Fogo de Chão Brazilian Steakhouse — Restaurant in Emeryville

Brazilian steakhouse is my favorite and I love the fogo de chao location in San Jose, so my husband decided to take us here for the only day off we have. Sadly, it was a very unpleasant experience.

I came here on a Wednesday and was seated promptly, as the restaurant wasn’t too filled. The tables filled with customers did not pass the salad bar.

The waitress was nice, but besides the first 10-15 min, she never came back except once to refill our water. Another waiter came around at the end and was nice too.

The one star is unfortunately for the churrasco experience. We opted out from the surf and turf one, the one that’s ~$60ish for the full churrasco, $80, since we aren’t too big of seafood. The waitress said there are some meats that are only available in the full one instead of the surf and turf, so we got the $80 one instead.

The first meat was picane. The man didn’t tell us that it was well done and just handed over the meats. If he had told us, we wouldn’t had eaten it, since we only like medium rare. It was tough and dry to the point I had a hard time chewing. We didn’t eat it.

I don’t know why, but after 20 min, the workers who serve the meats completely skipped us entirely. We physically saw the workers go to every table with the meats, only to walk around OUR table and go to the ones across from us. They would only come around for the same meats: chicken wrapped in bacon and the chorizo/sausage. Near the end, we waited almost 10 minutes just to get asked if we wanted another chicken wrapped sausage.

At one point, I told the manager, saying that we haven’t been getting served meats. Promptly after, two men came with once again, a sausage and a chicken wrapped with bacon.

My husband and I eat primarily beef, hence why we got the $80 option. I kid you not, I can list what came by our table: picane (~5x), bone in ribeye (1x), lamb chop (2x) another type of beef (1x), cheese with honey (2x) and the rest were 2 types of chicken based and 1 sausage. If you’re familiar with Brazilian barbecue, you’d know that there is a bit more variety with the meats and they workers come basically nonstop to your table with the meats.

We spent $80 per person on just eating the salad bar with some picane beef on the side. Along with a Brazilian lemonade and tip, the total came to be over $200. This was such a disappointing experience, to the point where both my husband and i’s appetite died after the last sausage being served to us and we left. I’m one to never feel like eating at a restaurant is a waste of money, but for more than $200? For such a steep price only to be served with what we got - huge...

I will be DREAMING about the meat from here for weeks if not months to come. We went here for a birthday dinner. At first we were a little apprehensive about the cost of dinner (the all you can eat full experience was priced at $76 per person) but after getting there and eating there I will happily open my checkbook and credit card for them. Every SINGLE THING WE ATE was delicious. The salad bar was extremely clean and well stocked, everything was fresh and delicious, no sad soggy food there. They had high quality smoked salmon, prosciutto, dragon fruit, papaya. There were 2 soup offerings and both were AMAZE BALLS. The MEAT, OH MY GAWD THE MEAT. I will fully admit I only ate beef because if I'm spending that much who wants stupid plebian chicken right? Every single piece of meat, no matter the cut was melt in your mouth tender. The crispy pork belly with honey and lime (sounds weird) was LIFE CHANGING.

FREE FOOD: NOW FOR THE REAL LOW DOWN they give you so much dang food for free with your paid meal, we got polenta, fried plantains, cheddar with honey (which was a spiritual experience), mashed potatoes and cheddar tapioca bread balls (also life changing).

SERVICE: It was UNREAL how good the service was here. I feel like since COVID happened service in the food industry is nonexistent but here it felt like seriously 50 servers per table. Not in the obnoxious go away type service, but everytime I could even think about possibly needing a server they were there. AND it seemed like they actually WANTED to be there. Every server was super nice and happy. I would pay extra just to get this level of service at other places.

If you're wondering about cost FORGET ABOUT IT. Think about if if you go Outback Steakhouse you would be ordering prime rib for around $40, but Fogo you prime rib is like one of their WORST cuts, you can order ONLY filet mignon for your entire meal and UNLIMITED TO BOOT. I'm not sure how they don't lose money but I'm going back again and again.

Definitely not an every day meal kind of place but for any special occasions this will be my...

April 7, 2024 Server: Suraj

An unforgettable dining experience at FOGO de Chao steakhouse! Suraj, our exceptional waiter, elevated our visit with his friendly appearance and excellent service. From the moment we arrived, we were treated to a culinary journey filled with exquisite flavors and perfectly cooked meats. Every bite was a delight, leaving us with full stomachs and hearts full of joy. FOGO de Chao and Suraj truly exceeded our expectations, making it a dining experience we won't soon forget! Highly recommended!

Edit April 29, 2024 Server: Michael On our second visit to Fogo de Chao in Emeryville, we were initially delighted to have Suraj as our server again. The wonderful atmosphere and friendly staff contributed to a great start to our dining experience. However, our satisfaction took a nosedive around 8pm - 9pm when Suraj ended his shift and we were assigned a new server.

Unfortunately, the new server fell short of our expectations. He was rude, unprofessional, and seemed more interested in watching the Lakers vs. Nuggets basketball game on TV than attending to our table. Despite our attempts to get his attention, he was inattentive and only came over when prompted for the check. His lack of engagement was evident as he handed us the bill without making eye contact.

Moreover, when it came to dessert, he failed to inform us of the options, forcing us to inquire ourselves. Even then, he appeared disinterested and preoccupied with the game. It was disheartening to feel neglected and overlooked as paying customers.

To add insult to injury, the table next to us had a similar experience, with the same server demonstrating the same lack of professionalism. His focus on the basketball game was so apparent that one of the diners had to make a remark about it.

Overall, it was disappointing to have such a unsatisfactory service experience, especially considering our previous positive encounters with Suraj. We left feeling frustrated and dissatisfied, questioning why we should reward such inadequate...