Rio Barbecue, Dee Why

Update: This restaurant has permanently closed for business.

“I’m having bruschetta for lunch, what about you?” Mysaucepan asks.

“I just had a banana and some yoghurt for breakfast and that will do me for the day” I reply.

“But wouldn’t you be hungry by mid afternoon?” she says.

“But isn’t that the whole point, to be famished by dinner time?”

The thought of a pig-out meal for dinner got us to ration our food intake today. I spent an hour in the gym and did a few more laps in the pool just to work up an appetite by dinner time. I feel a little excited at the thought of mouth-watering Brazilian churrasco with its char grilled meats and these restaurants seem to have sprung up all over Sydney.

It has been years since we went to an all-you-can-eat meal so when Groupon Australia offered some credits for us to check out some of the deals around town, I was surprised that Mysaucepan went along with my suggestion of a carnivorous, all-you-can-eat feast at Rio Barbecue in Dee Why because she usually prefers seafood to meat.

Here’s the Rio Barbecue deal:

The regular price for an all-you-can- eat meal including two cocktails for two people is $107.80. With this Groupon deal, the price is slashed by 50% to $54 for an all-you-can eat Brazilian BBQ with a cocktail each for two people which works out to be $27 per person with a drink.

For sake of comparison, the price of a straight all-you-can-eat meal (without the cocktail) is $39.90 per person on the regular menu.

This deal also extends to 4 or 6 people for $108 and $162 respectively. Like all restaurants deals, be sure to read all the fine print to ensure you are able to comply to the conditions to avoid misunderstanding and disappointment.

Rio Barbecue is located at the southern end of The Strand, directly opposite picturesque Dee Why beach. The setting is casual with a cocktail bar for locals to sip on their caipirinha.

You can choose form a variety of salads to complement the grilled meats from the BBQ.

On offer today includes Caesar salad, grilled capsicum and eggplant salad,  nicoise salad, roasted beetroot, spinach leaves, beans and tuna as well as a variety of carbs such as roasted potatoes, steamed rice and cassava flour –  a Brazilian staple.

The look of a big steak knife at these steak and BBQ restaurants always puts a smile on my face.

It fires up the imagination – chunks of charred and caramelized meat, dripping in its delicious, bloody juices are about to enter the fray.

The aromas of meat grilling in the BBQ are enticing enough but the sight of waiters walking around with giant skewers of BBQ meat would tease the hell out of any meat lover.

Isn’t it quite amazing that whenever you are hungry, those waiters seem to take forever to get to your table with those delicious looking meats on skewers!

While waiting, we tuck into some salads. Yes, my obligatory greens to satisfy my health consciousness before the impending carnivorous onslaught. Mysaucepan on the other hand is delighted there are quite a variety of salads to balance the meat overdose.

Readers, you’ll have to excuse my messy plate in advance. I did think about waiting for the entire array of meats to hit my plate before taking a “group photo” (food blogger’s etiquette you see) but it was just way too tempting looking at the meat in front of me and I had to tuck right in. Apologies.

The all-you-can-eat meats include wagyu beef topside, rump cap, marinated chicken thigh, pork neck, chicken hearts, lamb rump, chorizo sausages and prawns.

The marinated chicken, lamb rump and pork neck are all tasty pieces of BBQ meat, full of flavour with beautiful charred aromas from the BBQ. I pop a little chicken heart into my mouth and love the slightly chewy texture.

The wagyu beef rump are tasty cubes of meat that has been cooked beautifully.  Although a little tough, it is slowly but surely satisfying my meat craving.

The passionfruit caipirinha that comes with this all-you-can-eat deal is light and refreshing with a healthy splash of pineapple juice.

The wagyu rump cap arrives at our table where three beautiful chunks of meat have been cooked to a blushing red.

The waiter rests the skewer on a small drip bowl that catches all the juices from the meat.

“Some wagyu rump cap for you, sir?” he asks.

“You bet, that’s what we came here for” I reply.

He proceeds to carve the meat off the skewer as I pick it up with my thongs. You can literally see the meat juices oozing as he runs the sharp knife through the meat.

This wagyu rump cap is my favourite of all the meats that I have tried tonight. I make sure I have the salt and pepper grinders in front of me.

Unlike the lamb rump, pork neck and marinated chicken, this wagyu rump cap has hardly any seasoning and so it should be. My suggestion is to sprinkle some salt and pepper on the meat because this really brings out the flavours.

The meat is tender, juicy and bloody tasty with just that pinch of salt. There is a ribbon of fat around the meat that has been seared to perfection. These small chunks of fat are bursting with flavours and doing a Brazilian samba in my mouth.

The chorizo sausage is tasty but I found its aroma a little porky. Personally, I would have preferred it grilled a little longer for more charred aromas.

The grilled haloumi is a little more creamy and less “squishy” than regular haloumi but a tasty treat to go with the meats.

The texture of the grilled prawns are firm from a little bicarbonate soda though it is succulent and tasty.

It is a tasty Brazilian BBQ meal that has well and truly satisfied our meat craving for a while. Service from the waitresses are prompt and friendly. Eagle-eyed, they are quick to clear used plates and top up water on our table – top marks to them.

I would recommend this Groupon deal if you have not tried Brazilian style churrasco.

It is a beautiful evening and no wonder there are quite a few diners who have chosen to dine at the al fresco area directly opposite the beach. It would be a beautiful view during the day.

Dee Why is  a beautiful suburb in the northern beaches of Sydney. It is a cool and breezy summer evening and the beach setting is enticing us to take a walk towards the rock pool at the southern end of Dee Why beach to enjoy the sea breeze but also to walk off the calories from the carnivore’s feast!

It’s a Friday evening and surprisingly there are not more people out and about. The gentle sounds of lapping waves as we walk are definitely helping those last few pieces of rump cap digest in our tummies.

You can also check out beautiful Dee Why beach by day in my previous post here.

So dear readers, do you hunt down Groupon deals and if so, have you found any good restaurant deals to share with us?

ChopinandMysaucepan received complimentary vouchers to dine at Rio Barbecue courtesy of Groupon Australia. All opinions on this blogpost are our own.

Rio Barbecue
3 – 6 The Strand
Dee Why
New South Wales 2099
Tel: +61 2 9982 6355

Business hours: Open everyday from 8am till late

Enter your email address to subscribe to chopinandmysaucepan.com
… Delivered by FeedBurner

comments