Senzala

It hurts me to believe anyone could have a bad experience here but then again i know we all have different taste and different experiences. with that i’ll start by saying i’ve known this place since it first started out, I actually took Capoeira a long time ago and i used to perform here.
The owners of this place are the sweetest people i’ve ever met, really just genuinely nice! This is a perfect place for people who like a warm friendly environment with great Brazilian food, and of course Capoeira as entertainment! This is a great place to experience some of the culture.

super disappointed with this place. they’re not completely closed. just open on certain occasions so I highly suggest you sign up for newsletters on their website so you’ll know when they’re open. it’s good they open once in a while, but their dinner menu is limited. check out the photo I uploaded. try out their fried yuca ($ 5.42) too. smells like fries seasoned with salt, but not made of fries. very popular south American dish. I love how you get reusable microwave save Togo containers. I don’t think business has improved even though it’s an indian/​brazilian place now. lidia, the owner and chef is stressed out which is why service can be slow, but I understand. anyways, as I said before, subscribe to the email newsletter on senzala’s website to get updates when they’ll be open.

I think it’s a good think this place is closed! I thought it was ridiculous how much they charged and that they had super crappy service!
I’m Brazilian! This place is crazy and it forgot to take its meds.
Almost $ 20 bucks for food, and it’s not even unlimited, give me a break!
I can make feijoada at home for hecka cheap, so I am going to teach you guys how to make it and how much it costs:
— ½ LBS Pig meat and Cow meat
go to Mexican markets, its usually super cheap. Buy the cheapest cuts! Feijoada was by slaves with leftover meat from their masters. So, to make authentic, just grab a ton of old meat, and you’re gonna use everything, bones and fat. Hell yeah!
— ½LBS of dry black beans
— chopped Onions and garlic
— Water, enough to cover the beans and like 1″ on top of that.
— seasoning: black paper and salt (to taste)
How to make it
— Cook black beans on a pressure cooker for like 45 min, until soft (don’t have a pressure cooker? Leave the beans to soak overnight and cook them when soften)
— On a frying pan, toss the garlic, then the onion. Then, add the meats to give it that nice onion and garlic taste. Cook the meat just a little bit to get the flavor.
— Then, in the pressure cooker, add the onions, garlic and meat. Cook everything for 20 min, and TAH-​DAH! Feijoada.
Beans $ 3, Meats $ 10, Onions&Garlic $ 2= $ 15 for about 10 servings!!!
My measuring is all eyeballed, but you’ll figure it out :]
Put the feijoada with rice, and some sauteed spinach, find some farofa somewhere, and you have an AWESOME lunch! :D

I wish i could give Senzala ½ of a star. First time there, a Friday, 3 people eating and 3 people playing music (decent musicians).
The fried salt plant, they call Yukka, left me dying for more diet pepsi (the only thing I enjoyed).
The employees were very nice but the food made me wonder how they can even keep their doors open.
Only Chef Ramsey could save this place.

You can get some decent Brazilian food at this place. They usually have 5 choices in the menu and I also pick the chicken in tomato sauce (with beans and rice). The steak dish is also well done. I feel the food is pricey at $ 12 for lunch menu.
I like the location and the place is spacious and good for large groups. It is a self service restaurant and you can get your food reasonably fast.

Beef Stroganoffe! Comes over rice, and instead of fries I wanted fried yucca, but they didn’t have any, so I chose collared greens and a fried banana! It was derrrish. I left so stuffed. They give you a lot of food, which I guess makes the cost less ouchie on the wallet.
Too bad they didn’t have guarana! Best soda ever.
A few years ago I came here and they were able to provide family style for our large party for my bf’s birthday. It was a good experience and they had live music.

