Top Restaurants In São Paulo

Whether you’re watching the World Cup or not, Brazil’s biggest city can be pricey, but we hunt down 10 places to eat that won’t break the bank, with specialities from the country, and beyond, quotes from lakewood dish dash

Yamaga, Liberdade

Thanks to the city’s million-strong Japanese and Brazilian-Japanese population, sushi and sashimi are at the heart of São Paulo’s gastronomic industry, a major food group for food-loving Paulistanos, who appear to need regular fixes of the stuff to stay happy and healthy. Revered masters of the art, such as Jun Sakamoto, of the eponymous restaurant, command eye-watering prices, but there’s something for every budget in Liberdade, SP’s Japantown. And if affordability, simplicity and quality are in order, old-school Yamaga is a consistently reliable choice. The wide menu boasts ramen, teppanyaki, yakisoba and more, plus sushi sets ranging from £3-£7. Consider a combinado, which comes with a mix of sushi and sashimi plus a hot dish of your choice (gyoza, tempura) for £12. It’s technically for one person, but if you order some of the exceedingly tasty miso soup on the side, there’ll be plenty for two.

Ella, Pinheiros

Opening on a nondescript Pinheiros street in March 2013, and run by chef-proprietor Alexandre Romano – who has stints at some of the city’s finest Italian restaurants under his belt, including the incomparable Fasano – Ella is a compact, deliciously affordable revelation. Popular with journalists and staff from Editora Abril – the offices of Brazil’s magazine leviathan are just down the road – Ella offers silky, exquisite homemade pasta, springy gnocchi and tender milanesas (breaded steak in a superbly crunchy coating). Best of all, there’s a three-course daytime menu that could be the best-value lunch in town. About £8.80 gets you a choice of starter from a menu that changes weekly – our choice was polenta topped with duck ragu, or leafy mozzarella salad – a main course that might be pasta, risotto or the aforementioned milanesa, served with fat strands of bigoli pasta in sage butter, plus dessert. From the a la carte menu, the tender pink beetroot tortelli (£10.50), scattered with scraps of walnut and wilted sage and filled with ricotta with the option of foie gras, rather than sage butter – is simply unforgettable. To finish, choose between a thick slice of pineapple or a pot of bright white pannacotta in a fruity, vividly ruby broth.