Cafe Paulista Grille

NOTE: This restaurant has closed.

It being my last day of Christmas break, I figured I’d try a new restaurant. Also, it’s been a long time since I’ve done a review. For today’s outing, I decided to try the new Cafe Paulista Grille on Wade Hampton, which specializes in Brazilian cuisine.

Atmosphere

The cafe is a converted and remodeled Waffle House. As such, it’s small, with a few tables and a long counter. There is also a small selection of Brazilian items for purchase.

The similarity with a Waffle House ends with the building shape and size. Everything has been redone very nicely, with wood furnishings and muted fabrics. The overall feeling is rather relaxed.

I was there for a late lunch, and they were still doing a fairly brisk business. One group was on their way out. A business discuss was taking place behind me, and two single gentlemen arrived while I was eating.

Menu

As one might imagine, the emphasis is on Brazilian food. There was a section for breakfast, but I only glanced at it. There seemed to be some wraps and omlettes.

For lighter fair, there is a nice selection of Brazilian appetizers, sandwiches, and salads. I didn’t recognize the names of any of the appetizers, but the descriptions sounded good. These looked like they would be filled pastries, and tended to run less than $2 per item. There were several entre’ salads for $6-$7, and a large selection of sandwiches from $6-$8.

There is a dinner menu which includes a skewer of meat, beans, rice, bananas, and Brazilian stuffing. Most of these were designed as dinners for two, but single portions were available. Prices hovered around $25 for the dinners for two.

Fortunately, Cafe Paulista has their menu online, so readers don’t have to rely on my lack of knowledge of the cuisine.

Food

I ordered the Grilled Roast Beef Paulista sandwich. This turned out to be a rather large sandwich with beef, various peppers, olives, and Brazilian vinaigrette. The sandwich was served with a copious amount of fries. The food was hot, and it was delicious. The sandwich ingredients where chopped rather fine, and everything melded very well.

Service

Service was a bit spotty. I was brought a menu and drink quickly, but it took some time for someone to take the rest of my order. The food arrived in a reasonable amount of time. I was never able to get someone’s attention for a drink refill. When I got up to pay my bill I had to wait while the staff ran around filling take out orders. It was a bit frustrating.

Conclusions

The food is very tasty, and seems to be reasonably priced. It’s different from the other offerings in the area, and that’s a plus. The place needs to work a bit on its service, but that might be a culture/language barrier as much as anything. Despite that, I think we will be back.