Address: 180 North University Avenue, Suite 150, Provo, UT 84601. 801.344.5555.
Review: Brazilian food is a big thing in Utah. This is unsurprising since at least 97% of Utahns have served their LDS missions in Brazil. And king of the Brazilian food concepts is the churrascaria, or steakhouse (think Rodizio Grill or Tucanos). Not wanting to compete directly with the aforementioned churrascaria juggernauts, Braza Express tweaks the Brazilian steakhouse idea and creates an almost a quick-eating experience.
I ordered the combo plate.
It came with a choice of pretty much everything Braza makes. I chose black beans and chicken rice, top sirloin, tenderloin, chicken, sausage and peppers, fried bananas, grilled pineapple, and a cabbage salad. To drink I had a cashew juice.
Let's start with the most enjoyable parts of the meal. The black beans and chicken rice were pretty stellar. Brazilian black beans have that great sort of beans and ham hocks feel to them, and Braza's were the real deal. Likewise, the chicken rice was the right combination of white rice studded with little savory chicken bits. And then there was the cashew drink. I've never had anything of the sort before, and it was quite enjoyable. The cashew essence came through, and the hint of citrus lightened the drink. Very refreshing.
And then there was everything else. The meats were nothing more than okay. For example, the tenderloin was perfectly cooked, and incredibly salty. I'm talkin' it made me pucker salty. The other meats weren't as salty, but they weren't as well cooked either. The fried bananas were dry. The grilled pineapple lacked that nice grilled flavor you'd expect from well, the grill. It tasted like heated through pineapple. Meh. The cabbage salad was unremarkable, and the roll was a standard hard white roll.
In all, some very good, most not very good. I won't be frequenting again.
Rating: 4/10 (5/10 is average)
Thanks for the review -- I will definitely have to try the cashew drink when I go there! If you're ever in the Provo area again, you should check out my blog for some reviews!
ReplyDeletehttp://eatbyu.blogspot.com/
Marco, I just discovered your blog, I agree on the dearth of restaurant review blogs so, good job!
ReplyDeleteBraza Grill Express is an off-shoot of Braza Grill in Murray, UT, which competes with Rodizio and other like it. I frequent the Express in downtown SLC often and your review has been my experience also. The difference is that I come from South America and know that a churrasco has to be salty, hence why the salad is bland, they compliment each other. Yes, the meat is not as fresh as a regular churrasqueria but that is to be expected when they are cooking it ahead of time, the same for the banana and pineapple.
I would give this place a 6/10 and I will continue to eat there on a regular basis.
rpp,
ReplyDeleteWhat you said makes sense. I can see now why the meat is so overly salted. While it seems a bit odd to me to eat that way, it's a cultural thing, and you can't really complain about it. Thanks for bringing up that point.