Rio’s Best Restaurants and Bars by Veja Rio

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The latest edition of Veja Rio’s annual list of the best restaurants and bars in Rio de Janeiro, “Comer & Beber”, is now available from most newsstands in Rio or online.

For 2024-25 the selection of the top three in a number of categories includes: 

Asian: Elena, Si-chou, Mr. Lam; 

Brazilian: Ruda, Sud, O Pássaro Verde, Sofia; 

Contemporary: Lasai, Oro, Mesa do Lado; 

French: Casa 201, Signatures, Chez Claude; 

Italian: Grado, Babbo, Padella;  

Japanese: San Omakase, Umai Sushi Vaz; 

Meat: Malta Beef Club, Rufino, Giuseppe Grill;  

Pizza: Ferro e Farinha, Capricciosa,Officina Local; 

Portuguese: Rancho Portugues, Gajos d’Ouro, Quinta da Henriquta; 

Seafood: Satyricon, Ocyá, Escama; 

Vegetarian:Teva, Pura Rio, Espercanca.eco;

Hotel: Gero, Cipriani, Shiso; 

Kiosk: Sel d’Ipanema, QuiQui, Ginga.

Carnival Parade Order in 2025

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In 2025 the main parades of the Grupo Especial in Rio de Janeiro’s carnival are scheduled to take place on the nights of Sunday, 2 March; Monday, 3 March; and Tuesday, 4 March. The 12 schools that will parade for the first time over three nights and when are:

Sunday, 2 March 2025

  • Padre Miguel
  • Imperatriz Leopoldinense
  • Viradouro
  • Mangueira

Monday, 3 March 2025

  • Unidos da Tijuca
  • Beija-Flor
  • Salgueiro
  • Vila Isabel

Tuesday, 4 March 2025

  • Mocidade
  • Paraíso do Tuiuti
  • Grande Rio
  • Portela

New Digital Michelin Guide for Rio and São Paulo

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After a gap of three years, the new digital edition of Brazil’s Michelin Guide was launched on 20 May 2024 at the Copacabana Palace in Rio de Janeiro.

21 restaurants in Rio and São Paulo have been awarded a Michelin star. No restaurant got the top three star rating but two stars went to D.O.M., Evvai and Tuju in São Paulo and Lasai, ORO and Oteque in Rio de Janeiro.

One star restaurants include Fame Osteria, Huto, Jun Sakamoto, Kan Suke, Kazuo, Kinoshita, Kuro, Maní, Murakami, Oizumi Sushi, Picchi and Tangará in São Paulo and Cipriani, Mee and San Omakase in Rio de Janeiro. 

Brazil to Host 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup

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The FIFA Women’s World Cup and 31 teams will be flying down to Rio de Janeiro and nine other Brazilian cities in 2027 to join the Brazilian team after FIFA chose Brazil to host the 10th edition of the Women’s World Cup. The first nation to be handed the rights by an open vote, with member associations voting 119 to 78 in favour of Brazil over a joint bid by Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany.

Brazil has already successfully hosted the men’s World Cup in 1950 and 2014 and are expected to use the Maracanã Stadium (Rio de Janeiro), NeoQuímica Arena (São Paulo), Mineirão (Belo Horizonte), Mané Garrincha (Brasília), Fonte Nova (Salvador), Castelão (Fortaleza), Arena Pernambuco (Recife), Beira-Rio (Porto Alegre), Arena Pantanal (Cuiabá) and the Arena da Amazônia (Manaus) for games.

The exact dates of the tournament are not yet known, but probably June and July of 2027. The tournament will follow the same 32-team format as was used in 2023 in Australia and New Zealand.

Extra Night of Rio Samba School Parades From 2025

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Big news coming out of Rio de Janeiro in regard to carnival. From 2025 there will now be three nights of the parades of the top Grupo Especial samba schools, with four instead of six schools parading each of the nights.

Unidos de Padre Miguel, champion of Série Ouro, will open the parades on Sunday 2 March, with Unidos da Tijuca, 11th place in Grupo Especial this year, opening Monday, 3 March, and Mocidade, 10th placed in 2024, opening Tuesday, 4 March. The order and day of the other 9 schools will be decided on 23 May.

As a result of Tuesday being used for Grupo Especial, LIESA – Liga Independente das Escolas de Samba is studying the best solution for the parade of the children’s schools that traditionally take place on the Tuesday.

The changes mean at least 75,000 extra people will get to see the parades live and each night will not be such of a marathon for those at the sambódromo or watching on TV.

 

Extra Flights Between Brazil and the UK

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Good news for travel to-and-from Brazil and the UK with British Airways to expand its São Paulo, Guarulhos – London Heathrow operation from 29 October 2024 by three weekly flight from 7 to 10 frequencies.

The new flight is a daytime service from London (11.30-20.20) and overnight back (23.40-14.10 +1). Services to operate Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.

These flights are in addition to the daily service between Heathrow and GIG Rio de Janeiro, that also connects to Buenos Aires.

50 Years of Ponte Rio–Niterói

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50 years ago, on Monday, 4 March 1974, the Presidente Costa e Silva Bridge, better known as the Ponte Rio–Niterói, opened to traffic for the first time.

Construction on the bridge began symbolically on 9 November 1968, in the presence of Queen Elizabeth and the Duke of Edinburgh, with the actual construction work beginning in late December 1968. It was Britain that helped to build the bridge with sections shipped out from the UK to Rio.

From its completion in 1974 until 1985 it was the world’s second-longest bridge, and today is the 48th longest in the world and second longest in Latin America. It is 13.29 kilometres (8.26 miles) long – 8.836 kilometres (5.490 miles) of which is over water. At the time it was completed, the central span was the longest box girder in the world.

Prior to the bridge’s completion people either had to take a ferry or drive 120 km around Guanabara Bay to go from Rio to Niteroi (and Buzios).

Viradouro is the champion samba school in Rio for 2024

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They were the last school to parade on carnival Monday, but Viradouro, the most successful of all the schools over the last five carnivals, is the champion samba school in Rio again, scoring a perfect 270 out of 270. It last won in 2020. 

Viradouro’s winning samba “Arroboboi, Dangbé” looked at the energy of the cult of the powerful serpent god of Voodoo mythology, Vodou, the force that manifested itself in epic battles on the West Coast of Africa and influenced the struggles of the all female Mino warriors of the Kingdom of Dahomey, a dynasty of women chosen by the python spirit, Dangbé.

Second was the champion in 2023, Imperatriz with 269.3, with Grande Rio (269.2), winners in 2022, in third. Making up the top six that parade in the Winners Parade were Salgueiro (269.0), Portela (268.9) and Vila Isabel (268.8). 

And, as so often happens, Porta da Pedra (264.9), that was promoted last year, is relegated this year with a Unidos de Padre Miguel, champion of Série Ouro being promoted to parade in the Grupo Especial in 2025. Padre Miguel have paraded five times in the elite group of schools, the last time in 1972.

The full results of Rio’s Carnival Parade in 2024 for the Grupo Especial were:

1º – Viradouro – 270,0

2º – Imperatriz – 269,3

3º – Grande Rio – 269,2

4º – Salgueiro – 269,0

5º – Portela – 268,9

6º – Vila Isabel – 268,8

7º – Mangueira – 268,8

8º – Beija-Flor – 268,5

9º – Paraíso do Tuiuti – 268,3

10º – Mocidade – 267,2

11º – Unidos da Tijuca – 265,7

12º – Porto da Pedra – 264,9