The Girl from Ipanema

The Girl from Ipanema Food Trailer is all about traditional Brazilian cuisine. Our food is inspired from the heart of the Latin country; it is warm and welcoming like Sunday barbecues with friends and family, bursting with healthy, fresh flavours. This is the spirit we wish to share with you, our love for great food mixed with perfect company. Our food is authentic and infused with real ingredients to bring out the typical flavours that go with vibrant Brazil, all at an affordable price!

Rice and beans are a staple of the Brazilian diet and constitute the foundations of our menu, together with a variety of salads, traditionally cooked meat and a range of manioc inspired accompaniments.
Amongst the dishes from the menu, Feijoada is the classic dish; it is one of the few dishes eaten in every corner of Brazil. Feijoada is a hearty stew of black beans, sausages and cuts of different types of pork. A labour of love, feijoada done the old fashioned way takes up to 24 hours to make, and consists of soaking beans and desalting pork.

Australia, like Brazil is passionate about barbecues. “Churrasco” is a national pride and Brazilians will find any excuse to light one up. At any public event which is likely to draw a crowd, anywhere in Brazil, at any time of day or night, any season of the year, there'll be at least one person (and likely many more) standing at a small charcoal grill, vending espetinhos. Espetinho is a Portuguese word which means "little skewer" and is the word that Brazilians use to describe what is known in English as a kebab. They're good all day long, but at they are savoured best whilst enjoying a relaxed sunny afternoon down at the beach- where they’re served up warm, tender and lightly salted only a few steps away!
If you like your meat cooked to perfection, we got you covered! “Picanha” as it is known in Brazil, is the best part of the cow possible to eat, and you will see why. These premium cuts (rump cap) are seasoned with no more than a liberal shake of coarse salt, before being grilled to pink perfection over charcoal. After trying our “Picanha” you will wonder why you did not try this piece of heaven before!

Also from time to time you will see some sweet treats on our daily menu! Such as “Beijinhos de coco” which literally means coconut kisses or “Brigadeiro” (the chocolate version). These sweet balls are traditionally made from a mixture of sweetened condensed milk and covered with chocolate or coconut sprinkles. Guaranteed to give an instant sugar rush! They literally get rolled out for kids’ parties nationwide but they will suit any confectionery lover! If this jawbreaker does not content your palate you will find some weekly banana-bread mood.

Who are we? This project comes from the dreams of Marcelo Sternadt, a Brazilian that left his country of birth a long time ago and pursues a life where he can enjoy the best of both his beloved country and his second home down under at the same time. To help bring his plans to fruition Marcelo brought his french partner along in the adventure, Melissa Mongeal, who fell in love with the food, the idea and the guy!
Together they combine their energy to give you a taste of what Brazil means to them.