A Brilliant Brazilian Buffet Hidden in Santa Ana - CLOSED

Silva's Fresh Eatery and Churrascaria

3672 South Bristol St.

Santa Ana, CA 92704

The term hidden gem gets thrown around a little too much these days. It has almost come to mean a restaurant you haven't been to yet. Silva's Fresh Eatery and Churrascaria is a literal hidden gem. It's located on the backside of an LA Fitness and behind the large Chase Bank and the former Famous Dave's space on the corner of Bristol and MacArthur. Easily overlooked due to no street visibility, Silva's should definitely be noticed by those who enjoy churrasco and Brazilian favorites.

Many of you know the Texas de Brazil's, Agora's, and the Fogo de Chao's of the world. These Brazilian restaurants are well known, and for good reason. They are all delicious and serve some fantastic meat options. If you have been to these Brazilian restaurants, you know they are pretty pricey. Dinner at these three giants in Brazilian fare will set you back $50 to $60 per person. Even a big meat eater like myself needs help eating enough at these places to get my money's worth. My lighter-eating wife has no chance to eat enough at these places to make it worth it, so we hardly ever experience Brazilian cuisine. Silva's is trying to change that.

Silva's has been open for nearly a year now. They have gone through some changes during that time, as most businesses do. When they first started, they tried a pay-by-the-weight option, which did not jive with many diners. They recently switched to the much more accepted all-you-can-eat feast, offering appetizers and entrees. We hear some delicious pizzas come from their kitchen for people who do not want to go the all-you-can-eat route. Speaking of the kitchen, the man at the helm is Chef John Vega, formerly of Roy's in Newport Beach.

My friend Mark and I were invited to try Silva's this past week. After the quicker-than-expected drive up the 405 Freeway from Aliso Viejo, we arrived just before 7 pm. We were met by a hip yet comfortable dining room, which strikes the delicate balance of being the perfect spot for a date night venue and a place you can invite your whole family to experience. There's the fully stocked and quite impressive bar off to the right of the entrance and the buffet line that starts on the far left-hand side of the restaurant. Plenty of Brazilian-themed framed pictures dot the walls here, but not obtrusively. Let's take a quick tour through the buffet line.

I'm not going to lie to you. I skipped the salad portion of the buffet line. The produce section of this buffet does deserve some notice, though. Silva's uses locally grown and organic vegetables, making for better salads. There's nothing personal about salads, but when I'm at a buffet, I tend to focus on the hot food items, and at a Brazilian buffet, I definitely do not stray too far from the meats.

There were plenty of hot food options to fill my plate at Silva's before I got to the slow-cooked meats in their churrascaria. The options were plentiful this evening: Black Bean Stew with Sausage, Roasted Cauliflower, Ratatouille, Truffle Mac and Cheese, Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Salmon Filets, a Roasted Potato Medley, and more. Of course, I was pretty distracted by the station that was coming up next.

The proteins at Silva's are the star of the show here. They may have fewer offerings than their other Brazilian steakhouse counterparts, but the seven selections that they do have were all stellar. Highlights included their Skirt Steak with hints of garlic and herbs, Tri-Tip, and the Gaucho Style Sausage, one of my best sausages. After watching the gaucho slice the meat, I could not wait to return to my table and dig in.

This was plate one of two that I had, and I was ready to be wheeled out of Silva's by the end of our visit; the meats were fabulous, and I would definitely suggest piling up on them because that's where the most significant value is when eating at a Brazilain buffet. This might be hard because the other hot dishes are stellar. It's been a week, and I still crave their delicious mac and cheese and the Feijoada, also known as black bean stew. Very homey and comforting.

It's also worth mentioning that Silva's bar is strikingly beautiful and well-stocked and makes some fantastic cocktails. Mark and I had to try their Caipirinha ($12). This is the national cocktail of Brazil and, I suspect, a distant cousin of the trendy mojito. I liked this version better, as it did not have an overpowering mint flavor. It was a very refreshing and easygoing beverage that went well with the meats and side items here.

Mark and I found Silva's an excellent alternative to the more pricey Brazilian steakhouses that dot the county. Instead of paying $50 or more per person, the all-you-can-eat option at Silva's is a staggering $22.95. Also worth noting is that, unlike those other steakhouses, you can order from their kitchen if you are not in the mood for an all-you-can-eat feast. I've heard that their pizzas are excellent. Silva's also offers a happy hour that runs from 3pm to 7 every day and has some great drink specials, along with half off on those pizzas and other appetizers. Lastly, they also have late-night dining options on Fridays and Saturdays for people who want to enjoy some music spun by their DJ. Silva's is trying to do almost anything to battle their hidden location to get you in the door because they know that once you find them, you'll love the food you find there and will be a frequent visitor.

I'd like to thank everyone we encountered on our visit to Silva's Fresh Eatery and Churrascaria. It seems like the staff was extremely excited to share this concept and are definitely behind it. A special thanks to General Manager Alex Ferreira, who made sure we were well taken care of and concocted excellent cocktails this evening. Thanks for your very kind hospitality, Alex. Thank you to Bob Bradley at Bradley PR and Marketing for setting up this visit. Thanks for helping us find this truly hidden gem, Bob. Much appreciated.

