So one thing I haven’t done a lot of so far was to capture the view of my food here. I am usually very hungry by the time served so I usually was part way through when I realized, no picture. I will try to get more pictures for you. I have a few pictures but I can tell you that so far, the food is not spicy. Generally, I have been told the food is not spicy. Now this is quite a bit different than the three alarm chili that can be found easily in Texas so if I run across any spicy food, you will be the first to know. Let me recap some of my notable food experiences so far…

Breakfast. European is how I would describe the breakfast here at the hotel. Lots of fruits. Mango, pineapple, kiwi, watermelon, etc. suitable to satisfy most fruit fanciers. Cheese, meats, and breads. Just like Europe where you see a selection of cured meats, cheeses and many types of bread are also available. And also, the more American breakfast items, scrambled eggs, bacon, & toast. Although they have a few unique items. Mini croissants that are filled with crumbled bacon, cheese bread, which look like a cheese puff but has a cheese baked in (tasty). I never have a problem with breakfast.

Lunch. I understand that lunch for Brazilians are their biggest meal. Unlike Americans who typically eat their largest meal at night. Lunch here is a big deal. I only have a picture of lunch from the food court at the local mall where I ate the other day to show. It is of a shrimp dish. One thing I have noticed is that they use real (read metal) utensils with fast foods. I was very surprised to find a real fork & knife when I ate lunch the other day. The other thing of note. Rice. Rice is a staple and it not uncommon to have many starches on your plate. For example, today, I ate a great little restaurant on the beach that served rice, French fries, & farofa, which is a manioc flour that is toasted. It look more like the consistency of corn meal. It is a favorite in Brazil and though I have tried it, I didn’t go gonzo over it. Maybe I didn’t eat it correctly so I intend to try it again but it just didn’t knock my socks off (like the Caipirinha). Now for dessert at this beach restaurant, which is called Ilhote Sul (sorry don’t have a translation for this). It was described a brownie and I thought, Hmmmm, that should be interesting. It was fantastic. It was a warm brownie covered with warm chocolate fudge sauce (I think) and a large scoop of vanilla ice cream. Heavenly. People who know Blue Belle ice cream knows that it is a wonderful brand. Well when I tasted this ice cream, I swear it was as good. My first thought was, Amy would love this dish. The brownie was soft, chocolate sauce warm, and the ice cream balanced the two. Yum!

Dinner. I have eaten a few local restaurants and can say that I am trying to find and eat the typical meal. I don’t know what that really is yet. So I have of course when reviewing a menu (sometimes it is in English) looked for any dishes that I have had before and wondered if they make it similar to what I know. The other night, I went to a pizza restaurant and ordered a “Portuguesa Especial” which is a pizza with (musserala, presunto, bacon, cebola, pimientao, azeitonas, palmito, & alho). Very good pizza. Will definitely go back for another meal there. The crust is thin. No deep dish style here. The fun part was climbing the stairs to the second floor. Very short, tall steps and let me tell you. Too many cervejas (beer) and you will definitely need to get down. I cannot say that I have had a great steak yet. My colleague doesn’t eat meat so she was at a loss to put me in a prime steak house. She has told me she would inquire for me. Until then, don’t hand me that plastic fork, I have been spoiled.