At the Padaria (At the Bakery)

Breads

Brazilians like their breads freshly baked. So, twice a day, early in morning and in the evening, they'll make a track to the closest "padaria" and bring home all sorts of hot rolls and baguettes. My favorite padaria in Rio is this one in the picture. It used to be one of Tom Jobim's haunts, by the way. Brazilians have a lot of wonderful packaged cookies, some similar to Oreos and such, but most will be new to Americans. Try one called Maria (named in our honor, no doubt) and the coconut ones called Calipso. My favorite wafers are  chocolate-flavor Tostines. Also, freshly-baked arrowroot, coconut and cornstarch cookies are marvelous.

Other goodies

Bakeries also sell sodas, cheeses and cold cuts and a variety of other foods. Many padarias will also grill chickens, so if you're a busy person you can pick up your dinner with your fresh bread!

Don't forget that Brazilians use the metric system. When buying sliced ham, for instance, one hundred grams is about a quarter of a pound.

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