Silva's does not have an active website, but you can find out more information on their Yelp page  here: https://www.yelp.com/biz/silvas-fresh-eatery-churrascaria-santa-ana?sort_by=date_desc

Meat-topia at Agora in Irvine! - CLOSED

Agora Churrascaria

1830 Main St.

Irvine, CA 92614

After leaving Agora Churrascaria, I came home and looked for flights to Brazil. I do not always eat Brazilian food, but if it is as good as we had this evening, it might be time for me to hop on a plane and experience it for a few weeks or so.

We recently were invited to a blogger's dinner at Agora Churrascaria. Our hostesses for the evening were the wonderful Diana Daniele and equally great Jane Gillespie. They brought together the best bloggers that Orange County has to offer. I have read many of these authors' blogs before I even thought of starting this blog. Anita from Diary of a Mad Hungry Woman, Tom from Tom's Foodie Blog, Griffin from Griffin Eats OC, Bobby from 100 Eats 100 Days, Austin representing The Hungry Dogg, Suki from Eat Suki Eat, the very talented Anne Marie from Brekkie Fan's Blog, and the cantankerous duo of Kat from Kat's 9 Lives and Minerva from Much Ado About Fooding were all in attendance. As great as the company was, the food would not be overshadowed.

Before we get a look at the food, first a little bit about Agora. Agora is a Brazilian steakhouse opened by Scott Im in 2005. He is Korean-born but grew a love of Brazilian food while spending part of his youth in the South American country. Agora is an all-you-can-eat meat lover's paradise. Meat is brought to tables by gauchos, who slice the various cuts of meat right off of the same metal skewers they are cooked on.

I snuck into the kitchen to take pictures of the meat cooking. Leonardo, the man holding the skewers above, is the General Manager of Agora, and he told me that they go through about a ton of meat a week here. They offer 12 different cuts of meat for lunch service, and then that number jumps to 16 for dinner. It is not all about the meat at Agora, though.

At Agora, they feature authentic Brazilian drinks. They have four versions of the famous Brazilian cocktail, the Caipirinha. I sampled three versions on this night. The Original Caipirinha, which contains Sagatiba, Cachaca, lime, and sugar, was my second favorite version of this drink tonight. It tasted very refreshing, like a cousin to the Mojito. Other versions included a Passion Fruit Caipirinha and, my favorite drink of the night, the Strawberry Basil Caipirinha. The canned Brazilian soda, Guarana, was also a table favorite for the non-drinking crowd. Katie thought this was a sweeter version of Sprite that was more refreshing.

Before the meat hit the table, we snacked on gluten-free Brazilian Cheese Bread, fried bananas, and salsa-like Tomato Vinaigrette. The cheese bread bowl was refilled numerous times throughout the night. I also liked the banana. It was nice to switch from savory to sweet every so often.

Are you not in the mood for meat? They had a well-stocked salad bar featuring over 16 different salads, plus a selection of cold cuts, cheeses, and shrimp cocktails. Standouts for us were the Caesar Salad, Potato Salad, and Shrimp Cocktail.

I knew the meat was on its way, but I had to go through the hot food bar at least once. I could have made a whole meal out of just the Black Bean Stew. There were pieces of what I thought were linguica in it. It was very good when paired with the Garlic Rice. Other items of note were the Clams, Collard Greens, and Mashed Potatoes. All of this was a precursor to the main event, so let's bring on the meat!

At Agora, there is only one rule that you have to follow. Green means go, and red means stop. As long as you have your coaster turned to the green side, the gauchos will keep bringing you meat until you can no longer pack it away. Some meats were slid off the skewers, and for others, you had to use tongs to grab them. I caught the hang of this rather quickly.

Wow, and you thought I was just kidding about all of the meat! This is just 12 of the 16-plus offerings on this night. My favorites included the Skirt Steak, Lamb Chop, and the Linguisa. All of the meats were cooked perfectly here. I have been to one other all-you-can-eat in a Brazilian restaurant, and all the meats started to taste the same. This was not the case here. At Agora, the meats were seasoned differently, so this problem was avoided. Other meats included Filet Mignon, Bacon Wrapped Chicken, Chicken Hearts, Top Sirloin, Top Sirloin Cap, Tri-Tip, Pork Tenderloin with Parmesan, Baked Salmon, Beef Ribs, Beef Skewers, and Filet Wrapped in Bacon. For those who wish to have their meat with a different degree of doneness, the gauchos were very accommodating, and every effort was made to get you the type of meat you are after.

By this time of the night, I knew I would have to be wheeled out of there, but of course, there was always room for dessert. Everyone around me got a different dessert, so I took a picture of all of them. I ordered the Chocolate Gelato, a light end to my heavy meal. Katie got the Acai, which was topped with bananas and granola. I took a bite of Kat's Cheesecake and thought it was very creamy. I was less fond of this Flan at Agora. It was too chalky for me. I like a lighter, more caramel-tasting flan.

Our night at Agora was a great experience. We left very full and satisfied with our meal. This is definitely a special occasion kind of place. We would like to express again our thanks to Scott Im, Leonardo Giannotti, and all of the wonderful staff at Agora for making this a great night out for us and all of our fellow bloggers. Also, thanks again to our hostesses for the evening, Jane Gillespie and Diana Daniele. We had a great time!

For more information on Agora Churrascaria, click here: http://www.agorachurrascaria.com/