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Lasai

Rio de Janeiro

More than a decade after opening, this intimate restaurant continues to astound

Carrying the flag: With exceptional, vegetable-led dishes from chef Rafael Costa e Silva and warm, welcoming hospitality by his wife, Malena Cardiel, Lasai has all the ingredients of a standout restaurant. It previously won the Art of Hospitality Award in 2019 for its unpretentious yet professional service and has featured in Latin America's 50 Best Restaurants every year since its opening in 2014.

Background check: Costa e Silva studied at The Culinary Institute of America in New York and in his four years in the city, he worked with important chefs including Jean Georges and René Pujol. 2007 saw him join the team at Mugaritz, the legendary Spanish restaurant headed up by Andoni Luis Aduriz.

Counter intuitive: Three years ago, Lasai moved from its former home in a colonial townhouse in Botafogo neighbourhood to a much smaller spot just around the corner. It now serves just 10 people around a single, L-shaped chef's counter, offering a much more intimate experience, with every guest sitting right in front of Costa e Silva and his team.

On the menu: Fed by two gardens – one in Itahnangá in the city, the other a few hours' drive away in Rio de Janeiro state – Lasai's 15-course tasting menu centres around the best seasonal, mostly organic produce, coupled with the freshest local seafood and protein. That might mean chayote squash with Romanesco broccoli, borage and juicy scallops, or palm heart with cashew nuts, enoki and king oyster mushrooms and sweet potato leaf. Plating is pared back (in keeping with the room) but stunningly executed.

Perfect pairing: Matching with Costa e Silva's food is a drinks pairing featuring biodynamic and natural wines from Lasai's award-winning sommelier, Maíra Freire. The list boasts plenty of Brazilian gems including reds from Rio Grande do Sul in the south, vermouths from São Paulo and even a mead made from wild, native honey.

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