Oh man… I was so excited to go to this place for lunch. It came recommended from a Brazilian co-​worker. The ambiance was beautiful – looked like it would be fun for dancing.
The food on the other hand…
We went on a Monday for lunch. of about 10 entrees, 6 were unavailable. I ordered one of the available choices, and was told, «Oh I have to see if we even have any of that here…» Wha???
Apparently they did have it… was served about 15 minutes later. Food was cold. No Yucca fries. There were a few soggy sorry-​looking potato fries – nothing like the picture indicated. The food was bland bland bland! Wayyyyyyyy over salted. Meat was tasteless. Veggies looked frozen. Beans tasted like they were from last week.
It made for a crappy lunch.

‘m kind of disappointed after going there. The food is ok but WAY over priced for a «cafeteria style» restaurant! I paid $ 20 for a plate of feijoada which I myself went to get. Then I found out they don’t even serve CAIPIRINHA? A Brazilian restaurant right? Not to mention that soon after we arrived some lady came in asking for a cover charge of $ 10 for a band that even though good, only played for less than 2 hours! A rip off if you ask me. They could DEFINITELY improve on customer service… wow!
Wont return to eat ever again…

I like that they feature live performances and the night I went the music was awesome.
I heard their food was more traditional Brazilian food but… maybe that kind of food is really not for me. :(
The meat was super, super dry. Even with all the gravy it was dry and unpleasant. The dishes were too salty for us as well, and for cafeteria style food you pay too much ($ 16~17 including tax).
Seriously, go for the music, not the food.

I would give them 3 stars, but took away 1 due to the poor welcome and service.
This place was recommend to me by a Brazilian co-​worker, he said that the food here is what you get at home. Not that other style where it is all-​you-​can-​eat and the servers bring the meat to you.
We came here on a Saturday night, its located in the industrial part of town so the road were pretty empty, and so was the place. Except for a Youth Class they were teaching. It felt sort of awkward when we first stepped in because no one came to greet us. Then to make us worry more, it appeared that we were the ONLY walk in customers, other then the people attending that class.
We were directed to a wall of pictures of the dishes they offered. Many of which were covered, only presenting 6 dishes. Its a huge place, cafeteria like with preset dishes. If you can mix and match, we did not know. The «owner» was not vary helpful, seemed like she was pre-​occupied with something. Yet I don’t know what, since we were the ONLY customers there.
The food is average, nothing special. Truly «home» cooking, like what my co-​worker said. Think a bit pricy for what you are getting $ 15.99.
We ordered:
* Feijoada
(meat and black beans stew, rice, collard greens, orange salad, farofa)
* Galinha com Polenta
(polenta with chicken in tomato sauce, rice and beans)
* Bife Acebolado
(fried thin steak with onions, rice and beans with french fries or fried yucca)
Don’t know when they offer the rest of the menu, since they did not even offer us a menu. If they were having a private party, then I think they should have told us so. Felt sorta gipped because we came all that way to eat for a limited menu and to get POOR service.
We did not feel welcomed at the restaurant.

Looking to see an awesome in-​your-​face Capoeira show? Then come here. Looking for EXPENSIVE, LIMITED OPTIONS, & POOR QUALITY food, served by an arrogant woman? Come here as well!
The food is good, but it’s honestly food I eat at church every Sunday. The plates at church go for $ 10, and the plate is extremely big, and full of food: feijoada, tons of yuca (I can’t finish it all), and so much beans it falls off of the plate. The serving plate at Senzala’s is pretty pathetic, and the lady doesn’t fill it with food. AND the plate is $ 25 or so.
Next, you ask the lady for one plate, «We didn’t cook it today.» You ask her for another plate on the Menu, «We ran out.» You ask her what she has ON Capoera night – their busiest night – and she gives you two plates on a menu offering 15 or so. Same goes for the desserts. This is no exaggeration.
Now lets speak about this «lady.» She is by far the most arrogant lady ever. I’m pretty sure she’s the owner because the last 5 times I’ve been there for Capoeira night, she is the lady serving and playing the baqueta. I’ve heard countless times that Portuguese speaking people are arrogant, and spoke against this belief, but this lady supports their argument.
Let’s just say, for my Birthday, my mother spent $ 125 for 4 people’s dinner plates! The plate included ONE spoonful of feijoada, 5 little overly-​salted pieces of yuca, and one spoonful of beans!
Again, just see the Capoeira show, and don’t buy the food.

