taco bell

find it here no...although mcdonalds is around, i even saw a pizza hut billboard, and subway ill pass...but there is plenty of other eat fresh places around here, every corner, every alley, someone is trying to sell you something and quite often its food...its amazing how so many brazilians stay skinny (topic for another day)...and you know how street food is just that, street food...most of this is good, some of it is great...

there is the corner bakery, the big one, with everything but not as you'd expect...they like bread here, but not sliced bread, better shit has happened since then...pastries are everywhere and filled with everything, meat, cheeses, vegetables, you get the idea...and its cheap, fill up for a buck or two, maybe three...then add a fresh fruit smoothie-juice-sucros (you pick the fruit, they make the drink) to your mix and call it a meal...

leave the corner to find more pastries in smaller shops, standing room only often, along with typical food, sandwiches, burgers, beer, canned and fresh juice, matte the brazilian form of sweet tea is excellent...sometimes the shops specialize in only one thing, like the dough filled with ground beef, shrimp, or cheese, dropped in the fryer and served up warm with a glass of laranajada (think mcdonalds orange drink x10)...simply amazing the plethora of random foods, drinks, etc. available...

and if ur lucky you'll find something open at 3am but around 5, its only hot dogs on the street which i will not recommend although the brazilians love them, i got sick, days later i think the taste was still fucking with my stomach...

move along to the beach where abacachi (fresh pineapple) and acacaxi, purple fruit don't know the name in smoothie form, are found...or get cheese, cooked to order, yes guy carries around little oven to cook your cheese on a stick with, its again, the best...or find more pastries like empadas filled with cheese or ground beef or shrimp or chicken...if looking for a sweet, try the coconut concoction, ground and covered in shavings, topped with a sweet syrup, all coconut which i don't even like but it was good...what makes it all even better you never have to leave your lawn chair, wave your hand and here it comes...

all better than the 2am drive thru nachos bell grande...