We hadn’t visited a restaurant for a while here at the blog. Today we are presenting a 100% off-the-beaten track food experience we had during our trip to Manaus.

We learned about the peixaria do Jokka Loureiro on a blog review (you’ll be pushed hard to find a mention to it on a printed guide, whether in English or in Portuguese) and thrilled with what we read we headed to the fish restaurant, in the São Raimundo neighbourhood, Manaus west (exact location of the restaurant on Google Maps).

The restaurant is at the end of a cul-de-sac. You ring the bell and someone will open the gate for you. The interior of the restaurant couldn’t possibly be more spartan: chairs and tables and hardly anything else. Well, not entirely true, from the height of the restaurant you enjoy a fantastic view of the river Negro which by itself would be a good enough reason to go as far as the São Raimundo neighbourhood.

In Manaus, do as the locals. We went to Jokka Loureiro to feast on some Amazon fish. There is no printed menu, and the options available are truly basic: tambaqui, pirarucú or tucunaré, the finest of the Amazon fish. We had heard of the awesome costillas de tambaqui (tambaqui ribs) and that was what we ordered.

Along with the fish we had some beer and rounded up the meal with dessert. The final bill for 2 reached R$55.

Jokka Loureiro is on Rua São José, 9. The safest and less stressful way of getting there is a cab. Approximately R$20 from the centre of Manaus. The restaurant only opens for lunch, from 11:30 to 15:30, Monday to Saturday. It seemed really popular with the locals.

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NAME: pousada dos Meros

WHERE: Vila do Abraão, Ilha Grande, Río de Janeiro

WEBSITE: www.pousadadosmeros.com.br

IN ENGLISH: yes

PRICES ON THE WEBSITE: yes

LOCATION: in the Vila do Abraão, two blocks from the beach and a short walk from shops, restaurants and the main pier.

THE PREMISES: a two-storey building with all the rooms facing a small garden.

THE ROOMS: smallish rooms with a comfortable bed. A small tv and a mini-bar. Electric shower.

PRICES IN NOVEMBER 2008: we paid R$80 per room per night.

BREAKFAST: included on the price. Reasonable breakfast with sweet and savoury options.

FOOD: the pousada doesn’t serve meals. However, complimentary coffee and cakes are served every afternoon. There is a crepe parlour right next to the pousada.

RECEPTION: helpful and kind. If you book by email, print all the messages and take them with you, as the person who handles email communication with the pousada is not based in Ilha Grande.

CONTACT BY EMAIL: All our enquiries were replied to in less than 24 hours.

OUR OPINION: if being right by the beach is not a must, Pousada dos Meros is a good option in Ilha Grande, offering a correct balance between price and quality. The location is good and its staff is kind and helpful.

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[photo: view from the window of our room at the Ibis Rio Vermelho]

NAME: hotel Ibis Rio Vermelho

WHERE: Rio Vermelho, Salvador de Bahia

WEBSITE: Ibis Salvador Rio Vermelho

IN ENGLISH: yes

PRICES ON THE WEBSITE: yes

LOCATION: the hotel is located in the Rio Vermelho neighbourhood, right next to a tiny and secluded beach. Rio Vermelho is one of the bohemiam quarters of Salvador, with lots of restaurants and an active night life. To get to the center of Salvador (Pelourinho) from Rio Vermelho you have to take a taxi or a bus. The tourist Salvador bus stops right in front of the hotel. See the location of the hotel on Google Maps.

THE PREMISES: the hotel occupies a building attached to the Mercure hotel – belonging to the same hotel chain. It has the classic structure of most Ibis hotels, with a dining room and bar on the ground floor.

THE ROOMS: your standard Ibis room, correct. Separate bathroom. Tv and telephone. For our travelling needs, more than enough.

PRICES IN MARCH 2009: we paid R$109 per room per night.

BREAKFAST: not included on the price. It costs R$10 per person per day. We ended up having breakfast at the hotel to avoid being delayed. Breakfast is correct, it lacks the charm of a classic breakfast at a Brazilian pousada but it is more generous than a continental breakfast.

FOOD: available at the restaurant. We didn’t eat at the hotel.

INTERNET: the hotel offers paid wi-fi access. There is also a computer offering paid internet access.

RECEPTION: efficient and professional.

CONTACT BY EMAIL: we booked through the hotel’s website. All the options and charges were presented clearly.

OUR OPINION: those familiar with Ibis hotels are unlikely to be dissapointed. Comfortable accommodation with no luxuries attached at a very competitive price. Those wanting to stay at the Rio Vermelho neighbourhood will find the Ibis hotel an excellent choice. Being far from the center of town wasn’t a problem for us.
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There are three youth hostels in São Paulo affiliated to Hostelling International:

• Praça da Árvore hostel. On a residential area on the southern region of the city. It is very close to the subway granting easy access to the most important tourist sights [location on Google Maps]
• São Paulo Hostel Downtown. In the centre of the city, which in the case of São Paulo it is a run down and troublesome area. We strongly advice against seeking accommodation on this part of the city [location on Google Maps]
• Sampa Hostel. On the bohemian quarter of Vila Madalena, with an abundance of bars and restaurants. A bit far from the subway (20 minutes on foot) [location on Google Maps]

There are also three independent youth hostels:

• Casa Club Hostel Bar. In the heart of the Vila Madalena, right where the action is. A bit far from the subway (25 minutes on foot) [location on Google Maps]
• Lime Time Hostel. In the Bela Vista neighbourhood, an excellent location close to the Avenida Paulista and the subway [location on Google Maps]
• Vila Madalena Hostel, in spite of its name, it is on the Pinheiros neighbourhood, not far away from the Vila Madelana. It is not close to the subway but there is easy and frequent public transportation nearby [location on Google Maps]

I haven’t stayed at the any of the hostels mentioned on this post. For that reason, I can only comment on their location and not on the services they provide.

