Terra Gaucha Brazilian Steakhouse - Jacksonville, FL — Restaurant in Jacksonville

I have not heard back so I assume there is a lack ofaction with what happened. Last Saturday my spouse &I went to our favorite restaurant. We try to go 6 weeks for the last 8 years. We have never had a bad experience.It started off uncomfortably when we asked to move tables. We were put in a room with 2large parties & it was extremely loud which is to be expected when people are having such celebrations. We walked back up to the fron,I spoke to the hostess that sat us at the front door. I told her I know that they are extremely busy but that area was very loud &we would like a different table. Her response was we are extremely busy if you want another table you will have to go back on the waiting list unless if you want to leave. I responded with we would like to wait for another table unless if you prefer us to leave she said yes. It was very off-putting there was a wt shirt mngr and helper@ Hostess area I stepped closer to them & then said just to be sure I am understanding you you would prefer us to leave? She said yes. We both stood there for about 10 seconds then she said hold on one moment walked up to the hoststand spoke to them &then we were told to wait a few minutes for a different table. We were then sat. We were greeted by our waiter and the drinks we ordered from the other table were brought to us. We didn't see our waiter again. There was other smaller things not worth mentioning. Just didn't meet the expectations that we had received for the last 8 years. Ast mngr came by and I told him everything. At that point we have been sitting there for about 15min waiting for somebody to realize we were done eating I needed the bill. He offered several times to adjust our bill apologize for the experience. I told him I understood how there could be a mix-up with the waiter but really I thought that there might have been a dialect issue between myself and the hostess and to give her a coaching opportunity. Simply let her know slow things down and really listen to what is being said. It is very loud in there and I have to imagine that was intentional. He got the bill for us which he did he brought it back adjusted. I told him it wasn't necessary and then I also didn't need him to make it a big deal to her but just coach her on it. A young lady came to ring us out and she kept pulling up our table but the bill was not adjusted I told her it was fine I would pay the full amount and she said no If He adjusted the bill it was for a reason. She went and got another manager they were standing at the station closest to the front entrance. We are waiting another 10 to 15 minutes and my spouse told me to go ahead and go outside and wait and he would take care of the bill. I got up & turned around to walk out and the Senior Management of this establishment that was at the host to stand wearing the white shirt came charging at me told me he was at the hoststnad and none of that ever took place and that I was lying. He bent down in my face. I told him I am not a liar and to get the women and ask her. He was so close to me my spouse thought he was going to hurt me. He came to us &told the man that if he needed to say anything to say it to him , back out of my face or he would hit him. They exchanged words. I went to host area to look for the women. I stood at the front crying because honestly I thought that man was going to hit me at first. An employee apologized for what happened to me. Also at that point I snapped at the ast. Mng for allowing that to happen to me. It took several minutes for us to even be able to leave the parking lot because i was so upset I couldnt hold my food down anymore. He (mng)called after we left and canceled our card payment (my spouse paid in full) offered us a gift card to go somewhere else. We told him we didn't need discounts or gift cards but we need owners made aware &addressed appropriately. That man needs to be terminated. We were told we would be followed up with today. Haven't heard anything since. All it takes is 1...

My boyfriend and I decided to give this restaurant another try after our last …interesting experience… which occurred almost two months ago. If you want to read about what my boyfriend and I went through scroll down to the bottom of this review.

After our last experience we didn’t know if we wanted to come back again. However, we decided to bite the bullet and try again to see if this experience would be better or similar to our last one. We left the restaurant very happy and satisfied this time. The service was extremely welcoming and thoughtful with very attentive staff. The managers, Lorena and Ricardo, were absolutely amazing and made our night. There was a large variety of delicious meat that was constantly going around and served hot. The drinks were delicious and I highly recommend the crème brûlée and tiramisu dessert martinis. My boyfriend and I are very very pleased that we decided to come back and give this place another go and were so happy they didn’t disappoint us. We will be coming here many more times in the future.

Review from a month and a half ago:

“The food and the experience is amazing don’t get me wrong.

However, when it came to paying the bill I swear they tried pulling a fast one on my boyfriend and I and I think it’s because we are young and they thought they can get away with it.

