Dining review: Lucy’s Brazilian Kitchen makes sampling the churrasco more affordable
Various dishes are pictured Tuesday at Lucy's Brazilian Kitchen in Provo.
The Pineapple Steak Salad at Lucy's Brazilian Kitchen in Provo.
The fried plantains and the Guarana Antarctica drink at Lucy's Brazilian Kitchen in Provo.
The Picanha top sirloin, along with grilled pineapples and yucca flour at Lucy's Brazilian Kitchen in Provo.
The Fried Plantains are pictured at Lucy's Brazilian Kitchen in Provo.
The Cocada, or Coconut Candy.
Pao de Queijo, or cheese bread.
Savory fried foods like Yucca and Pastel are at Lucy's Brazilian Kitchen in Provo.
Savory fried foods like Yucca and Pastel from Lucy's Brazilian Kitchen in Provo.
Savory fried foods like Yucca, deep-fried Chicken Fritters and Pastel are pictured.
The flan is pictured at Lucy's Brazilian Kitchen.
The Picanha top sirloin, along with grilled pineapples and yucca flour, is pictured Tuesday at Lucy's Brazilian Kitchen.
The Acai Bowl, with strawberries and bananas.
The Brigadeiro, a chocolate treat, is pictured Tuesday at Lucy's Brazilian Kitchen.
The limeade is to die for at Lucy's Brazilian Kitchen.
As one of the many Utah County residents who, at one time in my life, spent approximately two years in Brazil (there are many of us — and that’s not even counting the many Brazilian immigrants living here), I have been eagerly anticipating Lucy’s Brazilian Kitchen for months.
I was drawn in by the decor of the place before even having a chance to try the food. If you’ve walked down University Avenue, you’ve seen the large mural on the wall closest to the window. It features Christ the Redeemer perched on the hills of Rio, and it makes a warm welcome to guests as they enter the restaurant.
I’m happy to report that the experience of eating at Lucy’s is a positive experience as well.
We in Utah with ties to Brazilian culture have, in the past, succumbed many times to the local churrascarias like Tucanos or Rodizio Grill, because we wanted that particular style of deliciousness — but those restaurants can take a lot out of a person — both from the wallet and from the ability to live normal life after taking on an extra hundred pounds after every delicious meal.
But now we have Lucy’s, which may not replace those higher-end Brazilian staples in terms of quality, but it does allow us to get our Brazilian fix in a more focused, smaller way. So rather than paying a lot of money in order to eat my own body weight in grilled meat, I can choose to pay around $10 for a particular entree.
And oh, the choices. I was blown away by the variety of Brazilian foods offered. Everything from full-on top sirloin to the little chocolate balls, brigadeiro or beijinho.
For entrees, we went with the picanha top sirloin with fried plantains (bananas) on the side, breaded chicken breast, and the grilled flank steak. The latter was my favorite, offering simple and filling pleasures.
Eating two savory pastries on the menu definitely brought me back to my time of street-eating, and I appreciated the trip. We had the ham and cheese pastel and the coxinha, which is a teardrop-shaped deep fried chicken fritter. I preferred the pastel, but I remember coxinhas being hard to get into for me at first and later falling in love with them.
Of course, a Brazilian meal is not complete without the pao de queijo, or cheesy bread balls. Think small dinner rolls that are packed with bouncy cheese and taste delicious.
One area that the larger Brazilian houses have disappointed me in are the drinks. Of course, we are in Utah, so the fresh fruits are harder to come by. But the Brazilian limeade at Lucy’s is absolutely to die for. It’s somehow creamy and foamy and just the right amount of tangy.
For dessert, we had two of the mousse options — passion fruit and chocolate cake — and both were good, but I loved the passion fruit.
Essentially, every Brazilian food I had ever encountered during my time there has a home in Provo at Lucy’s, and that makes me very happy.
We couldn’t even come close to sampling everything that is offered on the menu, but I am excited to go back to try a few other items. Two big items that I miss (and missed during my visit) are vitaminas (smoothies) and smoothie bowls — particularly made with acai.
Some of the items seem a bit pricey (a can of Guarana will set you back $3, for example), but in general, everything is much more affordable at Lucy’s than at other Brazilian restaurants in town.
So when you have a particular craving for that one Brazilian dish, chances are, Lucy is pulling it out of the oven at the exact same moment. And that’s a comforting thought.
LUCY’S BRAZILIAN KITCHEN
Where: 155 N. University Ave., Provo
Prices: $1-$12.50
Hours: 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Mondays-Thursdays, open until 10 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, closed Sundays
Info: lucysbraziliankitchen.com
