Restaurants in Natal

Tábua de Carne
Av. Eng. Roberto Freire, 3241
Ponta Negra - Phone 3642-1236

Farofa D'Agua
Av. Eng. Roberto Freire, 8353
Update 2006. This restaurant re-opened in Ponta Negra. We are planning to visit it and post a report.
Notice: one of the most popular restaurants in Natal, Farofa D´água closed doors late 2004. At the same place, there is now a churrasco place, called Churrascaria Pantanal. Check out the section about Brazilian food

Mangai
The decoration is inspired in a country side house: big wooden tables (which you will share with strangers at busy hours), clay pots, staff dressed in tipical clothes, several objects hanging off the ceiling.
Av. Amintas Barros, 2593
Lagoa Nova - Phone 206-3344

Talher
Av. Afonso Pena, 892
Tirol - Phone 211-4229

Farol Bar e Restaurante
This place is close to the sea; depending on the tide level, the waves break against the rocks, and you can feel the drops wetting your clothes.
Av. Gov. Silvio Pedrosa, 105
Areia Preta - Phone 202-2005

Sabor Regional
Rua Fabricio Pedrosa, 45
Praia dos Artistas - Phone 202-4407

Terere

Rota do Sol, 2316
Ponta Negra - Phone 3219-4081
All you can eat, churrasco. The best of this kind in Natal.
Prices in Dec 2003 were about R$29 per adult and R$15 per child up to 10 years old; drinks and deserts are not included. Price includes a help-yourself buffet with a good selection of salads and vegetables, and good churrasco.

Churrascaria Pantanal
Av. Eng. Roberto Freire, 8353
Decoration is a little rustic, but the quality is OK, and prices are hard to beat: if you want to include picanha, price is R$17 per person (January 2005); if you can do without picanha, price is R$12 per person (children up to 10 pay half price). Given the large variety of choices, one shouldn´t miss the picanha.

Picanha Bar & Cia
Av. Praia de Ponta Negra, 8876 - near Praia Shopping
Specialty is picanha. They serve also cheaper executive meals during the week days.
Good, not expensive place. A meal for a small family (2+2), including drinks (beer and cokes) goes for about R$ 50.
The owner seems to be an appreciator of picanha himself. The meat is prepared in skews; the meat is slice on your table, then returns to the fire (keepts it warm); you can either choose a pre-selected set of garnishments (rice, beans, french fries, onion) or orther each one separately.

Bari Palesi
Av. Engenheiro Roberto Freire, 2963
Best feijoada in town.
Capim Macio (across the street from shopping center Cidade Jardim)
Feijoada everyday. Pay a fixed price (around US$5) and eat as much as you can. The pieces (beans, sausage, ears, etc) are in different pots, you take only what you like.

Manary Restaurant
Located inside the Manary Hotel.
The feijoada is advertised as specialty, but didn't impress us much. There seem to be good options of fish and seafood, though.

Mina D'Água.
Restaurante Mineiro: a restaurant serving food from the State of Minas Gerais.
Natal has very few mineiro restaurants; but even if there were many more, it would be difficult to beat this one.

Moqueca Capixaba
Av. Governador Silvio Pedrosa, 266
Areia Preta
A board outside says they have 42 different sea-food options. The name means "moqueca from the state of Espirito Santo", which is prepared with different condiments than the original version from Bahia.

Dunas Shopping.
This is a shopping center in Ponta Negra, a bit distant of the tourist path; this means that food here is much cheaper. Read our report about the restaurants in the Dunas Shopping.

Cuxá
Av. Sen. Salgado Filho, 1773
Lagoa Nova - Phone 206 - 6266
This restaurant is inside Hotel Residence, open to the public.
Although they advertise themselves as sea food restaurant, they have a varied international cuisine. Of particular interest is the feijoada on Saturdays.

Casablanca

Av. Eng. Roberto Freire, 4
Ponta Negra - Phone 3219-3551

Don Vincenzo
Av. Erivan Franca, 3318
Ponta Negra - Phone 3219-2667

Famiglia Reis Magos
Av. Engenheiro Roberto Freire, 1482 - Capim Macio
Phone 3221-4263
Serving all kind of Italian food. Good selection of wines. They also have a buffet service with cheese, salami, pickles, etc.
Pizzas are particularly cheap, if compared to other pizzeries in Natal.

Cipó Brasil
Two restaurants: one at the Ponta Negra beach and other near Albergue Lua Cheia (also in Ponta Negra)
One of the best pizzas in Natal. Notice: pizzas are small (there is only one size, which they call "big", but barely enough for a small family of two adults and two children) and thin (you can ask the waiter to have them a bit thicker) and expensive (compared to other places).

Mangiatore
Av. Praia de Genipabu, 2101 (street beside Praia Shopping)
Ponta Negra - Phone 3219-4892

Only Pizza
During lunch, Only Pizza offers one of the best self service menu in Ponta Negra; price is above average of other self service restaurants, but quality is much better.
Also, Only Pizza offers delivery service, good option if you are in Ponta Negra or Via Costeira.
Av. Eng. Roberto Freire, 5896
Ponta Negra - Phone 3219-4500

Piazzale Italia
R. Deputado Antonio Florencio de Queiroz, 12 (Rota do Sol)
Very easy to miss the entrance. This restaurant is right beside Terere. Pizza is good.
Ponta Negra - Phone 3236-2697

Tiberio
#1 Av. Eng. Roberto Freire, 9102
Ponta Negra - Phone 3219-0012
#2 Av. Rodrigues Alves, 433
Petropolis - Phone 3219-3551

Bella Napoli
Av. Hermes da Fonseca, 960
Tirol - Phone 3222-9964

Pulcinella
Av. Praia de Ponta Negra, 8908 - near Praia Shopping
Ponta Negra - Phone 3236-3688
They claim to be the only pizzerie in Natal which makes pizzas the Napolitan way. I was not particularly impressed with the pizzas, but it was OK.

Buongustaio
Buongustaio especializes in high quality pasta, made with quality (imported from Italy) ingredients.
There is also a fast food shop at Natal Shopping, with more limited choices.
Av. Afonso Pena, 395
Petropolis - Phone 3202 - 1143