Tom B.
Yelp
It was good to revisit this wonderful neighborhood restaurant in the Glenview area of Oakland.
Oakland is so fortunate to have a huge array of restaurants with such a wide variety, and so happy to see many making it through the pandemic.
Paulista has delicious food and a varied, casual Brazilian menu. Don't expect the notorious classic Brazilian steakhouse type restaurant here, this is far more laid back and cafe oriented.
I ordered online for pick-up. The menu is extensive so be prepared to pursue, and the options are good. If you want a meat dish, they will have it on a different scale than a slab of meat, and if vegetarian they have it too, i.e. good salads and empanadas.
The web site was thorough but I found not that easy to navigate. I never know, for certain, if it's the site or my internet connection, so I lay blame nowhere. It just wasn't easy and kept jumping around on me.
I ordered 6 empanadas (2 "Frango" chicken, 2 "Palmito" hearts of palm, 2 "Veggie" spinach; all with other ingredients) + 2 Cilantro dipping sauces; Salada de Rucula; Salada de Palmito; and two smoothies (1 Tropical, 1 Ilha Bela).
When I went to check out it noted I couldn't get the pickup time designated and had to be an hour later. Not a problem, but within much less time I got a text message that told me it was ready.
Service was friendly and I was readily off with my bag of food goodies, and smoothies in a carry container. (They kept the smoothies refrigerated until I arrived).
All was good but I broke my learned cardinal rule to check everything before driving off... when I got home the 2 Cilantro sauces were missing. UGH! Oh well, $5. down the drain. Things happen.
The salads, an arugula and the other a hearts of palm were delicious, fresh and very good. Chocked full of a variety of ingredients they were well worth the $11. each, and big portions.
The empanadas were equally good and nice sized, and one didn't stand out over the other. The crust was nice and flakey.
Perhaps they were a bit dry... the Cilantro sauce would have helped!
The smoothies were refreshing and delicious! Well worth getting one on its own. The berry one was flavorful, but tasting the Tropical one I found it more refreshing on a hot day. Both are good.
Paulista is a great place and I need to frequent it more. They have breakfast and all day service. The vibe is relaxed and easy going.
Well worth a visit.