The Gauchos Keep Coming!

Texas de Brazil
August 2, 2009

An all-you-can-eat meat buffet? Oh, we’re so there!

The first time I heard about Texas de Brazil - Churrascaria or Brazilian Steakhouse (http://www.texasdebrazil.com/) was from a friend who lives in Florida. She posted pictures in her Facebook account and described how she enjoyed her overall experience there. It sounded so much fun and interesting that when Texas de Brazil opened up in Town Square in Las Vegas, I immediately added it to my “restaurants to visit” list.

I told my husband and stepson that I wanted to go to this “all-you-can-eat meat” buffet place. No further convincing was required. They were ready to go!

The modern day steakhouse was lively with music and people stirring. A lovely hostess led us to a semi-private section. Our reserved table was brightened up by elegant blue water goblets. To the right of each plate setting was a mini tong that rested on a round red card. Our friendly waitress explained that when we were ready for the “meat feast,” all we had to do was turn the card over and show the green side. That would signal the gauchos to come to our table. The gauchos are the meat carvers carrying two-foot long skewers of meat specialties for our taking. As long as the card is green, they will keep coming. The tong was to be used to pull the portions off the skewer.

To start us off, our waitress gave us Brazilian house-baked cheese bread. You could tell it was fresh from the oven: warm, soft and tasty with the cheese filling. Next, we checked out the 50-item seasonal salad bar that included appetizers, soup, salads, and sides. I had a little of everything. I couldn’t resist the lobster bisque soup, heart of palm, artichokes, roasted bell peppers and zucchini. I also tried items that I’ve never had before like the Peruvian or Brazilian salad. But popular favorites were available too like Carpaccio, Romaine lettuce, asparagus spears, sautéed mushrooms, tomatoes and mozzarella balls. So, picky eaters are covered. They were all yummy!

As soon as I finished my starters, I flipped my card to green. No sooner did the gauchos come flocking to our table! I was wrong to think that it would take them a while to come around carrying the meat-filled skewers. I must say, I was overwhelmed when offered filet mignon, BBQ pork ribs, parmesan chicken, lamb, pork loin, chorizo sausage and more. Oh my! But the one to remember is the signature sirloin called “picanha” which was a melt-in-your-mouth sirloin steak!

While we were there, I noticed that the restaurant staff moved about non-stop. The service was remarkable! It showed that the staff loved their jobs and were proud to be there. I glanced at the other tables around. There were a lot of big groups at long tables. But big or small parties, they were all having a great time at this “churrascaria.”

This truly is a meat-lovers heaven. My family and I agreed that we would have to come back and experience this all over again!

Something Bean

New Year's Day 2009


Got an e-mail invite to a New Year's Day Champagne Brunch at Tommy Bahama's Tropical Cafe. [Wait! Isn't Tommy Bahama an island-inspired clothing store? Well, yes, but there are a few store locations with a cafe. One of them can be found at Las Vegas' Town Square. It's an ideal concept meant for visitors who love being able to shop for clothes while sipping their favorite tropical drinks.]

Working on New Year's Day is not unusual in a city that never sleeps. Danielle and I were among the "fortunate few" who had to show up for work on the first day of '09. I shared with her the e-mail and it didn't take much to convince her to go with me. She thought it was a genius idea! By noon, our excitement had built up and we made our way to the restaurant.

As we approached the hostess stand, I noticed their "Top Shelf Bloody Mary Bar" where you could select from a wide array of top shelf imported and domestic vodkas with garnishes and mixers including Pickled Green Beans, Maytag Bleu Cheese Stuffed Olives, Celery Stalks, and Asparagus Spears, to name a few.
The courteous staff led us to a comfy booth in their Garden Room. Large throw pillows with typical Tommy Bahama colors and prints were already seated and anxiously waiting for us to join them. The palm tree designs and accentuating green tea color in the room created a soothing ambience. Add to that the ceiling fans and the Carribean tunes in the background and voila! We immediately switched on an island attitude. It reminded me of Tommy Bahama's company mantra: "Relax...Life is One Long Weekend." It made our mimosas taste even better!

My $17 brunch entree, the "Tommy's Crab Cakes Benedict," was exactly what I hoped it would be: deliciously poached eggs and panko crusted crab cakes on sourdough bread with Canadian ham served with classic hollandaise. It was accompanied by Idaho breakfast potatoes and tropical fresh fruit. Yum!
Danielle on the other hand opted for the "New Orleans Shrimp & Grits" -- Lightly blackened jumbo shrimp on jalapeno and Tillamook cheddar cheese grits with creamy Creole Meuniere sauce. Both were mmm...good! With every bite, we reaffirmed our earlier statement that this was a brilliant idea. The friendly and attentive staff also helped make our experience a pleasure.

But what really caught our attention was this item on the menu: "Something Bean, Something Green, Something Ham....Start off 2009 with some good luck...New Year's Day Black Eyed Peas: A Bowl of slow simmered Black Eyed Peas with Country Seasonings, Smoked Ham and Collard Greens. (A Southern Tradition for Good Luck in the New Year)"

I've never had that before nor heard of that tradition. It was Danielle who suggested we order it. I just had to try it...and when I did, I was pleasantly surprised! I could definitely taste the salty ham flavoring which livened up the soft, creamy black eyed peas and collard greens. Delicious!

Of course, the curious side of me had to learn more about this tradition and here's what I found on Answerbag.com: "This is a tradition that began in the south. On December 31, 1862 many African Americans waited up all night for President Lincoln to sign the Emancipation Proclamation. Several renegade confederates had their last raid on the slave quarters and took all food from them except the black-eyed peas because they had black in them. The Blacks rejoiced because the soldiers left the black eyed peas, cracklin and they had greens. They had been spared and the peas brought them good luck. Thus on New Year's Eve many Black Churches have the Watch Service and celebrate with black eyed peas, greens, cornbread, cabbage and some sort of pork potluck."

I also learned that the black eyed pea is actually a bean which is low in fat and sodium, contains no cholesterol, but high in iron and potassium (important for building muscle and metabolizing protein and carbohydrates). It's believed to have its origins in Asia, brought to the West Indies and then later to the southern United States by way of the slave trade. They are traditionally thought to bring luck and prosperity when eaten on New Year's Day. The peas symbolize coins while the greens symbolize paper money. They also say that since black eyed peas swell when cooked, it symbolizes swelling of good fortune.