Archive for December 22nd, 2006

Located now on Cox Rd. opposite the Comp USA/Office Max shopping center in Richmond’s far west-end, Ipanema Grill is a Brazillian-style churrascaria.

An upgrade from their previous location on Gayton Rd., this one is located in a new shopping center and features an airy dining room. The concept here is simple: serve yourself at a warm and cold bar (salad, rice, beans, fried bananas, Parmesan cheese, etc.), and waiters will make rounds in the restaurant with sword-skewered meats, such as bacon-wrapped chicken, pork sausage, pineapple, and various cuts of beef.

While my first experience some months ago here was superior, they do an excellent job at preparing these said meats. From the mouth-watering beef rib, to the chicken leg, to the pork roast, each cut is well-flavored and seasoned. This is a classy way at presenting high-end buffet eating by bringing (most) of the buffet to you, cut to your own order.

I brought my parents here and they both enjoyed it. The price for dinner is $25 per person, so it is not cheap. But, if you are a meat lover, you can hardly do better. Both the quality and variety of meat proffered is commendable.

We warmly recommend it. We previously reviewed this restaurant and awarded the same rating.

This is a follow-up review of Ichiban.

Today I had the opportunity to eat at Ichiban for a bento-box lunch. I ordered the tofu variety, which came with a ginger-dressing covered salad, miso soup, california roll, teriyaki-style fried tofu, and rice. Everything was passable, save for the tofu, which was drenched in a too-thick, and too-sweet sauce with onions. The California roll was the best part of the box.

The concept of bento is an interesting one, and there are better bento boxes to be had likely elsewhere. But service issues which plagued Ichiban in the past weren’t an issue today.

The ratings first awarded stand. The one issue I experience this time around was the strong fishy smell throughout the restaurant. A clearer, cleaner smell would be more welcome.