Connect Brazil Guide: Garota da Urca Bar

Nestled into Urca’s quiet Bayside neighborhood is this Carioca Gem.

Our Connect Brazil Guide to Garota da Urca Bar brings you to a favorite nosh locals love!

by Scott Adams

Urca is home to many of Brazil’s music and media stars and Alves is the main street that weaves its way around the bay’s perimeter. Located across from the Praia da Urca, this ‘off the beaten path’ pub hotspot is nestled into a quiet neighborhood at the base of Sugarloaf Mountain; known as the Urca Hill.

The Garota da Urca Bar (Av. Joao Luiz Alves 56) is one of the few remaining locations of the original Garota de Ipanema (Girl from Ipanema) entertainment chain. The eatery dates back to the early 60s and its namesake, the famed Veloso Bar in Ipanema.

Moderately priced and an excellent value, this bayside pub has a great after-dark vibe, thanks to the local crowd and a stunning view of Rio’s swanky Yacht Club and the towering Cristo Redentor atop Corcovado in the background.

Garota da Urca Bar: My Introduction

My introduction to Garota da Urca began as a casual comment from a carioca friend while driving us to the airport, and of course, we were… late.

“Let’s stop for a drink,” he said as he turned off the freeway and down into a maze of tight streets with traffic to match. “The planes never leave on time,” he explained.

So we parked that car and walked a few picturesque, cobblestoned blocks to the bar, where the Sunday evening crowd had spilled out onto the sidewalk.

The bar’s curbside appeal makes this a great place to meet up with friends after a day of sightseeing or the beach, and while the service is friendly and usually quick, crowds can slow things down.

The menu delivers more than you’d expect as a passer-by. It has a well-known reputation for Italian faves, great pizza, and a variety of Brazilian nocturnal noshes Try pasteis: flakey pastry pillows filled with cheeses, shrimp, or meats. More than just peckish? Try the Picanha for three, with tasty fries and other sides.

Wash it down with an ice-cold chope (draft beer). This place also serves up a mightily persuasive caipirinha. Serious sippers can request from a selection of very smooth 12-year cachaças. The memory (and its effects) will linger.

So go ahead. Spend some time in Urca. It’s an experience you’ll treasure. Maybe you’ll make a few new friends, too!

And you’ll still make your flight from Jobim International.

Connect Brazil Guide: Garota da Urca Bar is open to the sidwalk that borders Rio's expansive Guanabara Bay. — (Photo: Carnaval.com Studios from The Inner Mission San Francisco, Earth | Wikimedia Commons)

You can do this: Take a virtual stroll of the neighborhood.