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"Brazilians love garlic like Mexicans love chiles. That is the best way to best way to describe it," says Brazilian Restaurant owner Ivany Fonseca.
Ivany is a Brazil-born pastry chef, and with her husband Ivaldo, the two of them have opened Delicious Cafe and Brazilian Grill in an unassuming strip mall in Minnetonka.
The couple has lived in Minnesota for 11 years, owned their bakery and cafe for two and have just expanded Delicious to be a Brazilian Grill as well.
The way Ivaldo puts it, Brazilians like to use a lot of spice; not heat-spice, but flavor-spice. The Brazilians also like to use a lot of meat (as made famous by Brazilian steak house Fogo de Chao).
And like Fogo, at Delicious you can get the Brazilian-cut steak Picanha na Chapa, but for much less (and sans the knife wielding waiter). The Picanha na Chapa is a special cut of beef that is seared on a thin bed of rock salt and served on a sizzling skillet.
As is the case with all entrees at Delicious, the steak is served with jasmine rice, stewed kidney beans and one of many interesting sides including yucca, fried banana and farofa. Farofa is yucca flour, garlic, paprika and a little bacon. Farofa is different than almost anything in American food, so don't be afraid to ask the Fonseca's how to administer this tasty side-dish. When farofa sprinkled on rice and beans, or even the steak, the dish takes on a unique texture and the flavors are enhanced.
This idea of flavor enhancement is all over the menu (and the pastry case) at Delicious. Simple twists on beautifully basic food make the menu warm, soul-satisfying and just like your grandma used to make it (if your grandmother was Brazilian that is.)
Croquettes are a way of life in Brazil, everyone has a favorite. There's the Kibe (beef and green olive), the Yucca, the Bolino Queijo (cheese ball), the Shrimp Risole and the Coxinha (or Chicken). Coxinha means "small leg" because it looks like a small thigh and skinny leg of a chicken.
Ivany will instruct you on how to eat the Coxinha, "by grabbing the narrow top of the croquette and biting the butt."
One more dish that might take a little education to eat is the Feijoada, which is the Brazilian national dish. This black bean stew is made with pork, sausage, bacon and is served with farofa. It comes to the table semi-unassembled (and kind of like the Vietnamese Phở ) it's up to you to assemble it just the way you like it.
Feijoada is only served on the weekends, but the weekends are a good time to be at Delicious because there is live Brazilian music and a Brazilian soccer game is almost always on the television making for a very lively cafe.
After delighting in all of the croquettes, steak, seafood dishes and sides, be sure to check out the dessert menu (and by dessert menu, we mean full-blown Perkins-style bakery on Brazilian steroids).
Ivany has taken a lot of time and care to perfect her baking. After working for many years following other people's recipes, she has finally found in Delicious a place to come into her own as a pastry chef.
Before trying to describe all of the delectable desserts, let us first say that there is really no way to capture the true tastiness. All we can say is that if you need a cake or a sweet for a special occasion, come to Delicious, because the baked goods made here have a special Brazilian love which makes them taste out of this world.
To begin, the cakes are amazing. The coconut, Brazilian chocolate and lime are very popular and always on hand. You can also expect to see cupcakes, apple turnovers, cinnamon rolls and pecan crisps (all crafted by Ivany) in the pastry case.
If you're looking for something authentic, grab a Brazilian Quindim, which looks like a little yellow custard but is actually a velvety coconut dessert that is sweet, firm and cold. Or if you're looking for just one amazingly sweet and satisfying bite, have a Brigadeiro (which is currently the dessert of choice for Johanna, Ivaldo and Ivany's daughter who waits tables at Delicious).
The Brigadeiro is the best chocolate truffle-like candy you will ever have; truly the best way to end a memorable meal.
