Restaurante Popular

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Avery paid $0.49 for this meal. The Rio de Janeiro taxpayer paid the rest

Waiting in line outside the Restaurante Popular the Central Station in Rio de Janeiro, we knew this would not be our typical dining experience.

Surrounded by an eclectic mix of homeless people, street vendors, bus drivers, business people, and American backpackers, we all waited patiently for our turn to eat lunch at a restaurant that has become an example for food justice initiatives.  (I’m pretty sure that only the backpackers were thinking about the social implications of this meal...everyone else was just happy to get a great deal on lunch.)

As I mentioned in the blog about food security initiatives in Belo Horizonte, one of the signature aspects of the program is the Restaurante Popular. These eateries operate on the mission that the food should be nutritious, sufficient, and affordable for everyone.

Our plan was to eat at Brazil's first Restaurante Popular, the one in front of the bus station in Belo Horizonte, but our schedule didn't coincide with lunch hours. Fortunately for us and many in Brazil, it has become a national program with restaurants in major cities all over the country. In Rio de Janeiro, there are 16 restaurants that combine to serve 50,000 lunches and 20,000 breakfasts per day.

After a fun search through downtown Rio de Janeiro that included asking at least 14 people for directions, we finally found the restaurant. Actually, we didn’t quite find the restaurant - we found the line.

The line took some time to get moving, but we were eventually in the barebones cafeteria. The only signs on the wall are the ones that void the restaurant of responsibility for lost items, that you should put your tray away when you are done eating, that you can't take pictures, and that promote the project as a municipal initiative.

Every day, the restaurant serves rice, beans, salads, dessert, bread, fruit, juice, coffee, and a choice of protein (meat, chicken, or egg). If you do get the chance to eat at a Restaurante Popular, make sure that you keep your eyes open as you go through the line because if you miss out on a food item. There's no going back. I missed out on a salad, cookie, and a banana the first time we went.

The cafeteria-style seating promotes interaction among the clients. If I were a little stronger and confident with my Portuguese, I could see myself having a lot of fun at the table. Maybe that will be the goal by the time I leave Brazil.

I don’t know if I’m very qualified to write a restaurant review. I’ve watched ratatouille and The Simpsons’ episode where Homer becomes the food critic for The Springfield Shopper. Aside from that, I once glanced at The New York Times food section masthead while looking for the sports section.