Trying out the indulgent Churrasco Experience at Fogo de Chão Bishopsgate

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Saturday night in full flow at Fogo de Chão

Hold on, didn't this used to be Fazenda?

Well spotted! Yes, the Brazilian steakhouse has been taken over by the OG Fogo de Chão group who have been doing this sort of thing since way back in 1979. They were founded in Porto Alegre, Southern Brazil and they're all about the art of churrasco cooking, served the rodizio way (we'll get back to that later).

What's changed?

Really, this is mainly just a name change. That said, they have also brought in a few new dishes as part of the restaurant's new chapter. What hasn't changed is the passion for bringing Brazil's churrasco cooking to London. That's all about great steak, cooked over an open fire and served rodizio style.

Where is it?

You'll find it in Bishopsgate, literally a stone's throw from Liverpool Street Station.

Where should we go for a drink first?

There's a huge bar on the ground floor which not only has a nice line in happy hours, but also offers a seasonally changing menu of specials in addition to the classics. If you're after a quick bite, they have bar snacks down here along with sandwiches and burgers.

Left to right: A classic (and well-made) Caipirinha along with a Pineapple Picante from the Summer Signatures list (both £14.50). That Caipirinha is just £11 when you're here for the Happy Hour (3-7pm).

And where should we sit for our meal?

The upstairs dining room is huge, but was almost full on our Saturday evening visit. It's a room of two halves, split by the market table (we'll get back to that in a bit). At the front of the building is a good place to be if there are two of you, as there are some great tables near the window, while there are plenty of larger tables for groups. The most impressive space is the semi-private dining room in the centre, surrounded by bottles.

Looking towards the semi-private dining space

What's on the menu?

The real focus here is on the churrasco meats, served rodizio-style, which means waiters parade around the room with huge skewers, ready to carve for anyone whose table card is set to green rather than red. And there's plenty to enjoy as the gaúchos offer a continuous tableside service which lasts as long as your appetite does.

The Full Churrasco Experience (£54 at lunch, £66 for dinner) gives you access to the Market Table and then all the classic cuts along with fries, Feijoada, rice and a variety of seasonal sides. We opted for the Indulgent Churrasco (£74 at lunch, £86 for dinner), which also includes a choice of additional dishes like queen scallops, snow crab cluster and a dessert of your choice.

Butter-bathed lobster tail from the Indulgent Experience menu (the melted butter is in that pot on the left)

Another Indulgent Experienceadd-on - queen scallops, tossed with Wagyu beef tallow and breadcrumbs.

Rewind, you mentioned a market table...?

Taking pride of place in the centre of the dining room, this features a huge range of charcuterie, cheeses and salads laid out in the centre of the room. You can view this as a starter, or get salads to go with your meats, whatever works.

All the delights of the Market Table

So what sort of meats are we talking about?

It'd almost be easier to name what's not on the menu, with everything from the signature picanha to fillet and rump on offer, along with honey pork collar, chicken thighs, chorizo and lamb.

Our gaúcho gets ready to carve the picanha at our table

The rodizio carving requires a little guest involvement...

And you can have more sides?

In addition to the Market Table and Churrasco Experiences, there are a host of additional starters, sharing dishes and new options for you to round our your meal here.

One of the newest dishes on the menu - lobster mac and cheese (£16)

Roasted bone marrow (£12) - two bone marrow canoes, with sourdough bread and chimichurri.

Room for dessert?

Absolutely. There's a final rodizio course of cinnamon-dusted, roasted pineapple which comes as part of the churrusco experience but there are also plenty of other sweet options.

Mini churros filled with doce de leite, served with a chocolate dip (£7.50) - as good as they sound.

Overall thoughts:

It's always interesting to visit a City restaurant on the weekend, when the finance bros have retreated to Fulham and the home counties and the area is reclaimed by a very different kind of diner. And by that we mean those who are out to have a good time. Around us were couples on dates, girls catching up with mates, large tables celebrating parties; everyone was dressed up to the nines and having a rare old time.

All of that would be incidental if the food wasn't up to par, but here the meat is excellent, that churrasco firing gives it a lovely crust, and all the sides are delicious. It's a fun place to go for any food-loving London meat lover.