Waiters bringing skewered meat to your table? Cuts of beef you've never heard of? Why should
you visit the salad bar? Keep watching for the truth about Brazilian Steakhouse Fogo de Chao.
The first Fogo de Chão in the world was started in 1979 in Porto Alegre in Southern Brazil.
This was almost 20 years before the company's expansion into the U.S.,
but it was a vital time for the restaurant to define itself and its reputation.
Perhaps its biggest success was the fact that Fogo de Chão wanted to keep centuries-old
culinary traditions alive — traditions specific to this particular region of Brazil.
At the same time, the company focused heavily on top-notch customer service
and excellent quality in the food and the dining experience alike.
Perhaps most importantly, the restaurant wanted to celebrate and stay connected to the local culture.
Fogo de Chão may not have been the first chain of Brazilian steakhouse restaurants in the United
States, but it was largely responsible for the popularity of these kinds of eateries.
The first US Fogo de Chão location opened in 1997 in Dallas, Texas.
The company passed up cities like New York and Miami because it felt Texas was ideal:
The state already had a strong barbecue culture, after all.
According to reporting by Eater, Arri Coser, one of the co-founders of Fogo de Chão,
explained the decision by stating -
"I saw a connection between the Brazilian gauchos and the Texas cowboys.
So it seemed to be the best region to start."
An experience at Fogo de Chão is a bit different from an American steakhouse,
as it focuses on a culinary tradition known as churrasco. Churrasco is the process of
barbecuing beef and other varieties of meat that are cooked over a fire on a long skewer. Instead
of ordering one whole cut of meat, diners get to taste a little bit of everything.
These different types of meat are sliced off of the skewer directly onto the plate,
so restaurant-goers know they're getting their food cooked fresh.
At Fogo de Chão, guests get the opportunity to enjoy a prix-fixe menu of these fire-roasted
cuts of meat that are delivered to their table throughout the course of the meal. Because it's
an all-you-can-eat experience, guests can sample a wide range of cuts and flavors,
arguably offering a more exciting steakhouse experience than the American classic.
Clearly, Fogo de Chão's specialty is meat, But that doesn't mean you're only stuck with
heaping piles of beef on your plate - guests shouldn't miss out on the salad bar either.
This isn't just your average salad bar, though. At Fogo de Chão, it's known as the Market Table.
This is where diners will find a variety of decidedly not-basic salads, imported vegetables
and cheeses, proteins like smoked salmon, and yes, even more meat. Of course, you can also grab
some soup or a side salad if you want at least part of your meal to be on the lighter side.
The Feijoada Bar is another can't-miss experience at this restaurant.
Feijoada is Brazil's national dish, essentially a black bean stew, but it's also made with sausage.
Feijoada is typically served with rice and farofa, or baked yucca flour. It's eaten
with orange slices on the side, as the citrus brings some zest and brightness to the dish.
Fogo de Chão has an extensive wine list and knowledgeable servers to help diners
decide what they might like best. But those who want more of an authentic Brazilian experience
might want to try the signature cocktail at this restaurant: the caipirinha. This is a classic
sweet-and-sour cocktail that's an essential part of South American drinking culture.
It's made with just a few ingredients, and the simpler, the better.
Like a margarita, the drink starts off with lime and sugar. But instead of tequila,
cachaça is the preferred spirit. Cachaça is a liquor similar to rum with a few
slight differences in flavor — it tends to have a grassier taste. Up until 2013,
it was often marketed and sold in the United States as "Brazilian rum."
Though restaurant-goers will find this cocktail all around South America,
it's not as common in the states, though it's getting more popular.
"Also caipirinha is the 3rd most popular drink around the world,
but definitely, is the number 1 in Brazil."
Sure, you may have had Mexican or Chinese food before,
but unless you've actually been to the source, there's a good chance that you
were not getting an authentic version of another culture's food, but a more Americanized version.
Luckily, Fogo de Chão offers more of an authentic experience. Since the chain started off in Brazil,
it had to stay true to its roots. Expanding into the US market didn't make the company water down
its product or experience either. It wanted to bring a true churrasco experience to the country,
and it continues to do so successfully to this day. Guests can be confident that they're enjoying
an authentic dining experience, and that's not exactly common in chain restaurants.
Since Fogo de Chão is more of an upscale restaurant,
guests can expect to drop some money at dinner, especially if they order drinks
in addition to food. It's possible to get the same experience for less money, though.
The main trick is to go at the right time. Dinner prices at Fogo de Chão are higher,
But the restaurant is open for lunch too, and the prices are more reasonable during that time.
The Gaucho Lunch is available on the weekdays,
and it gives guests access to the Market Table and Feijoada Bar for just $15.
While this offer doesn't include the unlimited meat selection, it only costs $8 to $10 more.
Though these exact price points can differ by location, one thing is sure: Lunch is the
more affordable dining option for those who want to save on their next Fogo experience.
