Balaio IMS: Chef Rodrigo Oliveira's Bib Gourmand

Balaio IMS (Instagram) is located on Avenida Paulista, 2424, specializing in Brazilian food, and now holds a Bib Gourmand distinction in the São Paulo Michelin Guide.

Worth noting: this category, from the renowned Michelin Guide, recognizes restaurants offering great food at a great price.

The restaurant has a distinctive setting, located inside the modern building that houses the Instituto Moreira Salles, right near the corner of Avenida Paulista and Rua da Consolação.

It’s run by chef Rodrigo Oliveira, who first made a name for himself by putting tapioca “dadinhos” (little cubes) on the menu at Mocotó, his father’s restaurant in Vila Medeiros. This spot doesn’t aim for towering fine-dining plates, but the dishes are well executed and beautifully presented.

We came here to celebrate Carol’s oldest godson Gustavo’s birthday.

The setting

Occupies the ground floor of the building housing Instituto Moreira Salles, with both indoor and outdoor seating, making for a genuinely pleasant space.

Starter at Balaio IMS

We ordered the tapioca dadinhos, available in servings of six or twelve — we went with the smaller size, since portions here are generous and we didn’t want to overorder.

Main course at Balaio IMS

Since there were three of us, we each ordered our own dish, though shared options are available too.

Arroz de linguiça bragantina, ribs, and okra: the sausage gets mixed into the rice, and the ribs were absolutely melt-in-your-mouth delicious.

Cupim de panela, corn couscous, and fava beans: I tried all three dishes and thought this was the best one — even though every meat dish was good, this one was the most flavorful of all.

Picadinho de Angus, with rice, beans, egg, and farofa, which I found really tasty.

Dessert at Balaio IMS

Chocolate, cupuaçu caramel, and white chocolate farofa. I found the caramel a bit overpowering, though the chocolate and farofa were tasty and not overly sweet.

Yellow fruits, pequi cream, butiá sorbet, and passion fruit compote — beautifully presented, but we found it quite tart, with a strong pequi flavor.

For us, the best dessert was the burnt coconut and rapadura ice cream, the same one served at Mocotó, just sweeter and more enjoyable here.

Price

R$320 for three people, including drinks.