3.5 Stars
If you’re looking for a casual lunch spot head over to Senzala Brazilian Cuisine. You won’t find fine dining here, but instead you order your food cafeteria style complete with trays. The main dining area also looks like it could turn into a dance floor later at night.
Walk towards the far end of the room and take a look at the menu on the wall. Lunch item #3 caught my eye, which was the Bife Acebolado for $ 10.99. Check out
for a picture of this dish.
It consisted of a thinly fried steak with onions, rice, beans, and fried yuca or french fries. I opted for the fried yuca since I don’t have that pretty often. The yuca reminded me a crispy potato with a softer center when I bit into it.
The spices and flavors in this Brazilian dish were pretty tame and it didn’t have anything that was too spicy or bold. The steak itself wasn’t too salty and it went well with the grilled onions and rice. I was definitely stuffed by the time I cleaned off my plate. With all the carbs from the rice/​beans/​yuca, I can see why.
The food was generally pretty good and the portions were generous, but I feel it’s more expensive than your typical lunch spot. I was under the impression that with the casual and cafeteria nature of the restaurant the prices at this place would be more reasonable.
Maybe if I’m visiting NetApp down the street again I’ll stop by to try their other dishes.

I used to come here with a friend!
I always ordered the vegetarian plate because I never knew what to order. It was always pretty average. What always drew me here was the acai bowl! Acai juice with sliced bananas and granola (: Teheheheeee~
This was the first time I ever tried fried yucca… I still don’t know what it is. I always thought it tasted like potato, but whatever.
The food here is pretty starchy, and reminds me of soul food. But not really.
This place seems really cultural for some reason. I think maybe some of the workers might be Brazilian, lol. Or maybe its the karaōke.

So I went here one time for a Friend’s birthday and thought it was great. I came here again for dinner recently and it wasn’t quite the same.
I think one of the main reasons why it wasn’t the same is the price factor. Being a cafeteria style restaurant, you would think the prices should be lower than regular sit down restaurants. This was not the case.
You get a plate of rice, beans, vegetables and your choice of protein for anywhere between 16 – 22 dollars. This seems steep to me for the food you get. Most of it is already sitting out and they just need to scoop it up.
We got the #2 and #3 which was like some chicken and polenta dish and a milanesa type of beef (lightly breaded steak). We go down the line a bit and come up to the refreshments. The little refridgerator was empty and the soda fountain machine was out of ice.
Went down a bit more to the utensils and they were out of forks.
Down a little futher and paid for my food which was about 40 dollars for 2 people. Not a great start and we haven’t even tasted the food yet.
You do get full of of the food, but it is mostly from the starches. The chicken was kinda dry. Gonna guess because its not made fresh, and the beef was a little tough. I wish I knew what I ate the previous time because it was tasty.
We did get treated to a capoeira show though. The owners sing and play some some of instrument that looks like a giant pipe with a string. The students would put on a show. The students ranged from what looked like 6 to 46. I kept thinking of eddy gordo from tekken.

I accompanied a friend as a part of Brazilian Portuguese speakers Meetup group. I had never experienced Brazilian food before and thought it would be a fun place to watch Brazil take on North Korea in the World Cup.
We arrived early enough to grab a table but still spent about 35 minutes in line to order. I was a little disappointed to find my first two choices for entrée had sold out (there were at least five dishes sold out by the time I ordered).
I settled for the Bife Acebolado which took another 10 minutes to prepare. The dish is fairly simple; fried thin steak (think minute steak) with onions, rice and beans and fried potatoes. Normally I’m not much of a fan of minute steak but this one was actually very well seasoned and worked well with the rest of the dish. The rice and beans were also very tasty although the fried potatoes were a bit on the soft side (missing the crispiness I look for).
In the end the food and the atmosphere more than made up for my initial frustration, and I would definitely come back again.
If you plan on eating here on your lunch break you may want to take part of your meal to go. The portions are quite generous.

