boizao brazilian steakhouse
On Monday, I headed over with a friend to Boizao, a newly opened Brazilian steakhouse on Boy Scout Blvd across from International Plaza and Bay Street. Last week I went to the opening of Boizao and was impressed. The food was great and the service tried to please. Of course, this was to be expected at a grand opening. I was interested in seeing how Boizao served everyday customers for lunch.
If you’re a true carnivore and haven’t been to a Brazilian steakhouse before, you’re missing out. Even if you’re not a meat-eater, you’re still missing out on a unique experience. Churrascarias generally include cold buffets with salads, cold meats and imported cheeses. The main attraction, though, is the large selection of all-you-care-to-eat cuts of meat served table side by gauchos (Brazilian cowboys). The gauchos keep serving you until you tell them to stop. In the case of Boizao, it features 14 different fire-roasted cuts (beef, lamb, pork, chicken, sausage).
I thought the food was equally as good on Monday as it was at the opening. My friend had never been to a Brazilian steakhouse before and was impressed by the selection of meats and the quantity of food. My favorite cuts at Boizao are the knock-out costela de cordeiro (lamb chops), filet mignon and the filet com bacon (bacon wrapped filet). Warm side dishes included with meal are fried bananas, cheese bread, and mashed potatoes. This is not a diet place. Yes, you can just do the buffet and stick to the salad items, but watching the gauchos walk by with their giant skewers of meat would be cruel.Service was good. There was no shortage of different meats to choose from.
The atmosphere is upscale without feeling stuffy. Price wise, Boizao certainly isn’t cheap, but is priced similarly to other higher-end Brazilian steakhouses. Boizao’s fixed price menu is $38.90 for dinner and $18.90 for lunch. Apparently, there is also a “light lunch” option for $12.90 that is available. Given the quantity and selection of high-quality meats, these are fair prices. I’ve eaten at one upscale Brazilian steakhouse before, Texas de Brazil, a chain which has a location on I-Drive in Orlando. This was a few years ago, but I thought Boizao compared quite favorably overall to my experience at Texas de Brazil. Price-wise, this isn’t normally a place I would stop into for lunch or even dinner, but for a nice night out and special occasions, this is a good choice for meat-lovers.
The restaurant’s location in the Westshore business district should play well with business groups. This is a big restaurant and needs to do volume. Two more casual Brazilian restaurants include Brasillia Grill on N. Armenia and Brasa Grill on Waters. I haven’t been to either. So what’s your favorite Brazilian restaurant in Tampa Bay and why?
Bottom-line: Boizao, an upscale Brazilian steakhouse, is a welcome addition to the Tampa dining scene. This place is great for meat-lovers, but the cold buffet has enough of a selection to be a meal in itself. With its upscale pricing, this is more of a place for special occasions and nice night outs.
Tags: Boizao, brazilian steakhouses, chicken sausage, everyday customers, international plaza, restaurant, tampa, westshore
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March 31st, 2007 at 10:20 am
the avg adult male shd eat 60 grams of protein per day, but can only absorb about 25 grams at any one meal or the rest will be absorbed and stored as fat.
so, do the math about eating at one of these carnivore fests.
they are all over miami, catering to the s americans.
in looking around at the obesity that afflicts tampa, im not too sure whats needed is more meat.
of course, i guess you could go to one of these places and request a huge doggie bag to take home all your protein for the entire next 7 days. then i guess paying 40 bucks a whack for all that meat might make sense.
otherwise, your poor stomach is going to have to churn for hours and hours to break down all that animal muscle fiber. when you think of it that way, it kind of kills your appetite, no?
March 31st, 2007 at 1:17 pm
“Red meat, white meat, blue meat - meat-o-f*cking-rama! You will eat the meat folks, you wanna know why? Because not eating meat is a choice - eating meat is an instinct!” - Denis Leary
April 1st, 2007 at 6:34 am
Can’t say that it kills my appetite in the slightest. For me a visit to a churrascaria is an occasional indulgence for my inner carnivore(back, stay back I say!):-) I’ll admit it does feel a wee bit sinful, but in a good way.
I’ve yet to partake of the Brazilian-style buffets here in Tampa, but I visit one up in Hyannis about once a trip when I’m up there. Sounuds like Boizao is similar to that one, but the full buffet on the Massachusetts one is only $22. Thanks for the review, I’ve been curious about the local churrascarias, but have usually been still too much in the recovery period from my latest visit up north to check them out.
April 2nd, 2007 at 7:22 am
I was hoping we could gnaw on an open carcass, hyena style on the Serenghetti. Had to settle for deliciously roasted flesh served by polite, overly attentive gentlemen in elaborate costumes.
Maybe that will be the next concept: Hakuna Matatas.
April 3rd, 2007 at 1:21 pm
dreaming, I don’t think you understand why people go to steakhouses. It’s not for health reasons. It’s not to get the adequate amount of protein.