Fogo de Chão may not seem like the most obvious restaurant to start a delivery wing
of its business, especially since it does seem to rely so heavily on the in-person experience.
But it really is possible to get a whole meal from Fogo delivered to your house.
Customers can choose from churrasco combinations, which offers one type of meat and two side dishes.
Feeding more than a few people? Fogo also offers deliveries of different meats by the pound,
so you can stock up on your favorites or share with your whole party.
This restaurant is about the experience, but sometimes, guests want the flavor
without having to leave the couch and get dressed up, and Fogo's delivery makes it
easier for customers to get their Fogo fill whenever they have a craving for it.
A new type of dining called rodízio was growing in popularity in Southern Brazil in the '70s.
The organization of the restaurant is exactly what we expect from Fogo de Chão now: servers
coming around with grilled meat on skewers, giving a few slices to everyone in the room.
"Is that something that is traditional in Brazil?" "Yeah that tradition start in Southern Brazil,
and now it's spread around the world."
These eateries were originally frequented by truck drivers who would stop at the
roadside restaurants. Since there were plenty of cattle around, the food was cheap and filling.
In the beginning, these eateries were more like gas stations than restaurants:
The meat was usually cooked outside in tin-roofed rooms, and most didn't even
have table seating at first. Drivers would often wait for their food, take it, and be on their way.
However, as this type of cuisine became more popular, restaurants started adding tables so
patrons could sit down to enjoy their meals. Fogo was the restaurant that took the idea to
the next level, though. The founders wanted to bring rodízio-style dining to the big cities
instead of sticking to the side of the road. They also added an upscale flair to the atmosphere,
complete with real glasses and white tablecloths.
Steakhouses in the U.S. generally have several different cuts of meat to choose from.
Those who have made their rounds in the steakhouse
scene will probably be able to identify the most familiar.
But when Americans take a trip to Fogo de Chão, they may not know what they're getting into.
Fogo offers a wide variety of cuts that you usually just don't see in the States.
It's an adventurous eater's dream come true. The picanha is probably the most well-known
and celebrated Brazilian cut of meat, which means it's a must-try item on the menu. Lamb may not be
common in most American restaurants, but you can certainly find it here in the form of cordeiro.
The costela, or beef short ribs, are also insanely popular.
Once Fogo de Chão came to the United States, the restaurant exploded in popularity.
But the company had bigger ideas than leaving it at that. The
restaurant chain added a location in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, in August 2017.
Larry Johnson, the Chief Executive Officer of Fogo de Chão,
spoke to the Saudi Gazette about the expansion, saying -
"Jeddah is such an exciting, dynamic city filled with unique restaurants from all over the world.
We saw this as a great opportunity to become part of their growing culinary scene.
We are thrilled to officially join the community and share our passion for
Southern Brazilian cooking and hospitality with Saudi residents and visitors alike."
Of course, the traditional cocktails found at other Fogo de Chão locations won't be
available in Jeddah, but the company did create a "mocktail" menu specifically for this location,
offering visitors here just as many options to explore the flavors of the cuisine.
In addition to the Jeddah location, Fogo has also expanded into Dubai.
The CARES Act was a $2 trillion aid package from the federal government to help alleviate economic
suffering as a result of COVID-19 shutdowns, lockdowns, and loss of business and employment.
A significant element of the CARES Act: the $349 billion Paycheck Protection Program,
or PPP, which purported to help out specifically small businesses, defined as those with 500
workers or less. However, franchises and outlets of huge companies could apply if
a single location employed fewer than 500. Among the major restaurant chains that received a loan
from the PPP fund was Fogo de Chão, accepting two separate $10 million windfalls. Company
CEO Barry McGowan justified accepting money in this manner, telling the Wall Street Journal -
"The scale of our business doesn't matter. All of our restaurants count."
Fogo de Chão pulled itself up out of potential pandemic disaster enough that in January 2021,
it announced an aggressive and ambitious expansion plan.
These new locations will be among the first to feature a revamped interior design as well as
The Butchery, meat shops where customers can buy high-end cuts to prepare at home.
Business did drop precipitously at Fogo de Chão during the coronavirus pandemic. According to
Restaurant Business, same-store sales fell by 95 percent in the early weeks of the pandemic
in spring 2020. When infection rates dropped and vaccination levels rose in the spring of 2021,
restaurants cautiously started opening again, and Fogo de Chão performed spectacularly,
with sales in March of that year up more than 17 percent above pre-pandemic levels.
By June 2021, business at the steakhouse was 51 percent more than what it had been in June
2019. While the company experimented with pickup and delivery to stay afloat, the chain credited
its financial revival to guests returning, and became a publicly traded company in November 2021.
It wasn't the first time investors could buy and sell stock in Fogo de Chão.
According to Nation's Restaurant News, the eatery became a publicly traded firm in 2015,
and remained so until it was purchased in 2018.
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