Capelinha - Itanhaém

I had three experiences in Capelinha and each was wonderful. The atmosphere is beach, with a view of the Mulher de las Areias and the outcropping island. Choices of table include beach and protected areas, both inside and out. The owner Rafael explained his menu to me from top to bottom, some of the dishes are asian fusion, but most are --fantastic local seafood. I had the fish fillet, for one mean, a pastille for a quick lunch and had my final meal there with a house speciality: Moqueja Cacão--a coconut seafood stew . All meals come with rice, fried sweet potatoes, salad, fruit, rice, yucca and the main course. I had the one-person version and it was super generous, there were a dozen shrimp and 3-4 huge fillets of fish. The coconut sauce was mild and tasty. I also order the Manga juice (fresh juices are a speciality) and they brought almost a liter of fresh juice, no sugar, and also wildly delicious. The chef and owner engaged with me to make sure i was happy. I felt special and delighted. This restaurant is on the beach but off the beaten path all the same. It has an event space and room for many customers. It's really worth finding it and trying it. It is my favorite restaurant in Brazil (so far).

An off-the-beaten-track little cabana hidden behind palm trees in the North Eastern corner of Praia dos Pescadores, just South of a yellow building. Unfortunately most Brazilians have become thoroughly americanized, feeding on fast food of the MacDonalds type that has made them obese and heading for type 2 diabetes, and yet still willing to strip off at their resorts to display themselves like beached walrus. But Praia dos Pescadores had true Brazilian beach bunnies - slim, fit and beautiful. It must be that the local cuisine is just more appealing than the fat drenched **** that the rest of the nation has taken to eating.Capelinha itself is an unassuming little restaurant with just a few plastic covered tables and wooden chairs - the sort of place you'd walk past if it weren't for Tripadvisor. Fortunately my partner new it of old, and we were greeted like long lost friends by the manageress who got Carlos - the chef - to come and discuss food with us. He had two freshly caught fish that he could recommend, and went to fetch the smaller to show us. Now this is NOT fast food. They have a self service buffet - you'll find them all over Brazil - but we'd come for something a bit more special. Carlos said he could fry the fish if we were in a hurry (we were not) but recommended baking it, so that's what we went with. It would take 40 minutes to cook, so we were brought hors d'ouvres and cocktails while we waited. When the main arrived it was accompanied by fried banana, potatoes, beans, salads and fruits and tasted divine. The cabana next door had a live band playing mostly Eagles hits, and after the meal we climbed on the rocks to the North to watch the end of the day.