Location: Recife
Top Restaurants in Recife
Recife Food Guide: 10 Must-Eat Restaurants & Street Food Stalls in Recife
Recife (Brazilian Portuguese: [ʁeˈsifi] ( listen)) is the fourth-largest urban agglomeration in Brazil with 3,995,949 inhabitants, the largest urban agglomeration of the North/Northeast Regions, and the capital and largest city of the state of Pernambuco in the northeast corner of South America. The population of the city proper was 1,625,583 in 2016.
Things to do in Recife
1. Leite
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 1 reviews
Reviewed By Ulrich K
We ate lunch here after a visit to the "Marco Zero" and the surrounding quarters which are pretty run down. Consequently, our surprise was great when we found the Leite in this neighborhood. Waiters in white jackets and the piano man playing some romantic Latin tunes. The menu continued in this mode by offering dishes named after Gilberto Freyre and Burle Marx. I had the plate with beef named after Gilberto Freyre and my wife had the seafood plate according to Burle Marx. Both were delicious.
2. Restaurante Bargaco
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 1 reviews
Reviewed By phicox - Newport, United Kingdom
Taken here by friends with whom we are staying whilst in Recife. Great welcome; lovely layout (make sure you can see outwards to watch the river in the distance), smiles all round whilst they offer you a small seafood soup (try it first before testing some of the spicy sauce!)
Simple menu, explained in English as well that tempts you to some of their delights.
A wonderful lunchtime experience
3. Chica Pitanga
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 2 reviews
Reviewed By Cordeiro - Brazil
The name of the restaurant was inspired by the slave Chica Pitanga (Chica, short for Francisca and Pitanga, the name of a fruit, Suriname Cherry). Legend says that she got her freedom through her gifts on the bed and table, but this is another story.
The forte of the cuisine is the regional Brazilian food with Portuguese inspiration. The emphasis is on seafood and fish. So if you do not like them, just like me, you'll get along very well too. The meat, poultry, salads, soups, pastas and regional foods are amazing. It’s a restaurant by kilo, which means you take as much as you like of each dish. However, I should warn you, save some space for the delectable desserts.
The atmosphere is simple, cozy and well decorated - with a beautiful Pitangueira (Suriname Cherry 'tree') in the centre of the restaurant. The staff is very polite and attentive. Entering the restaurant you will receive a card to mark your consumption and another to be left in your table to reserve it. The price is quite reasonable considering its quality – it even got an award from the Veja magazine as one of the best 'good and affordable' restaurants in the city.
The location is in Boa Viagem, see the picture of the map – there’s a parking lot on the right of the perpendicular street between Navegantes and Conselheiro Aguiar.
4. Pomodoro Cafe
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 269 reviews
Reviewed By Fadec300 - Rio de Janeiro, RJ
I had been there in other occasions and I found that: when the "antipasto" table is better than main course anything is really wrong.
5. Taberna Japonesa Quina do Futuro
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 347 reviews
Reviewed By Sted - Fort Worth, Texas
Probably some of the best Japanese food I've had outside of Japan! This little gem is simply wonderful! The sushi is fresh and delicious! The service was great and there were even some local specialties on the menu. This is a must-have when in Recife!
6. Camarada Camarao
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 2 reviews
Reviewed By ThisChris - United Kingdom
I had dinner with a friend at Camarada Camarao. The restaurant is fairly big and fairly busy. The service is attentive and efficient, and the food arrives quickly. There is a range of dishes, centered around shrimp and other seafod. Some dishes are simpler, others come with sauces in various combinations of ingredients. They have some dishes as portions for two persons (and some for four!). The food is carefully prepared and very good.
There is also a wide range of drinks. The selection is reasonable, but this is not a place specialised in any of them. For instance, the selection of beers is fairly modest.
Prices are reasonable, but not cheap by Brazilian standards.
