Círculo Militar da Praia Vermelha, Rio de Janeiro

This is a family restaurant with one of the most beautiful postcard views of Rio. It is a place just below the shortest of the Sugar Loaf hills, sitting between the hill and the sea, overlooking the Guanabara Bay. While keeping the old, more traditional restaurant interior, the premises have been recently re-vamped, opening also an outdoor pizzeria where you can eat a mean pizza listening to Brazilian popular music. With the best tables set outside on the patio, Sugar Loaf and the Praia Vermelha beach, with its boats and sunbathers, provide the decor. The food here is honest and unpretentious, with good steaks and feijoada (one of the most famous Brazilian dishes, a rich mixture of black beans and various kinds of meat) offered on Saturdays. It gets really crowded on Fridays, but on other days it can be quite romantic.