Viva La Raza

 

 

Have you digested my last story? then it's time for a new food blog, sorry for the misleading title, this isn't a tribute to the late, great Eddie Guerro. It is actually a review of 

Latina Brazilian BBQ!

Beijing (Multiple locations)

 

 Location and layout 

As noted in the title, there are multiple places across Beijing where you can experience Latina, normally found in malls. The one I visited was located at No.201 2/F, DRC Liangmaqiao, No.19 Dongfang East Road, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100000 China. This was located a mere five minutes from a subway station. From my understanding, all locations are easily accessible via a short walk from an underground station, so location-wise- perfecto :).

Now, the layout, the restaurant was certainly not lacking in size, with a spacious open-plan area, filled with tables, happily not squashed together. With the buffet area placed at the top of the restaurant, the layout was pleasant, clean, and welcoming. 

Five Nik-Knacks :D

Menu

Now, the recently reviewed ‘Smokehouse Grill’ had a lot of meat, but when it comes to the choice of meat, Latina blows it out of the water.

In terms of the menu, there are only three choices, huh what? I think I should explain, for those unfamiliar with a Brazilian BBQ restaurant, the waiter will bring over fresh cuts of meat, continuously, until you are plumped up enough to roll your fat ass out the doorway. You are helpfully given a ‘red/green card’ which you flip to red whenever you need a moment to consider your life choices, before flipping it to green, when you are good to good to give your gullet, another kicking. I mentioned the three choices and the way it works is if you pay for the lowest level 329 RMB per person, and you will get a choice of 20 different meats. If you are feeling flush, you can cough up an extra 100 RMB and for 429 you will get some extra cuts of steaks, plus seafood, scallops, and oysters. However, if you are really feeling like splashing the cash, you can go for the whole hog, and spend 599 RMB per person (about 60 quid) which will see the always mouth-watering Wagyu beef, lobster, and free-flow drinks (including alcohol) added to your table.  Now I went to this restaurant with a friend who had offered to pay, so it goes without saying that we plumped for the 599 moneybags option.

I should also note here, that if you go at lunchtime, you can snag a lower price (like most restaurants) where the first two options will be 100 RMB cheaper. 

Buffet Bar

Of course, as much as it may sound like a great idea, you can’t just eat piece after piece after piece of meat, you need a couple of things to break it up. So, offering a bevy of options, is the buffet bar, everything from cold salads to some warm options, like rice, spaghetti (and even some more meat, such as meatballs), plus a healthy selection of deserts.  Actually, I may have misled you earlier when I said 3, there is a 4^th option. If money is tight, or you are trying to be a bit of a penny-pincher, you can pay 129 RMB and ONLY have the buffet option. (although this surely defeats the whole purpose of this restaurant) Some pics below

 Lobster! Yum!All the meats

Sides from the buffet bar

It's another emphatic 5 Nik-Knacks

 

 

Price

Well, well, well, we have arrived at that most unpleasant matter, the bill. I’ve already listed the prices in my breakdown of the menu, and although the three options are nice, even the cheapest option (for the full experience) is over 300 yuan. It’s clear that Latina isn’t messing about, you don’t come here for a grab-and-go meal. You pay your money, and by golly, they are gonna give you a nice experience. If I thought the Smokehouse was bad costing 500 Yuan for the Platter, this tops it weighing in at 600 Yuan.  But is it worth it?  I would say yes, for a special occasion, this isn’t somewhere you can eat regularly at those eye-watering prices, but for a one-off, a birthday, a day trip to Beijing, it’s well worth dusting off the old moth collector and parting with some of your hard-earned for some top-quality meat.

Overall, given that it is expensive, I can’t give it 5 stars, but despite the cost I would say it’s still good value, you get plenty of bang for your buck.

So, 4 Nik-Knacks

 

 

Summary

Well, what's left to say? If it’s not been clear throughout this review, I loved my experience here, so nice, I’ve been twice.  How does it taste, I hear you cry, well, the meat tastes fresh, it tastes delicious and given the plethora of different meats you will be provided, it is nigh-on impossible not to find something you like, plus the chefs, who by the way are incredibly friendly and happy to have a chat with you whilst carving the meat at your table, will make regular rounds, so if you find a particular dish really tickling your taste-buds, it’s no problem at all to ask for more of it.

Given the price, I can’t score it the maximum, but it damn sure comes close to it, my advice is to go when you are very hungry, have a bit of coin to spare, and want to treat yourself, then immerse yourself in the wonderful world of meat! 

Overall, it’s a thumping 4.5 Nik-Knacks for Latina

 

Being carved more meat- moments before the food coma.

P.S It’s probably a given, but this place isn’t really suitable for vegetarians

 

Terminology

• Blows it out of the water- Exceeds expectations or performs much better than something else
• Feeling Flush- Having a lot of money at the moment
• Splashing the cash- Spending a lot of money freely or extravagantly
• Mouth-watering- Very appetising or delicious-looking
• Plumped for- Choose or decide on something
• Bevy of options - A large variety of choices
• By golly- An expression of surprise or to add emphasis (like "wow" or "indeed")
• Eye-watering prices- Very high or expensive prices
• Plethora - A large or excessive amount of something
• Nigh-on impossible - Almost impossible