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Our Accommodation in Brazil has a new listing, this time with hotels and pousadas in Porto de Galinhas.

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Our Accommodation in Brazil has a new listing, this time with hotels and pousadas in the island of Boipeba, Bahia. Boipeba is one of our favourite destinations in Brazil and at this blog’s post destination: Boipeba you will find all the travel information related to the island.

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NAME: pousada Fazenda Caeira

WHERE: Third Beach, Morro de São Paulo, Bahia

WEBSITE: www.fazendacaeira.com.br

IN ENGLISH: no

PRICES ON THE WEBSITE: yes

LOCATION: at the Third Beach (Terceira Praia) in Morro de São Paulo, in the half of the beach not built yet, nearer the Fourth Beach. Twenty minutes walking from the main Morro de São Paulo pier and 10 minutes from the First Beach. Speedboats touring the island leave right in front of the pousada. Exact location of the Fazenda Caeira in Google Maps.

THE PREMISES: several houses scattered along a very pleasant palm tree garden. With the beach right in front and the pousada’s landing strip at the back. The main building houses the reception and the dining room. The pousada has a swimming pool facing the sea. A computer offers free internet access.

THE ROOMS: ample and quite simple, with a comfortable bed, a small tv and a mini-bar. Electric shower in the bathroom.

PRICES IN MARCH 2009: we paid R$170 per room per night.

BREAKFAST: included on the price. Excellent, with lots of sweet and savoury options changing from one day to another.

FOOD: simple dishes are prepared on request but we didn’t try any of them. The bar next to the pool prepares some mean cocktails. Quite close to the pousada there is an excellent Italian restaurant.

RECEPTION: friendly, efficient and helpful.

CONTACT BY EMAIL: friendly and fast. All our enquiries were replied to in less than 24 hours.

MORE PHOTOS OF THE POUSADA:

OUR OPINION: Fazenda Caeira is an excellent choice in Morro de São Paulo. Its location was precisely what we were looking for, on the quieter part of Morro but close to everything. If you want to be bang in the middle of where the action is (night life, in particular), then Fazenda Caeira is not the best option. But its location is excellent if you are looking for peace and quiet while at the same time want to be able to reach the village in a few minutes. If you fly to Morro you have to take the Addey plane, it will land at the pousada’s landstrip.

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In the remote village of São Francisco, aka Cova da Onça, in the south of the equally remote island of Boipeba, there is a restaurant as humble as it is delicious: the Toca da Onça (in English, the Jaguar’s Liar).

The friendly and talkative Orlando manages the restaurant while his wife is the chef. Everything’s quite simple, just a handful of tables a few meters away from the sea. The very same sea from which most of the restaurant’s menu is extracted. Shrimps / prawns, lobster, octopuss and fish. A menu that, as it is quite common along the Brazilian coast, comes in two versions: a printed one, and a “life” version, as seen on the next photo:

We paid R$30 for a large platter of shrimps for two. Our travel mates paid R$55 for a lobster platter so abundant they couldn’t finish it. We asked Orlando how come he could serve fresh lobster during the ban. His answer left us none the wiser.

An excellent spot to have lunch during a trip around the island or just a trip to the village.

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The sorveteria da Ribeira ice-cream parlour is an unmissable Salvador classic. It has a legion of devoted fans, and the local edition of Veja magazine has elected it the best Salvador ice-cream for 10 consecutive years. The sorveteria was founded in 1931 by an Italian inmigrant. In 1962 a Spanish inmigrant bought it from him. For the next 42 years, he run the succesful business. In 2008 a local businessman bought the sorveteria.

The sorveteria is located in the Ribeira (see its location on Google Maps), quite far away from most tourist sights. But it is in the vicinity of the Bonfim church – while you are there, extend your trip to the Ribeira. The Salvador bus, Salvador’s hop-on hop-off tourist bus stops right in front the ice-cream parlour and waits for you while your order your ice-cream.

In spite of its fame, the ice-creams served at the Ribeira have popular prices. R$3 for a cone with a ball, R$4 for two. Outstanding amont the list of flavours there is a long list of exotic fruits: biri-biri, jenipapo, chirimoya, cajá, cupuaçu, mangaba, umbu, sirigüela, graviola, cajarana, acerola. Ice-creams are still prepared in the traditional fashion and the fruits are peeled by hand.

You will find all the information we have on this blog on Salvador at the entry destination: Salvador.

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SENAC is a private organization offering ocuppational training courses. It is financed by the Brazilian private sector. Bang in the middle of the Pelourinho, the best known part of the historic centre of Salvador, SENAC has a restaurant on a building of historical interest.

There is a por quilo restaurant on the ground floor (you pay according to the weight of the food that you eat). If you want to go to the traditional restaurant, take the door to the left and climb the stairs until you reach the restaurant.

The restaurant offers a buffet service. 40 savoury dishes representing all that it is traditional in cuisine from Bahia. And a dozen desserts too. All the dishes have a label with their name (in Portuguese and in English too) but in case of doubt, ask any waitress and she’ll be glad to give you more details.

Hard to resist the dessert section, it is calory galore, but there you go.

The SENAC restaurant is on the main Pelourinho square – ask around, anyone will tell you where the entrance is. It opens for lunch and for dinner (with the exception of Sundays, when it only opens for lunch). In March 2009 the price of the buffet was R$29 (drinks not included).

Right next to the restaurant there is a small and interesting Museu da Gastronomia (entrance is free).

For its exceptional location and for offering a perfect introduction to the local cuisine, the SENAC restaurant is a highly recommended place for a meal.

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