There are few dining experiences quite as gloriously excessive as Brazilian churrasco. The meat arrives before you have quite decided whether you are ready for more: skewers carried from an open flame, the outside charred and smoky, the inside cooked to order before being carved directly onto your plate. Then comes another cut. And another. Soon, the table is covered in the spoils of the grill.
Now, one of the UK’s most familiar names in Brazilian dining is getting a new identity. Fazenda Rodizio Bar & Grill has officially become Fogo de Chão, bringing its six UK restaurants under the globally recognised Brazilian steakhouse brand.
For diners, however, this is less a reinvention than a continuation of what made Fazenda so popular in the first place: great meat, cooked over fire, served generously and designed to be shared.
The art of the fire
Fogo de Chão’s story begins in southern Brazil, where the churrasco tradition was shaped by the gaúchos of Rio Grande do Sul. Since the restaurant was founded in 1979, that method of cooking has become the centrepiece of its dining experience: high-quality cuts of meat seasoned simply, cooked over an open flame and carved tableside.
There is no elaborate sauce trying to disguise the meat. Instead, the emphasis is on the fire, the seasoning and the quality of the cut.
That simplicity is part of the appeal. The grill does the heavy lifting, creating the deeply browned, salty crust that gives churrasco its characteristic flavour while allowing the meat inside to remain tender.
And unlike a conventional steakhouse, the meal is not dictated by a single main course.
The Full Churrasco Experience is served rodizio-style, with gaucho chefs and passadores moving through the restaurant carrying freshly grilled cuts. Guests can control the flow of food at their table, deciding when they want another serving and when they have had enough. The result is an intentionally leisurely procession of meat rather than a single plate arriving at the beginning of the meal.
It is a format that rewards curiosity. Rather than ordering the same steak you always would, the evening becomes a tour of the grill.
More than just meat
Of course, the secret to surviving a Brazilian steakhouse is knowing when not to eat the meat.
Fogo’s Market Table is designed to be almost as much of an attraction as the churrasco itself, bringing together seasonal salads, vegetables, cheeses, charcuterie, fresh fruit and Brazilian-inspired sides. It provides a necessary freshness between the richer cuts coming from the fire and makes the meal feel considerably more expansive than a traditional steakhouse dinner.
For anyone familiar with Fazenda, this balance will be recognisable. The experience has always been about more than an endless supply of beef; the combination of the Market Table, sides and tableside service gives the meal its sense of occasion.
And then there are the details that make it distinctly Brazilian.
Think grilled meats alongside vibrant salads and vegetables, Brazilian-inspired accompaniments and, for those willing to keep going, the kind of indulgent finishing touches that make a churrasco meal feel more like a feast than dinner.
The restaurant’s newer food offering also extends beyond the traditional rodizio format, with à la carte options and dishes designed for sharing, while Bar Fogo provides a more casual route into the brand, with Brazilian-inspired cocktails, South American wines and a dedicated small-plates menu.
The green card is your invitation
Part of the charm of rodizio dining is that the meal has its own rhythm.
Rather than waiting for a waiter to take another order, diners use the familiar green-and-red system to signal whether they are ready for another round. Green means keep the skewers coming; red means give the table a moment.
It sounds simple, but it changes the psychology of dinner. There is no pressure to decide everything at once, no need to choose between the sirloin and the lamb, and no regret when you realise the cut you wanted has just passed your table. You simply wait for it to come around again.
From Leeds to the world
The transition also marks the end of one chapter for Fazenda, the Leeds-born restaurant group founded in 2010, which grew from a single Yorkshire restaurant into a six-city UK operation.Now, that British story becomes part of something considerably larger.
Fogo de Chão was founded in Brazil in 1979 and has grown into an international restaurant group, with its UK expansion forming part of a wider global push. New restaurants are planned across international markets including Las Vegas, Charlotte, Tegucigalpa and Santiago. For the UK restaurants, though, the appeal remains remarkably straightforward: sit down, take your time and let the fire come to you.
Fazenda may have disappeared from the signs, but the experience it built the skewers, the smoky crust, the endless procession of meat and the communal spirit of Brazilian dining — is staying firmly on the table. Only now, it has a new name.
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