Fogo de Chão opens in Manila

WHILE it was announced that it was coming way back in 2022, it took a while before it came to pass — Fogo de Chão finally opened in Glorietta 4 on Aug. 18, with an opening ceremony on Aug. 28.

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This marks the 45-year-old Brazilian brand’s first location in Asia, after expanding into the rest of the Americas. Barry McGowan, chief executive officer of Fogo de Chão, counts their locations currently at 110.

“We're already an international brand, in a very diverse city — Sao Paulo. We're growing in the US,” he said in a group interview before the opening ceremony.

Fogo de Chão specializes in churrasco — simplified, it’s Brazilian barbecue, with meats cooked over wood or charcoal-fired rotisseries. In practice, “We don’t grill meat; we slow-cook it,” said Mr. McGowan. “All our gaucho chefs are trained butchers. All they do is butcher all day. ‘They focus on the meat, the way they handle it.”

The butcher-chefs also serve the meat, slicing it from the skewer and straight onto your plate. They know when to stop serving the meat by your coaster: flipping it red is a signal for them to stop; green means go on.

While their managers were trained in the US, the restaurant sent over trainers to prepare the Philippine staff for 30 days.