Emporium Brasil
I wrote back in 2019 that this is one of my favorite Brazilian spots because the food and drinks were pretty good. I revisited this with some coworkers to introduce them to Brazilian food again. Keep in mind that this visit is post COVID, so the menu has changed a bit. Gone are the batidas, but fortunately they had other standard Brazilian dishes to order. It is located in “Little Brazil” in Midtown which is literally very few restaurants situated on half the block.
Ambiance
They have an outdoor setup, but because this was a weekday, we sat indoors where it was nice and quiet. There wasn’t anything particularly noticeable about the setup of the dining room when we first walked in. We were sat at a table in the back with a lot of lighting from the ceiling. There were little lamps on each table, but they were unneeded and took up table space. Despite this, I am guessing they probably dim the lighting later at night to give it a more romantic vibe.
The service was pretty good, and in some ways it felt like it was because they knew my group was a business dinner.
Food (2019)
Typically, we order caipirinhas. But they had something called batidas. Batidas basically substitute the white sugar for condensed milk. It was interesting and good to me.
Every dish comes with a side of rice, beans, salsa, farofa, yucca fried chips, and hot sauce. Note that the hot sauce is oil drenched in hot peppers. The peppers are actually decently spicy.
The picanha was ordered medium rare and came out medium to medium well. Not sure why this happened again in a different Brazilian restaurant. The meat quality itself was pretty good if only it wasn’t overcooked.
The churrasco gaucho was a New York strip steak, and it had a nice char and flavor profile to it. Also, this was more medium despite being ordered medium rare. Nevertheless, it was actually better than the picanha. On the side was super buttery mashed potatoes, and it was tasty.
The dessert was a mousse de maracujá. By far this was delicious, but I’ll admit I’m a passion fruit fanatic. I have yet disliked any passion fruit dessert.
Food (2022)
We ordered some drinks. I got the passion fruit caipirinha ($12 - right). This had little passion fruit seeds in it, and it tasted pretty good.
The coworker got the Negroni ($15 - left).
They also came with bread and butter.
The Camarão ao Alho ($17.50) came with 6 pieces of sauteed shrimp in garlic sauce.
The Bolinho de Bacalhau ($4.80 per piece) was fried codfish croquettes. They were pretty large and pretty good. The codfish is pretty dense inside the potato croquette.
The Emporium Steak ($30.99) was basically a 8oz NY strip with whipped potatoes on the side. The steak was cooked beautifully medium rare, and it tasted great.
Keep in mind that the table was served with rice and beans as well, so it’s not just simply steak and its side.
Final Verdict
Compared to other Brazilian spots in the city, Emporium Brasil post-covid is definitely respectable. The menu has changed somewhat from pre-COVID for the better, and the meat temperatures seem to be much better than what I last remembered. If you’re craving for Brazilian and around the Midtown area, this should be considered an option.
Yelp Jabs
I also found it to be too pricey!
I think the prices here are about comparable to other Brazilian non-churrasco NYC spots. I imagine it’s definitely more expensive than Florida as you’re going to be paying that additional NYC tax.
Smaller portion and a 25% increase in price. I get it that there is inflation but that’s just unacceptable.
This comment might not have aged well considering the whole US economy is on the edge of a recession.
Revisions
- Jun 8, 2022 - Added a 2022 section including camarão ao alho, bolinho de bacalhau, and Emporium steak.
- Feb 16, 2019 - Initial revision.