I just returned from Chima Restaurant here in Ft. Lauderdale.  Chima is a Rodizio/churrasco style of eating, which has its roots in Brazil and Argentina.  It's a fun and hearty way to enjoy a meal.  Essentially, the waiters walk around with meat on a stick, and all types of meat -- flank, sirloin, top round, lamb, filet mignon, rump steak, etc, and you have a card that says 'Yes Please' or 'No Thank You,' if you have 'Yes Please' turned over the waiter who is dressed like a Brazilian cowboy will stop and cut a piece of the meat for you.  It's great because you have all different types of steak as opposed to a traditional steakhouse where you would just have a single choice; here you can have a little bit, or a lot, depending your appetite, of everything!  I probably ate 4 to 5 lbs of meat, which is great for gaining size.  I read somewhere that my favorite the animal, the Lion, eats 20 lbs of meat a day, so I'm catching up! lol  Chima also has a huge salad bar, so even if you aren't a lusty carnivore like myself, you can fill up on roasted red peppers, salad, pasta salads, cheese, smoke salmon, soups, rice, beans, etc.  So, even a vegetarian could leave satiated.

In all honesty this style of eating is great for a hardgainer, someone who has trouble gaining size, to indulge in, or just anyone looking for a protein-packed meal.  In fact, when I was 200 lbs, one of the variables that enabled me to get to 220/230 lbs was going to all-you-can-eat rodizio place or an all-you-can-eat sushi place once a week; the extra calories and extra protein is really beneficial in gaining size.  I generally put rice, beans and yuca flour on my plate and then mix the various cuts of meat into that. 

I would not recommend eating Rodizio to someone who is on The Spartan or The Theban, because the meat has a good deal of salt, so the sodium content is rather high.  Remember, sodium makes you hold water, which is definitely something that you are trying to avoid if you are endeavoring to get lean.

I've been to the following Rodizio places and recommend them all without hesitiation:

Porcao: Miami, FL  http://www.porcaous.com/miami/

Gaucho Rodizio: Lighthouse Point, FL  http://www.gauchorodizio.com/

Chima: Ft. Lauderdale, FL  http://www.chima.cc/

Fogo De Chao: Beverly Hills, CA  http://www.fogodechao.com/

I've also heard that Plataforma in NYC is a good one, but I've never been.  http://churrascariaplataforma.com/

-Peter Adonis

12/19/2007

Retasha: you inspire people to wana work out hard including me and im a girl.

12/17/2007

Jeff: Cheers to Plataforma.. it's my favorite restaurant in NYC. Now that I'm in LA I'll have to try Fogo De Chao... thanks for the tip :)