Let Them Eat Feijoada. Or, Don't.

So, on to another meeting with Thiago. I actually planned this one out pretty well, might I add. Since we are conversation partners, we really worked on our conversation methods, and I texted him about or meeting. Score. We met in our usual place, inside 1873, and we got off to a really good start, aside from the fact that he was 20 minutes late but whatever I'm over it, I enjoy sitting alone with a notebook in public places so, again I say, whatever.
Anyway. Today's topic was something everyone loves. 
Food.
I did 20 seconds of preparation for this meeting, and I Googled "Brazilian Food" and searched the titles of the websites. I name dropped like nothing else, hoping something would hook. Luckily, I got a bite on my first try!
(Get it? Food reference...fishing...Never mind.)
Unfortunately I can neither pronounce or spell the dish, but it started with an "a" and it's essentially friend shrimp. Thiago was not a big fan, so we moved on to our next dish.
Feijoada. 
Boom- THAT got a reaction out of him.
Thiago twisted and turned up his face like he smelled something rancid. I laughed at his contorted visage and probed more questions. 
What exactly is Feijoada might you ask? Well, put simply, it's pork, and a lot of it. Thiago described it as "every part of a pig with some black beans thrown in there. It's gross." I laughed, amused by his obvious distaste for something so culturally central to his country. He explained that it's way too filling, and not that appetizing at all. I promised to take his word for it, because pork and beans ain't really my thing either.
On to our third course. Simply uttering this dish's name made Thiago's eyes light up and his mouth started to water. 
Pao de Quejo is a dish specific to his hometown. It's cheesy bread in the best sense. These small rolls are doughy, moist, and delicious, and most importantly, they can be enjoyed at any time of the day. What a treat.
Speaking of times of day, an interesting Brazilian custom is to place lunch as the most important meal of the day, as opposed to our fascination with big dinners. In fact, Thiago couldn't remember the last time he ate dinner at home. I find that interesting, just because we place such an importance on dinnertime, the preparation of the meal, to the placements, to the people present. Interesting. 
I brought up my favorite topic- sweets. A Brazilian treat akin to our birthday cakes is a sweet called "Bridgadeirs" which is candy made on the stove with a lot of chocolate and condensed milk. Anything with chocolate I'm all about, and I promised to try it.
I warned Thiago that I didn't know when I would get a chance because there aren't any Brazilian restaurants around here, and then I remembered, wait, what about Cafe Brazil? It has Brazil in the name!
Thiago laughed and said the only thing Brazilian about that place was the name. However, its food is pretty good, so Thiago said "it's ok that it has Brazil in its name."  
There you go, approval straight from the source. 
Even the coffee isn't Brazilian. Brazilian coffee is much smaller and stronger than what we deal with here, also, they don't use any sweetener, so even though "Hazlenut Blast" was delicious, I don't think it was authentic. Oh well. You will never be able to fully replicate Brazilian coffee, according to Thiago. I, however, am okay with that, considering the only coffee I can handle is anything with so much flavoring you can't actually taste the coffee. So, yet another reason why Brazilian cuisine isn't for me.
With that we wrapped up our meeting, and exchanged well-wishes for our respective trips. For Spring Break Thiago was going to Austin to see South by Southwest, a music festival there. 
Dang, this guy has seen more of Texas than I have! Oh well, I've got time.
Before we left, we took the next step in our friendship and became friends on Facebook. WOOHOO!! I'm excited to see how this progresses, and even more excited to do a little cyber stalking of my partner.
Just joking.
Until next time,
Adios!