It’s because steak is delicious.
April 3rd, 2007 at 4:21 pm
Hell, it’s not the steakhouses that are responsible for the rampant obesity in this country. Head down to the Beef capitol of the world Argentina and tell me how many obese people you see, almost none. Sams Club and Costco are much more to blame for the multitude of porkers in this country.
April 10th, 2007 at 5:02 pm
I agree with steakhouse… dreaming I am a nutricionist and eating the right amount of meat does not kill anybody or get people obese. Once in a lifetime “enjoy eating varieties of meat it is a healthy way also”. I went there and I had the best time of my life. Delicious…
April 13th, 2007 at 4:57 pm
The churrascaria is a product of the sout of brasil where the guacho and chimarrao (look it up) are common sites. This is probably a concept that is difficult for Americans who like to indulge at “all you can eat” establishments. It’s better to think of it as “all you care to eat”. Brasilians don’t go to churrascarias every day or even every week. It’s more like a once-a-month thing. And you go more for the variety than for the quantity. If you’re counting calories or grams of protein, stay home and have a salad or some lean cuisine. If you know how to enjoy life and want to experience something different, check out the churrascaria and have a ciapirosca (better than a caiprinha) while your at it.
May 14th, 2007 at 10:06 am
Well we visited on Mother’s Day, the wife and I. Here’s my take on it all. First regarding the ambiance - It’s nice and new I agree, but the black ceiling and dark lights are getting a bit overdone for my taste. Quite in appearance and lacking the finishing touches (woodwork) of many nice Brazilian restaurants. Small tables crammed too close together had me almost sitting in the lap of the couple behind us and lots of gaucho’s butts near our silverware. Some folks may like that.
Let me say right off that any place that charges 20% gratuity automatically for two people isn’t going to thrill me since the service generally blows. Our waiter had moments of coherence, but we waited forever for a caiphirinia and he generally had a deer in the headlights efficiency.
The good news is that Tampa finally has a quality Brazilian rodizio - Boizao, the bad news is that for this caliber of restaurant this one is the weakest we have ever dined in. Why you ask?
Let’s start on the positives – they did have a great caipirina for a US joint. That was better than most. I had a beer that was cool, not really cold, but OK. When the food started coming the chicken dishes were quite tasty and edible. A sort of end cut of the drumstick. The salad bar vegetables were fresh and tasty, particularly the asparagus and green beans, quite good. One bacon wrapped filet melted in my mouth as did one microscopic serving of prime rib. The pork ribs were nice, quite overdone, but good.
Now the flipside. The second filet was like a baseball mitt. While on that analogy, the flanksteak was inedible (unchewable). Serving two of prime rib was too tough to bother with. No horseradish, hmmmm. Basically most of the beef was so tough I just gave up on it. Tried the lamb and it was dry as a bone. Wife tried the lamb chops which were a bit rarer, but they had run out of mint sauce. Oh well. While the salad bar tasted very good, it was by far the weakest I’ve ever seen in comparable restaurants in the US, and was just a plain embarrassment compared ot those in Rio. The salad bar offerings could probably be counted on two hands and 25% of the bar was devoted to white rice and blackbeans. The served mashed potatoes arrived in ridiculously small portions of maybe two large tablespoons for two people. I found the deserts split into two groups – digestive types which were basically pudding type offering in glasses. They were interesting. Cake types that looked pretty unappealing. Almost looked like they sat in the sun too long.
So we went because we love these joints, and I wanted to preview Boizao before taking clients or sending friends there. I’d say based upon our first visit I’d only go again if I was really wanting to waste $100-150 bucks. While a bigger group could have fun drinking there, the meat just wasn’t good, overcooked or raw, and often terribly tough. Much better food around town.
We continue to try all the rodizios we find in Tampa and elsewhere. The one over in Brandon we found terrible. The others around Tampa actually have hit or miss food, but the ambiance isn’t much. Porcao in Miami is way better, Texas de Brazil (we go to the one in Orlando) is better. Our favorite remains Churrascaria Plataforma (NYC). Did I say any place the charges two people a 20% gratuity fee is incredibly dumb …. ?
October 9th, 2007 at 11:30 am
My new favorite is La Fogata in Gulfport. Everything from service to food was first rate. Not a cheap meal, but worth every bit.
November 16th, 2007 at 11:53 am
TampaGG needs to understand that horseradish and mint sauce are something you may not find in a Brazilian restaurant. Staying home may be your best option. If you love these other Brazilian restaurants maybe they catered to your American taste. Have you ever travelled outside the U.S.?
August 25th, 2008 at 8:40 pm
Just got back from Boizao. The food was great, the waiters exceptional; just go on a normal day. Going to what is essentially a buffet on Mother’s Day is only asking for trouble.