Cedro do Líbano has passed the test of time with flying colors. A Rio de Janeiro tradition, the restaurant founded by a Lebanese immigrant in the 1940s boasts fresh ingredients, secret recipes handed down generations, and a casual and welcoming atmoshpere in the lively Saara shopping district.
Pros
- Fresh ingredients and high-quality cooking
- Casual and affordable
- Location in Saara provides lots of local color
Cons
- Not open for dinner
- Menu not available in English
Description
- Price: Affordable
- Hours: Mon-Sat 11a.m.-4p.m. Closed on holidays.
- Open on Sundays: Mother's Day (2nd Sun in May), Father's Day (2nd Sun in Aug) and in December before Christmas.
- Address: Rua Senhor dos Passos 231, Saara, Rio de Janeiro - RJ
- Phone: 55-21-22240163 / 55-21-22219763
- E-mail: contato@restaurantecedrodolibano.com.br
- Website: restaurantecedrodolibano.com.br
Guide Review - Restaurante Cedro do Líbano
Having lunch at Cedro do Líbano is an extra motivational factor to go shopping at the historic Saara (Association of Friends of Rua da Alfândega and Surroundings), an area with over 1,200 shops in Old Downtown Rio.
Founded in the 1940s by Lebanese immigrant Narciso Mansur, Cedro do Líbano is owned by descendants of one of two partners who bought the restaurant from Mansur in the 1950s.
Several prizes have been awarded the restaurant, including one by Gula, a prestigious Brazilian foodie magazine.
The Combinado (or combo) is one of the Cedro do Líbano hits.
You can have kafta and hommus with eggplant or with rice and lentils. Or try the rich meatless Combinado Vegetariano (rice and lentils, tabule and hommus).
If you're not a big eater, you could make a satisfying meal just out of the many side dishes on the menu - for example, cabbage rolls (repolho recheado), stuffed grape leaves (folha de uva recheada), or laban (drained yoghurt, or coalhada in Portuguese).
Close the meal with a dessert such as beleua, a philo dough luxury saturated with butter and moistened with orange blossom-perfumed caramel glaze.