My adventures in the party capital of Brazil continued with another incredible seafood adventure! Come with me as I enjoy some amazing Brazilian farm-to-table seafood, surf some sand dunes, and explore the beaches in Florianopolis, Brazil!
My Brazilian seafood and beaches tour began on the east side of Florianópolis, Brazil, where they have beaches, sand dunes, and a beautiful lagoon. It’s no wonder they call this place “the magical island!”
The weather is beautiful and Praia Mole, one of its most popular beaches, is well-known for surfing. They’re also famous for their amazing food!
My friends Guilherme and Rafa from Rio4Fun and Rio4Food and I hopped in the car. We were in the Barra da Lagoa area, which reminded me of the Munnar and Thekkady areas of Kerala, India. It’s a small downtown area with a few commercial shops but no big buildings.
We found a vendor selling coconut water and sugarcane juice right on Lagoa da Conceição, which is the lagoon on the island. It was about 75 degrees Fahrenheit and breezy, which is my favorite type of weather!
The vendor folded a bit of lime in-between the sugarcane stalks when he juiced them for us. It added a nice, citrusy tang to the refreshing juice. The vendor was so friendly and kept filling us back up! It cost us only R$5.
Then, we continued on. The lagoon was to our left and there were tons of sand dunes to the right! Our next destination was Dunas da Joaquina to go sandboarding.
The dunes are really high and you can rent sandboards there. They have two kinds—one like a snowboard and another that was more like a sled. It costs R$30 for one person to rent a sandboard for an hour.
From the top of the dunes, you can look over the entire lagoon. I sat on my sled-like board and rode down the dune. It was so much fun! It was intense and the sand flew up in my face! I don’t recommend standing on the boards if you don’t know what you’re doing.
Then, we headed to Joaquina Beach, which is known for is surfing and surfing competitions! It’s just one minute from the dunes. There, you’ll find some souvenir vendors and hotels, as well as some restaurants.
It’s a huge, gorgeous beach. It’s about 5 kilometers long and the water is very shallow. The restaurant has tables with umbrellas out on the beach, so it’s a great place to have a meal!
I walked out into the water up to my ankles but it was so cold! Then, I got up on some of the rocks to get great views of the surfers. The water was a bit choppy but I was in awe of this place!
Next up was Praia Mole, which is about 10 minutes away. Usually it costs to visit the beach, but since we would only be there a few minutes, the guy let us visit for free. To get there, we walked a lush path through vegetation to the sand.
There were lots of surfers there, but in the late winter, lots of models come to the beach! But as beautiful as the beach was, I was getting hungry, so I couldn’t wait to eat!
Next, we continued our seafood and beaches tour of Florianopolis, Brazil by driving 15 minutes to a ferry terminal along the road between the ocean and lagoon. The restaurant is across the lagoon, and the ferry runs every 10 minutes. We got tickets to go and come back and boarded the boat.
The boat was like a big, covered, motorized, open-air canoe. I loved the scenery. It reminded me of Croatia with the water and the lush greenery around us. We got off at the pier on the other side, where the restaurant is.
Restaurante Paraíso Da Néia is a simple, rustic restaurant that has been there for 40 years. They have big, wooden tables on a covered terrace and seating on the pier with no covering.
I tried a martini-like drink made with a Brazilian berry and vodka, as well as a sour and bitter cachaça made from a local fruit. It was strong but sweet and reminded me of Croatian rakija. The fruit was like a sour starfruit!
In the kitchen, I watched them make some fried fish, fried shrimp kebabs, oysters stuffed with braised crab meat and mozzarella cheese, grilled fish, and fried croquetas. This is the only restaurant with this stuffed oyster recipe! I was salivating just watching them cook everything!
We started with the stuffed oysters, which were hot and creamy and full of shredded crab! They serve it with blue sea salt for decoration. The crab croquetas came a pink Gulf sauce, which was incredible and contained tons of crab meat.
Next was our main course: fried shrimp, sole fish, grilled banana, rice, a fish stock gravy with manioc flour in it, and French fries. Everything is local and is farm-to-table. The shrimp had a double layer of batter and were thick and dense.
The sole fish was a perfect filet with no bones but a little dry. When you mix everything together in one bite, it really comes alive! The sweetness of the banana and saltiness of the fish pair perfectly. The banana was my favorite part!
What an incredible morning of exploring the seafood, sand dunes, and beaches in Florianopolis, Brazil! This was an adventure I will never forget. Massive thanks to my Brazilian brother Guilherme and Rafa for bringing me out here. I also have to thank my friends at the Hotel City Florianópolis for hosting us!
I hope you liked coming with me on my epic seafood and beaches tour of Florianopolis, Brazil! If you did, please give this video a thumbs up and leave me a comment below. Also, please subscribe to my YouTube channel and click the notification bell so you don’t miss any of my upcoming travel/food adventures around the world!
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