Honestly those beach vendors are charging tourist prices for mediocre everything trust me ive been eating my way through rio for years and this stuff makes me genuinely angry

Want real carioca food? Get off the sand and walk three blocks inland

Local grilled chicken spots in copacabana do amazing food. 45-65 reais for meals that feeds two people easily been going to these family places for years nothing fancy but the locals line up for a reason

For açaí skip those watery tourist bowls go to bibi sucos on rua barata ribeiro thick purple goodness 15 reais and actually fills you up the beach stands charge 20 reais for sugar water honestly its criminal

Pro tip any place with menus in english and pictures is gonna be overpriced garbage look for handwritten portuguese menus and plastic chairs thats where the good stuff is