Evvai Restaurant

When the Michelin Guide handed out Brazil's — and Latin America's — first three-star ratings, Evvai was one of two names called, a milestone you can taste. Chef Luiz Filipe Souza, of Italian descent and trained at three-star Reale in Italy, built the place around a concept he calls "Oriundi," the cooking of Italians who emigrated to Brazil: Italian technique meeting Brazilian ingredients, so a tortellini might be stuffed with Amazonian chestnuts and a moqueca reimagined with heart of palm. He also hand-draws a little pop-art card for every dish, which tells you something about the spirit of the place — serious about the food, much less so about the pomp. The name means "yay!" in Italian. It fits.