When the check came I put my credit card down like normal and calculated how much 18 percent on the subtotal would be.

The waitress then swiped my card on her little self checkout machine and then proceeded to tell me “one second” and disappeared for 5 minutes out of sight with my credit card and me not finishing the transaction of choosing the tip and signing. In my mind I’m thinking why did she leave with my credit card after swiping it. Is she writing down my info? A lot of thoughts and confusing we’re circling my mind. I then see her come from around a corner and talking to a man at one of the computers. I’m thinking maybe the card declined? But that’s utterly impossible. She then comes back to the table with the bill printed and proceeds to tell me that an 18 percent automatic gratuity has already been added, and this bill is my final total bill. I’m staring at the bill confused because I had already calculated out the 18% and that was not what the total looked like. I then ask her, what do you mean gratuities already added? that’s usually for groups 5 and up like it states on their website. She then continues to stumble over her words and tell me that gratuity is already included. I question her saying that I have never heard of that before and this isn’t my first time at a Brazilian steakhouse and that what if someone comes in by their self do they have an 18 percent gratuity? She then stumbles some more and say “well no if they are by themselves no but for two or more people yes” at this point I’m starting to get angry. She then runs off and I’m calculating out the bill and it wasn’t an 18 percent like she said but almost 22 percent off of the FINAL TOTAL of the bill…

The manager comes over and hits me with the “the waitress says you’re upset about the bill” I then tell him that the waitress claimed to already add an 18 percent gratuity that was automatic only for it to be 22 percent and he apologized and fixed it.

Never in my life have I ever had this...

Think all Brazilian Steakhouses are the same? Terra Gaucha will prove that theory wrong. My son and I went for lunch and celebrated some hood news we received and the food, service and atmosphere were first rate.

First off, hats off to the restaurant for surviving Covid and thriving in a very difficult cycle. Now on to the strategy, because Brazilian Steakhouses need strategy.

1. Decide which options you want - salad bar only, chicken and fish, full meat experience.
2. Get Lobster Bisque early, then mid meal get another cup.
3. Decide which protein sounds good, wait for those and pass on the others. (Suggestion for meats, Ribeye, Filet and Picahna)
4. Ask for Chimichuri and horseradish sauce.
5. Get the fried cheese with honey and the roasted pineapple (served from a skewer)
6. Get dessert, if you are too full, take it yo go, but don’t miss it.

I think we should talk service here because this is a big part of the experience. Service here is on par with most fine dining, white glove service. Someone forgot to turn a special order in for me and 10 people apologized, I didn’t even know it was delayed because I had plenty of food to work on.

But the food itself:

Brazilian Ginger Ale - not a good, but really good. Cheesy muffins - my son loved them, I did not, go figure Caramelized Bananas - great side dish. Caesar Salad - delicious, really nice. Lobster Bisque - AMAZING, do not miss this. Pineapple slices - not my thing Cheese - some really good options but some flavors are overpowering. I ate mine with this delightful fig preserve that was out. Mashed Potatoes - great flavor but served cold, I just cannot do cold potatoes. Mushroom sauce - fantastic but again served cold, wanted it hot. Smoke Salmon - good but there are better choices Ribeye - fantastic Filet - Sublime Picahna - another fantastic choice Drumsticks - oh wow, I did not expect these to be so delicious. I mean stomp your feet, yodel and clap your hands five times because this just got real. It is marinated, it is moist, flavorful and roasted to perfection. Shrimp - cooked to perfection, with a nice glaze but next time I will pass on them. Salmon - special order, big portion, and perfectly season, perfectly cooked and fork tender. I need another stomach to eat more of these. Fried Cheese with Honey - wow, not expecting this awesome flavor bomb. Roasted Pineapple (on a skewer) - amazing, warm, moist and not too sweet. Crème Brûlée - this was FANTASTIC. Tres Leches Cake - just as good as the Crème Brûlée.

Joao, the owner oversees operations and jumps on to fill any gaps and make sure the experience is authentic.

My choice of the Chicken/Shrimp was wonderful for me, but most people come for the beef snd it is deliciously prepared. The salad bar is hit or miss, but it is huge so you will find things you like.

I cannot...