Discover restaurants that have famous owners, such as Fernanda Lima and Felipe Massa

You will hardly go out to dinner and bump into that soap opera actress ready to take a selfie. But São Paulo has a number of restaurants whose owners are famous — in which they don’t usually show their faces publicly, but act in society as an investment strategy.

This is the case of actor Caio Castro, who has just opened the Actors Burguers hamburger shop, in the Pinheiros region, on the west side of São Paulo. Also pilot Felipe Massa, who brought the Beefbar chain to the capital, and skater Letícia Bufoni, who opened the Flip Burger hamburger in Guarulhos.

The presenter and model Fernanda Lima is one of the names behind Maní, one of the most celebrated and awarded restaurants in the country.

Find out more about Caio Castro’s hamburger shop by clicking here. And about the other establishments below.

beefbar

Monaco is not a destination known for its gastronomy and usually attracts more attention for hosting the traditional Formula 1 race. But in São Paulo, Beefbar combines both universes. Inaugurated in September 2020 in the Jardins region, the São Paulo unit of the restaurant chain created in the European destination has the Brazilian Felipe Massa in the company.

The cuisine is similar to that of the matrix, with an emphasis on prime meats and a section dedicated to street food from various countries. Thierry Paludetto, chef at the Monaco unit, came to Brazil recently to bring new dishes to the menu. Among the novelties is the Thai Ceviche, made with green tilapia, mango and papaya and caramelized cashews (R$ 38) and roasted cauliflower with a green sauce of tahini, pomegranate and sesame (R$ 39).

R. Barão de Capanema, 320, Jardins, west region, tel. (11) 2386-1918, saopaulo.beefbar.com, Instagram @beefbar_saopaulo

Flip Burger

An authority in the world of skateboarding, Leticia Bufoni started investing in the gastronomic sector with this hamburger restaurant, which opened in February this year in Guarulhos, in Greater São Paulo.

Both the environment and the names of the recipes are inspired by the new Olympic sport. Among the snack options, Tail Grab is a smash burger with cheddar, mayonnaise, lettuce and tomato (R$14). More robust, the sandwich with the name of the house has cheese, barbecue, ranch sauce and breaded onions. It costs R$32, and the meat can be substituted for the vegetarian version.

There is, by the way, a vegetarian recipe created by Bufoni herself: vegetarian burger, cheese, ranch sauce, lettuce, tomato and mayonnaise. It costs R$33. The menu also includes portions, desserts, milkshakes and drinks.

Av. Paulo Faccini, 1899, Guarulhos (SP), Instagram @flipburgerbr

Mani

One of the most celebrated restaurants in the country, Maní also has a well-known name among its members: presenter and model Fernanda Lima. The house run by Helena Rizzo opened its doors in 2006, after the chef returned from a season in Europe and began to consider a proposal from Lima, her friend. The business became a success, grew and today it has Casa Manioca, an event space, the Manioca restaurant and two Padoca do Maní units.

On site, Rizzo signs a contemporary menu that highlights national ingredients, with à la carte options and a tasting menu. Among the main options, fish in a banana leaf is served with uarini flour, coconut, plantain and tucupi sauce and costs R$105.

The tasting menu, in turn, has 12 stages and costs R$580, with a vegetarian version. It is also possible to order the version with three courses (R$ 250) or five (R$ 390). Launched on the 12th, the current menu is inspired by a course by sociologist Carlos Alberto Dória and journalist Viviane Aguiar on the relationship between gastronomy and Brazilian modernism. Among the dishes, there are reinterpretations of vatapá and feijoada.

R. Joaquim Antunes, 210, Jardim Paulistano, west region, tel. (11) 3085-4148, manimanioca.com.br