Around London in 50 Breakfasts: Carioca, Brixton

Carioca is open daily in Brixton’s Market Row - serving authentic, richly-flavoured Brazilian food in the heart of South London. Headed up by brothers Maurilio and Eusebio (Tony) Goncalves, and named after the vivacious people of Rio de Janeiro, the restaurant aims to showcase the diverse cuisine of Brazil, which combines culinary influences from the Portuguese, Africans and native South Americans who gave birth to the country. All of Carioca’s food is freshly prepared in house by their Brazilian head chef Lucy and her team using quality fresh ingredients. 

Where

• Carioca, Brixton Market Row

When

• 11am-12:30

What we ate

• 2 cappucinos
• 1 Copacabana breakfast (pulled beef, eggs, plaintain, black bean stew)
• 1x Carnaval breakfast (peppers, pineapple, leeks, spring onion, plantain, tomato, halloumi, poached egg and a maize muffin)

Highlights

• The team at Carioca are some of the friendliest and most welcoming I have ever come across. We were making jokes from the get go and I even got a hug when I left!
• The location is really cool – inspired Market Row, Brixton. The space feels really authentic and is something that has been built by the surrounding community. There is a beautiful mix of cultures, different stall holders and a huge variety of products
• Coffee: The coffee was lovely and warming with a fruitier note to the beans – perhaps they are younger – with a lighter roast. The coffee has the correct cappuccino texture, unlike many ‘top’ coffee houses where the cappuccino is extremely similar to a flat white.

• Food: The food was absolutely exceptional at Carioca, and I do not say that lightly. There was a fantastic mix of flavours that I have not experienced before. The Carnaval breakfast is a really exciting dish of peppers, leeks, pineapple, grilled halloumi and eggs combined in a delicious sauce. The maize muffin was lovely a crisp which brought texted to the plate. I also LOVED the plantain.
• The Copacabana breakfast featured a lovely crisp muffin with a savoury taste that stood up to the big beef flavours. The beef was soft and fell apart. The egg helped make the dish feel breakfast, while the bean stew and plantain gave tropical notes.

Lowlights

• Absolutely none. Zilch. Nada.

Overall

I cannot wait to go back to Carioca and experience the dinner menu – in fact I am planning on having a family engagement brunch there again soon! Although this meal was paid for by the restaurant, I would have happily paid double the price for how good the food was. PLEASE GO HERE! 

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