I was first introduced to the Brazilian steakhouse concept at Fogo de Chao in San Antonio a number of years back and was excited when I first learned that Scottsdale was getting a Fogo de Chao.

If you’re not familiar with the concept here’s how it works:  You pay a flat fee for your meal and head over to the “Market Table” (salad bar) to get a plate.  You load up your plate with salad, vegetables, deli meats and artisanal cheeses.  Then you head back to your table for “some” steak.

On your table you’ll notice a disc.  One side is red and one side is green.  If this disc has the green side facing up, the servers will continue to bring and offer you steak.  When you need a break, simply flip the disc over to show the red side.

The servers bring a lot of different meats, from lamb to chicken to sausage.  Also, prime rib, rib eye, top sirloin, filet mignon among others.  You can ask for rare, medium rare, medium or more well done and the server will carve a piece of meat off of for you right there.

I’ve been to steakhouses all over the United States and world since starting The Weekly Wine Journal, and each of them has a unique charm.  For Fogo de Chao the magic is really in attempting to eat as much as possible.  Not to say this isn’t a classy joint, but inevitably what you’ll find when a place tells you the food is all you can eat is that you will eat as much as you can.  Save room for dessert though!

As far as the steak, it’s decent.  Obviously it’s not St, Elmo’s in Indianapolis or Primehouse in Chicago, but definitely worth the price.  Another thing to consider is to look up the specials online before your visit.  They often have restaurant week deals, or specials on wine.  While I was there the wine special was 50% off any South American wine priced under $100 a bottle.  A great deal!

Enjoy these pics of the food!