Nate J.
Yelp
TL;DR--views: almost all are largely obstructed, food: below average, service: extremely rude.
From the reviews we had read we were hoping for great views, good food (but not necessarily spectacular), and at least tolerable service. We came up short on all three. I've never felt compelled to leave a review before, but I had such an awful experience that I couldn't avoid it.
The Views:
The main draw for us to Aprazivel was the views. However, this was one of the biggest letdowns. We made a reservation for early (by Brazil standards) evening. I think there were two other couples in the entire restaurant while we were there. Despite being completely empty we were given excuses as to why we could only sit at a table with a mostly obstructed view. We were told that the area my wife liked the view from the most was "not available" for seating for another hour. As a consolation prize they said we could take a photo from the area, but then would have to sit somewhere else.
When we asked about the next best seating area, we were told that only larger groups than ours could use those tables (despite the restaurant being completely empty). The view from the table we were seated at was almost completely blocked by a roof, and was crawling with ants and spiders.
The Food:
The food was ok, but not great. There are so many excellent dining choices in Rio, including Michelin reviewed restaurants, that are the same price point or cheaper. Not the worst food I'd have, but mostly a waste of time/money.
The Service:
I tend to roll my eyes that complain about service. I generally have a pretty low bar of what I consider acceptable service, which I lower even further in a country like Brazil. However, the service we received was bordering on openly hostile.
My wife and I placed our order with the waiter (who did not repeat back our order to confirm). When he brought our food out one of the dishes was not what we had ordered. I politely brought this up to which he responded "Well, that's not what I heard". He then said "I can take it back if you want, but it's going to take a really long time". I said if it wasn't too much trouble we really would like to have the food that we ordered.
For the rest of the night we got the complete silent treatment. After nearly an hour, other waiters noticed that he was intentionally ignoring us and stepped in to fill drinks, take our dessert orders, etc. Later, I told one of these waiters I was ready to pay. He relayed the message to the original waiter who looked over at us, and then proceeded to look at his phone for 15-20 minutes. Eventually, he brought the card reader to our table, swiped our card, and then left without saying a word. We had just spent R$400 and didn't even get a half-hearted "goodnight" or "thanks". As we walked towards the exit, he very obviously pointed towards us while audibly complaining about us to the other waiters.
My recommendation: take in the breathtaking views from Santa Teresa (the view from the street in front of the restaurant is even better than the best tables in the restaurant!) and then go eat literally anywhere else in the city.