunch, which was a lovely 15 minute stroll from the restaurant along the harbor. The restaurant is upstairs in an unassuming building with gorgeous views of the water. They have a huge menu with many options for either a full lunch or after-beach snacks. We shared an enormous, fresh salad and the octopus, and both were amazing. Cue the ubiquitous oversized bottle of cold beer to wash it all down. Strolling around Leblon, we popped into the adorable Zaza Bistro. The restaurant is in a colorful, multilevel home and had a tropical vibe. Seating is either outside on the street or in the astroturfed upstairs area, where you remove your shoes and eat on cushions. The food was delicious, an eclectic mix of traditional Brazilian, Moroccan and Asian influences.
If you’re even an occasional red meat eater like myself, you shouldn’t leave Rio without visiting a steakhouse. Brazil is known for it’s humanely raised, grass fed cows, and their philosophy is apparent in the incredibly flavorful beef. Our spot of choice was Rubaiyat, a gorgeous restaurant with sky high ceilings and an outdoor balcony set right in front of the horserace tracks, with accompanying views of Christ the Redeemer and the striking palms of the Botanical Garden. For the best of both worlds we had our meal inside and then went outside for dessert and drinks, which they kindly accommodated and I highly recommend. I had the filet mignon special (a particularly special breed of cow raised on bountiful acres of grass and love), and Jeremy the ribeye. Both were sublime.
Another one of our best meals was at Aprazivel, a restaurant built into a treehouse in Santa Teresa with the incredible city views the neighborhood is known for. We had a—wait for it—guacamole style acai bowl, as in guacamole with the acai replacing the avocado. It’s worth visiting Aprazivel just for this and the views alone, but the entrees were also amazing. There’s also a great stretch of restaurants in Leblon, where Zuka, Brigite’s, and Sushi Leblon are located. All the locals recommended Sushi Leblon, but it was probably our most disappointing meal of the trip—perhaps we have been spoiled by sushi elsewhere. Zuka was our favorite of this stretch, which had a gourmet, local spin on international cuisine.
