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| - Maybe my expectations were too high. Or maybe they were as high as they should have been. I just think that when a place sells itself as a dining "experience," it should be one. And a true dining experience is found (or lost) in the details.
I've been second-guessing my first impression of Copacabana since my maiden voyage to the Mecca of Meat two weeks ago. I was excited about gauchos carrying swords stacked with meat, carving it to my little heart's content. I was intrigued by the meat offerings I read about online. And I liked the idea of an appetizing side-dish bar to start it all off.
Restaurant:
A fellow Yelper has done a wonderful job describing the concept, so I'll summarize. It's an all-you-can eat BBQ and steakhouse with table service and a wide selection of meats.
We arrived (two of us) at 8:30 on a Tuesday. The band was still playing, the meat was still flying and the cozy-looking front patio was still full. We opted for indoor seating and wound up near the back of an expansive seating area with an intimate feel for its size.
We asked for a table next to the one we were shown; it hadn't been cleaned but was a little more tucked away (we were on a first date and looking for a cozy spot). Our hostess noted the new table's condition and had our server provide a wipedown. It turns out that watching a server make a table look clean is a lot like watching sausage be made - best you don't know how it's done. The top got a wipe; the underside then started to drip the remnants of a variety of animals and cocktails onto the floor below us. I asked the server to give the underside a wipe as well, but she appeared confused. Hand gestures helped and the underside was ultimately cleaned. This helped me to understand why the floor was so slippery - over the course of a night it must see the grease of a thousand meats. A mid-shift mopping would have done wonders here.
Side dishes:
I was a Copacabana virgin; my companion had been before and knew the routine. We started with a trip to the "Harvest Table," a spread of side dishes that were sufficiently exotic to satisfy the adventurous (shrimp with baby corn?) but also had some standard fare for the mashed potatoes type (although I don't recall actually seeing mashed potatoes). There were pastas sitting out in the frying pans they had been cooked in; while this was a neat presentation, it seemed that they had sat there a while. I indulged nonetheless, aware that I often eat my own cooking an hour later. I failed to heed the advice of my companion ("go easy on the sides and save room for meat!") and wound up eating a somewhat-dry salmon in cream sauce out of guilt more than anything else. All said the sides were decent but not exciting.
Meat!
Copacabana works on a red-card / green-card system - turn your card to green, I was told by the website, and the carvers would know to stop by with their meat offerings (flip it to red, and you'll be left alone). This sounded fun but the cards were kitschy, like something you'd see at Boston Pizza rather than a traditional churrascuria. I also soon realized that the gauchos (carvers) would stop by with meat no matter which side of the card was showing (making it difficult to have an intimate conversation on a first date). I think the two issues were related - neither side of the card was clearly red or green, and instead read "heat it up" on one side and "cool it down" on the other (I may be paraphrasing). I suspect the carvers couldn't read the card until they showed up next to our table with a loaded skewer. On the plus side, we never had to wait long. The gauchos were friendly and skilled but seemed a bit rushed.
The meat was delicious. Two weeks after my visit I still recall many of the items I had. The house steak was memorable; the bacon-wrapped turkey and parmesan-crusted steak were great too. The Moroccan chicken was too spicy for my companion; I thought it was fabulous (a nice, slow burn). Still, I found significant variation from what's listed on the website. I was looking forward to a slow-roasted leg of lamb, and instead got lamb chops. I also don't recall tasting the parmesan-crusted pork loin that had inspired so much drooling before my visit. I ate a lot of meat that night, and found little to object to in its quality, especially considering the volumes they must do.
Overall:
We enjoyed a good meal, but the "experience" wasn't all it could have been. Here's what would take Copacabana to 4 or 5 stars:
- Cleaner tables and floors (tops & bottoms!)
- A red/green card that is just that. Red on one side, green on the other. And carvers who heed the "code of the card."
- A website that sets the right expectation - no promising what you're not offering.
- A nightly meat listing on the way in the door if offerings vary.
- Better care taken at the side-dish bar, including fresher pastas.
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