Sinhá — Restaurant in West Chicago Township

Immaculate vibes. In the bottom floor of this unassuming yet strikingly solitary row house is the Sinha restaurant. I went in right at open on a weekday during Chicago Restaurant Week 2024. I made a reservation but it didn't end up being necessary. Stepping into the space is like stepping into a relative's house for a special meal. There are a few options for seating but very few tables and seats overall. A full house might see you sitting communally at the large table. Speaking of house, it really is like being inside someone's home. The staff are lovely and helpful, Jorgina personally came out to greet me and give me the menu. Imagine your grandmother opened a restaurant in her cottage and invited you for a meal. Such a sweet woman. I ordered the ox tail RW special and helped myself to the buffet as they also brought out little fried cheese breads with delightful coconut jam. The feijoada was excellent and the pasta dish was surprisingly good. A few other salads, pickles, and peppers were available for grazing. Before the main course arrived, they brought out a light little baked pastry with beef and pickled veg inside with chipotle mayo dipping sauce which was an unexpected little treat. The ox tail came out over a bed of savory polenta with a garnish of pickled onion and kale salad and was delicious. Additionally I believe every main course is accented by a fried plantain piece and a beautifully presented sliced mango half as mine was. The ox tail can be a bit of a challenge to eat, especially when dining in front of others as the table adjacent to me was having a hilarious time finding out but I was secluded enough to get a bit barbaric with mine and cleaned it to the bone. Once done with the main they presented me with a small, light mango mousse for dessert to cap off a wonderful meal. I'm already looking forward to returning for some picanha....

ooh, OHH, ooh !!! Oh, how I wished I had slipped a Zip Lock Bag into my jacked pocket, it might have saved me from washing dishes. Every thing on the Brazilian buffet is a meal in itself. My Base of Brazilian Comfort food is Black Beans & Rice - then I tried- my- bestest to limit my self to a mere tablespoon samples of all starting with the savory SAWIMP - I mean Shrimp. SINHA'S, Ms. Gracious & Lovely gave me a Wash-Dishes-Waiver for first time/guests for life. Sandra McCollum's "Literary Salon 5", made it appoint to return a few weeks later sans ZIP LOCKS, but armed with discretion and the watchful eye of Owner, Ms. Gracious & Lovely - in Portugese. Stephen BlackButterfly Carter BTW I may now ask my Current Publication's Editor & Publisher, Lisa Dawn Taylor, to assign me permanently to our "Restaurants of Pure Delight" - RoPD Reviews beat. FYI. I currently weigh, pun intended, 189 lbs. I'll use Kilograms to confuse you in my next, informal, Spontaneous, Serenditous review.BBE-E2 P.S. There are Vegan items on the buffet too - that tried to pull me in - but I skipped of culinary integrity...but I ever...

I have never found a pão de queijo I did not want to finish until today. One bite was enough to know that this was not it, but I still gave the rest of the menu the benefit of the doubt. I shouldn’t have. The pão de queijo was greasy, the texture was off, and it didn’t taste like cheese. The feijoada was bland, the farofa de banana was sour and the sweetness from the grapes did not make it better, and the plantain tasted like onion. The fruit that came with it was two slices of apple placed loosely with rest of the food so as to absorb the oil, fragrance, and flavor of the spices they used. The only good thing about the meal was the collard greens and the “picanha”. It was an incredibly disappointing experience and not even in a “I’ve been to Brazil kind of way”. The food was just not good by any standards, and this is coming from someone who is not a picky eater by any means. I ate the steak and collard greens and tossed the rest. Truly, a waste of money and ingredients. To call this Brazilian food is like calling really bad Tex Mex authentic Mexican cuisine. Needless to say, I’ll tell my Brazilian family to...