Taste of Brazil ~ 4838 S. Huntington Dr. El Sereno, CA 90032 ~ (323) 342-9422
New York has Sounds of Brazil, El Sereno has Taste of Brazil. While only our children's children will live to see which city reigns supreme in the hearts and minds of the country, you should presently take advantage of this inexpensive spot to sup in a cool and casual, yet sophisticated dining room, munching $9 steaks and fresh squeezed fruit juice while sampling a few of the international varieties of cuisine found in Brasilia. I sat down to discuss 'man bidness' with TACO counsel Laneus Lopez Esq., surrounded by a color scheme that would surely please most Hobbits. Mosaic-scarred plant holders and dinner tables bust the Brazilian flag, with yellow umbrellas and napkins coordinating with green chairs and twisted trestles of verde vines. Outside sits a tree shaded eating area across from a giant wall-length mural of Rio's Christ the Redeemer.
As our trusted legal aid is used to the finer things in life--your grey poupon, your Corbel champagne--he went for a glass of vino tinto, while I non-literally dove into some fruit juice. I got a taster of the cashew juice first just out of curiosity. If man could bottle and drink flatulence, I'm afraid cashew juice would be it. Much better to get a violet-hued Acai juice, which tastes like a light boysenberry smoothie. Yum! T.O.B.'s menu is interesting for its inclusion of northern, more tropical Bahian flavors and even includes some dishes influenced by Brazil's immigrant population like Beef Strogonoff, which our server told us Brazilians eat a lot of. Which reminds me of the punchline to a little joke: What do you call a cow jerking off? Beef strokin-off!