This place is walking distance from my work, but I never would have found it if it was not for Unilocal.Looking for something close by for lunch, I was so surprised to find a Brazilian spot only 1 mile away.
We came to check it out and the place itself is HUGE inside. It would be perfect for a night club. I heard they have live music at lunch on Fridays too.
The owner was really nice, and came to tell us about how to order, etc. It’s cafeteria style, so you grab a tray, tell them what you want, they make it and give it to you on the tray.
The food was decent, not the greatest Brazilian I’ve ever had. The sad thing is, right in the middle of a business district, they were almost completely empty at lunch.
Some ways they need to relook at their business model:
1. Offer more than sandwiches for their lunch specials. The plates were about $ 13 – 15 each, which is pretty steep for lunch. The portions were HUGE. Really, really huge. What they should do is cut down the prices to under $ 10, and make the portions a bit smaller. People don’t really want to spend more than $ 10 for lunch daily.
2. Make a sign that says BRAZILIAN FOOD for the plaza. I’ve passed by so many times, and would never realize Senzala was Brazilian.
3. Go to the corporate buildings around and offer employee discounts. They have NetApp right across the street from them!
I really want this place to thrive, as it’s so huge inside and the owner was so nice. I hope they read their Unilocal reviews and change their business model accordingly.

** review for the food & entertainment, not the school **
I came here a few weeks ago to see the free Capoeira roda (show), While watching the show, I had the «bobo de camarao» (shrimp and tomato sauce over rice) dish. Though pricey, it was a generous portion. I had leftovers to take home.

This review is for the food.
I never had any other Brazilian food other than churrascaria, but that is not a fair comparison because that’s like apples and oranges. I had the fried beef lunch plate with rice, beans, fries, and grilled onions. Since everything was pre-​made, the beef could be better. Looks like when they ran out, they make it the way you want and bring it to your table. Lunch portions are big and there is free coffee which is strong as espresso. The food is OK. I would go here again to try something else.

I thought this was a dope event! Thanks Mercy for sharing!
I respect and appreciate how this Capoiera group is trying to invite others to share in this cultural practice (They will be holding this event weekly on Friday evenings from 7:30−9pm, great for families also). It was clear that the «performers» were like a family and were sharing this experience with those that came to watch this event, and gave a mini introduction to this Brazilian tradition which was started by Africans that were enslaved in Brazil many years ago. It is just another beautiful example of mankind’s amazing resilience under the most dehumanizing circumstances.
The social worker in me loves to learn about international cultures and understand the impact of historical events on how traditions and culture are shaped. It was very clear that this practice embodies more than just a physical art form, but a culture rich in values and practices.
My favorite was the music. Mestre Vaguinho has a beautiful voice with his ensemble of different percussionists and other musicians. It was very tribal in its simplicity and infectious enough to make me want to bust a move out on the dance floor (of course I didn’t though).
Almost forgot! The food was pretty good. I ordered a two plates of the chicken in tomato sauce with polenta and rice and beans to go. Excellente!

Rhythmic sound of percussion instruments, drums beating, hands clapping, voices singing, bodies gyrating and twirling, sweat flying.
Capoiera is playful and joyful — says Mestre Vaguinho and the members of the Capoiera of San Jose was there to prove the Mestre’s words. It was truly a celebration.
30 or so Unilocalers and guests got to experience Capoiera of San Jose perform and was treated to an awesome show.
Word of caution — sitting near the roda (the performance circle) could place you in eminent danger, but gives you the best view of action. Spectacular aerobatics and choreography — it’s so easy to see how break dancing was heavily influenced by the art of capoiera. Just watch out for those flying feet and limbs!
For those of you who missed out on this gathering, the capoiera performance is every Friday evening.
Great food, great show. Thanks to all who joined us!