Agora's Passion Fruit Caipirinha
Agora Churrascaria
1830 Main Street
Irvine, CA 92614
949-222-9910
www.agoranow.com
Agora Churrascaria is a restaurant that I am sure many of you have heard of. It is known as Orange County's best Brazilian Steakhouse aka Churrascaria. Large skewers of fire-roasted meats are paraded around the restaurant and sliced directly onto your plate. It's a veritable all-you-can-eat meat-apalooza. Since every article written about this place is focused on the meat....the juicy, tender, succulent, flavorful, scrumptious meat....I have decided to talk a little bit about something different. The salad bar.
The salad bar at Agora Churrascaria is included in every meal. The idea is that you are supposed to go up to the salad bar to get yourself a salad or some side dishes before you gorge yourself on meat. Often times though, I see many people skip the salad bar altogether and just pig out on meat. Now, while this may seem like a good way to get your money's worth, you're really missing out on some of the best stuff that Agora has to offer.
Here are a few pictures of the salad bar.
The salad bar is filled with some of the most delicious, fresh produce you have ever seen. Red, ripe juicy tomatoes with fresh mozzarella and thick stalks of asparagus are laid out in a meticulous fashion. You will also find a nice selection of cured meats, like salami and prosciutto spread out near a giant platter of crumbled parmesan cheese. Large peeled shrimp are served chilled with cocktail sauce. One side of the salad bar is made of pre-made salads like pasta salad and potato salad and are among some of the best you will ever have.
In addition to the chilled salad bar, there is also a hot food bar that includes several different side dishes that would often be seen as a meal by themselves. On the hot food bar you will find selections such as black bean stew (fejioada), clams with olive oil and white wine, chicken stroganoff, garlic rice, salmon, mussels, sautéed collard greens and mashed potatoes.
So, while I would still highly encourage anyone to visit Agora when they want to pig out on meat, I urge you to give the salad bar a try. You will find some delightful treats that will nicely complement your meat feast. Perhaps you can even use some of the selections from the cold bar to cool yourself down after the meat sweats start...
Current prices as of August 2012:
Adult Lunch: $25
Adult Dinner: $43
Hot Bar and Salad Bar Only: $21 lunch/$31 dinner
Children age 6-10 are half price
