13 Best Restaurants in Brasilia and the West, Brazil

Get your fill of the Pantanal's fish varieties at this restaurant run on a fixed-price rodizío system. Couples may want to try the caldo de piranhã (piranha stew)—it is reputed to have aphrodisiac properties.

This is the place for regional cuisine, especially grilled and stewed fish dishes. The standout here is the picanha na chapa (grilled rump steak), but the moqueca de pintado (a local fish stew) is also recommended.

One of the most popular fine-dining options in town, this churrascaria (steak house) is one of the best of its kind. The sleek ambience of this spacious restaurant adds to the allure. It's famous for its rodízio service, in which waiters bring various types of meat on the spit to your table, where they'll carve off as much as you like. The prix-fixe meal includes a large and varied salad bar, but it's the beef that draws the crowds.

This establishment is one of your best value choices for enjoying local fish in a very local atmosphere. The highlight is pintado, which is prepared in two-dozen different ways. The cheese sauce is a good accompaniment to any of the fish dishes. Musicians play in high season.

One of the best places to try local freshwater fish, this celebrated wood-furnished eating house is just off the town's main square, behind the Banco do Brasil. The specialty of the house is traira sem espinha (fried boneless traira fish). Other favorites include grilled pirarara and pacu fish, caiman steaks, and, for dessert, petit gâteau (cake) made from guavira, a tasty local fruit.

A Cuiabá institution since 1974, this open-air eatery is always packed and is the best place in town to go for ice-cold beer and local specialties. This is the place to sample escaldado cuiabano, a local chicken soup.

Live Brazilian music, from bossa nova to contemporary, is a nightly feature at this restaurant. But the comida mineira (food from the state of Minas Gerais) is the best reason to come. One of the most popular dishes is the costelinha ao Véio Chico (fried pork ribs with cassava). At lunch, you can help yourself from a large buffet for a set price. The owners run a popular lounge next door, Bar do Feitiço.

One of the largest restaurants you may ever eat in, Mangai specializes in cuisine from Brazil's Northeast and has seating for up to 900 people—you still may have to wait for a table. Located near the Ponte JK, Mangai charges R$59.90 for a kilo of food, which you serve up yourself from a vast buffet at the back of the dining hall. Try the carne de sol com nata (sun-dried meat in cream) or the tasty shrimp dish gororoba de camarão.

Perched on the edge of a cliff, this restaurant has fantastic views. The palm-shaded building and surrounding gardens add to the atmosphere. This is the place for fantastic regional dishes such as vaca atolada (literally "cow stuck in the mud"). The strange-sounding dish is actually beef ribs served in cooked cassava chunks.

In the same building as the Museu do Rio, this ever-popular self-service eatery offers regional cuisine and Brazilian staples such as rice and beans. Try the mojica de pintado, a stew made from a local freshwater fish.

Since 1995, this dining and—above all—drinking spot has evolved from a hole in a wall into a Bonito landmark that can seat nearly 300 for dinner. The regional food is respectable, but it's the artisanal cachaça, the music, and the boisterous atmosphere that keep the crowds coming. Customers are encouraged to write on the walls.

This popular buffet-style restaurant on the edge of town serves regional fare by weight, including meat and grilled or stewed local fish. There's a large and varied salad bar.