The upscale Brazilian churrascaría chain, Fogo de Chão, announced it will be opening its third city location at 445 Albee Square West in City Point, Brooklyn, later this year.
It will have a large dining room centered around a peninsula churrasco grill with an antipasti bar akin to its other locations. It will also have dry-aged meat lockers for its in-house aging on display. The international chain was born in the Brazillian countryside in 1979. It opened its first New York City outpost a decade ago in a three-story, 16,000-square-foot space at 40 W 53rd Street in Midtown, which was 13 years after its United States debut in Dallas, Texas, in 1997. Late last fall it opened its second city outpost at 92-50 59th Avenue in Elmhurst, Queens.
It is slated to open 12 new locations in the country this year, as well as make its international debuts in Turkey and Ecuador. It is also looking to expand to Canada, Bolivia, the Philippines, Costa Rica, El Salvador and the Middle East, according to its website. It currently operates 59 locations in the country with over a dozen more in Brazil, Mexico, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
“Since opening in Manhattan 10 years ago, New Yorkers have warmly welcomed our brand and our differentiated dining experience,” says Barry McGowan, Chief Executive Officer of Fogo de Chão, in a press release. “Following the recent opening and success of our Queens restaurant, we saw the growing demand for the culinary art of churrasco and knew we needed to prioritize opening in another borough soon. We’re looking forward to opening our third New York City location in the heart of Brooklyn at City Point.”
Fogo de Chão was founded by Arri and Jair Coser who grew up on a traditional southern Brazilian farm in the Sierra Gaucha, where they were trained in traditional churrasco grilling techniques. The duo opened their flagship in the countryside of Porto Alegre in 1979, quickly gaining the attention of influential figures in and out of Brazil. Less than a decade later, it opened its second outpost in the country’s capital, São Paulo, in 1987. Two decades after opening its flagship, it made its United States debut in Dallas, Texas, in 1997.