7. Chiwake
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 602 reviews
Reviewed By Sally M - London, United Kingdom
I eat Peruvian food regularly and I know when I am eating good Peruvian food.
This resteraunt has excellent Peruvian food. You will not be disappointed.
Pros
1. Polite waiters
2. vast menu
3. excellent delicious food.
4. I ate a lamb/potato puree appetizer which was very good. And a fish fillet with prawns and rice main dish, also very good.
Cons
1. extremely expensive. A appetizer or a main dish more less costs 60 reals each.
2. ambience is average
3. service can be dodgy if restaurent is very busy ( but waiters as such are excellent blokes).
4. a little far away from Bow Viagem. ( 25 reals by taxi).
5. some of the items on the menu were not available.
6. extremely busy on a saturday night. I suggest u go on a week night, for better service.
7. Portions were extremely small for the price.
Recommended for good Peruvian food in Recife.
8. Tio Pepe Restaurant
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 1 reviews
We specialize in good old homey Brazilian food plus exquisite dishes born from our undying creativity. All meat, fish and poultry dishes are made on the spot, most of them on the grill, over traditional coal. Our portions are so generous that only Pantagruel would be able to eat one of our meals all by himself. Tio Pepe's facilities are cozy and stunningly decorated. You will love our tropical patio and indoor space full of charm. A successful history The restaurant was founded in the 1964 by an immigrant from Galicia, Spain: José Garrido Cid, nicknamed Pepe. Before he died, Pepe passed the baton to one of his Brazilian daughters, Mirtes, who has modernized the business and consolidated Tio Pepe's reputation as a place where you eat well and feel good. For forty years, in spite of Brazil's economic hardships, Tio Pepe has managed to keep a steady flow of old faithful customers. New ones continue to pour from all over the country as well as from abroad. Our secret is: we love what we do and we do it right. Open Tuesday through Saturday: 11h30 a.m. to 11h30 p.m. On Sundays: 11h30 a.m. to 4h30 p.m. Credit Card: American Express
Reviewed By Esteban_Griffiths - Miami, Florida
Now this place is the closest restaurant (apart from the cafe at a gas station just up the same block) to our main office in Recife so I guess you could consider I might be a little biased as it's just a short walk, but the reality is that this is a great little restaurant tucked away from the main beach area in Boa Viagem / Recife.
I have been here many times (normally for lunch) with my colleagues, so usually have the advantage that they order the best dishes which we all share. We always seem to have a good time here, even when we've had some tough business meetings in the office - The garden and ambience of the house just let everyone switch off for an enjoyable lunch.
Excellent service, good selection of typical local / Brazilian dishes, good value though that's with the Real around R$3.30 - If the Brazilian Real strengthens again then everything become relatively expensive in Brazil.
One word of warning is that this place is relatively open and Recife is close to the Equator and generally quite hot - I live in Miami so the heat is not an issue for me, those coming from colder climes might want to check that they're ok with the temperature at this locale before sitting down.
Highly recommended.
9. Pobre Juan
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 428 reviews
Reviewed By Zurich_Traveller23 - Zurich, Switzerland
The restaurant is on the first floor at the main entrance.
The restaurant is very elegant. The waiters were helpful and they showed us a very nice piece of meat for 2 people. As we were not so hungry, we had to decline and ordered a traditional ojo de bife which was perfectly grilled. There is a large variety of side dishes. We also had the burger which was also perfectly grilled and with cheese and arugola salad in a wonderful bun. The burger comes with fries and a divine guava ketchup - very delicious!They have a large selection of wine and beer.
10. Bar Do Luna
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 163 reviews
Reviewed By MaryCamilo
O lugar é pequeno e razoavelmente desconfortável, porém já melhorou muito. Hoje em dia tem ar condicionado. Geralmente sempre tem fila pra entrar, então vá com paciência. A comida é maravilhosa pra quem ama buchada e afins, infelizmente não é o meu caso. Mas a dobradinha estava uma delicia.
