Rio Bar & Grill: A Night in Rio!

Food: Brazilian – Price: moderate
A Brazilian feast, in Bali! At lunch the waiters masquerade as football stars in their Brazilian uniform, the names on the back you will recognize, the faces not. In the evenings more somber attire is adjudged more appropriate. Rio is new in Bali, and to be found on the site of longtime favourite, Veranda. The ownership/management stays Scandinavian, just moves from Sweden to Finland.

For lunch Rio is a pleasant café, serving salads that are simple [Caesar], unusual [chicken, melon, feta cheese and a vinaigrette of roasted bell peppers] or exotic [ginger-glazed chicken sate on a salad of cous cous]. Sandwiches include the Rio Club [chicken, bacon, chorizo, jalapeno frittata, lettuce, tomato and roijo moijo, a tasty salsa of mashed avocado and roasted bell peppers].

Mains include great value dishes [all under Rp.40,000] such as Grilled Chorizos with ‘Burning Love’ [a spicy potato mash combined with jalapeno peppers and bacon], Tandoori Chicken Drumsticks with tzatziki and rice or the unusual Chef’s Favourite; a thin piece of sirloin steak, coated with Burning Love then rolled inside a slice of bread like a Burrito, finally topped with a jalapeno cheese dip. The seafood choice is Grilled Mahi Mahi with a coconut, lime and coriander reduction.

At night the scene changes, as the oil lamps are lit along the driveway between Jln. Seminyak and the restaurant. It is Samba time, Churrasco time!

Upon arrival you are presented with the Balinese version of that famous Brazilian aperitif CaipiRinja, at Rio they serve a RioRinja.

Churrasco is any meat or seafood skewered with a long sword and cooked in the flames of an open fire. At Rio there is a wide selection of meats and seafood with an all-inclusive price.

An International Vegetarian Buffet is also included in the price. Each night there is a different selection but it includes tasty small thin crepes stuffed with mushrooms, potato dishes [wedges, au gratin, burning love or a potato salad], a variety of other salads [including cous cous, melon feta cheese, Caesar, etc] and many dips, salsa and sauces.

Vegetarians are also welcome at Rio! Forget all the meats just avail yourself of the free-flow Vegetarian Buffet, for a lower price.

Chunks of Chicken Breast wrapped in thin crisp bacon, tender Chicken Drumsticks that have been marinated in yoghurt and curries, Tandoori style before being flamed, fiery small Chorizo Sausages and Pork Ribs are all presented to you, one by one, by the smiling waiter carrying the appropriate sword and leaving the required portion on your plate. All fodder for the meat lover!

Then comes a shock! A large pork fillet is presented. It has been rubbed with a solution of marsala and a variety of spices, before being fired. The waiter shaves slices off the fillet with a long sharp carving knife, the taste simply outstanding if you like a bit of fire in your life? Pork Perfecto!

It only gets better! The Australian Sirloin also arrives as a lump on a sword, the meat rare, the smoky burnt crust a perfect match. Add a spoon or two from the Pepper Sauce boat [a thick chunky solution more like a salsa], total bliss!

Nothing wrong with the Tenderloin that follows it is just that the previous two had so much taste, being stronger meat cuts. It gets the same Pepper Sauce treatment, total satisfaction.

A Seafood sword contains pieces of Mahi Mahi that was doused in lemon before firing, this is followed by grilled pineapple chunks.

Now for dessert! It does not matter how full you think you are after this feast of the carnivore, two desserts here are a must [share them]. A tangy Key Lime Pie and a Chocolate Orgasm [luscious icy cold chocolate mousse wrapped in thin crisp chocolate] combine to refresh the palate and make a perfect ending to your little feast.

The wine list is small but amazingly well balanced, something for almost everyone. The staff are still learning the finer points of Churrasco presenting, but are all smiles and attention at all times.

Have fun at Rio!

Address: Jl. Raya Seminyak 31B, Seminyak
Tel: 732.685
Open: 11.00 to 23.00 daily
Credit cards: Amex, Master, Visa
Wine: small list of carefully selected