Salvador and the Bahia Coast Restaurants

1. Paraíso Tropical

Ask locals and longtime expats alike what not to miss in Salvador and the response you get will be unanimous: Paraíso Tropical. In a tropical garden in the suburb of Cabula, a 20-minute taxi ride from the Historic Center, this relaxed, gourmet spot treats patrons to Bahian classics with a twist. Chef Beto reinvents heavy dishes like moqueca and bobo using natural dendê fruit rather than oil, combined with rare tropical fruits sourced from more than 6,000 square meters of native Mata Atlântica forest. Everything is cooked in agua de coco instead of water to increase the nutritional value of the dishes. Go with friends and go hungry, for while the siri catado (Bahia soft-shell crab), salada duca (mango, baby coconut, and cashew salad), and Beto's special moqueca stand out, you'll want to try everything.

2. São João Batista

3. A Portinha

This good-value, lunch-only, buffet-style restaurant attracts both locals and foreign visitors with its generous salad bar and variety of "slow-cooked" options. The restaurant serves a different type of cuisine daily, so the fare for any given day might include Brazilian, Italian, or Asian specialties. Price is charged per weight of the food on your plate.

4. Bar do Rô

5. Boi Preto

For a set price this top-quality, all-you-can-eat Brazilian churrascaria serves a selection of meat cooked to perfection and a generous choice of sides. A flurry of white-coated waiters appear at your table to carve different options of meat straight onto your plate rodizio style, so try not to fill up on the steaming pao de quiejo (cheese balls), salads, sushi, and seafood from the accompanying buffet—and also know that the best cuts are usually brought toward the end of the meal. Drinks and dessert are charged separately.

6. Cozinha Aberta

You’ll be forgiven for wanting to order everything on the menu at Brazilian chef Deborah Doitschinoff’s Slow Food spot set right on the river, where passionate staff talk diners through the rare local ingredients (such as batata da serra) that inspire the menu. Highlights include cacao spaghetti with shrimp, cashew-filled eggplant rolls, and cinnamon and tamarind caipirinhas. And while the flavors could be more inventive for the price, the experience itself—dining alfresco overlooking Lencois’s rushing waterway with excellent service—makes for one of the most pleasant meals in town.

7. Macunaíma Beach Lounge

This hippie-chic beach bar is loved as much for its signature cocktail, the Anti-Stress (vodka muddled with lemongrass, mint, and ginger), as for its extensive, tasty menu (try the tuna tartare and teriyaki salmon) and position on the beach at Ponto do Mutá. During high season, it's best to book ahead if you want one of the tables in the sand, perfect for whiling away the day until it's time to watch the sunset. Service can be alternately brilliant and patchy, but when everything clicks, it's one of the more sophisticated options on the peninsula.

8. Restaurante O Bode

This excellent-value per-kilo restaurant offers a great pit stop at lunch or dinner for meat lovers and vegetarians alike, with an extensive salad buffet accompanying a wide selection of slow-roasted meats and vegetable dishes cooked in clay pots.

9. Sabor da Vila

It isn't surprising that seafood fresh from the ocean is the specialty at this simple yet ever-popular Bahian restaurant on Praia do Forte's main street. Choose between eight different varieties of seafood moqueca, or opt for the lighter option of ensopado.

10. Senac

The delicious 30-dish buffet served in the wood-paneled dining room of this restored town house set right on the Pelourinho provides a comprehensive A to Z of Bahian cuisine for the uninitiated at a set price. Start at the small museum on the ground floor, where English-speaking staff will guide you through Bahian food's African roots, before heading up to the breezy dining room to experience it in action. Superbly run by the hospitality school SENAC, the students are responsible for the golden moquecas and impossibly sweet desserts—as well as excellent service. Everything is executed under the watchful eye of professors in suits. Vegetarians should make for the Kilo restaurant below.

11. Uauá

Tucked away above a busy street in the Pelourinho, Uauá's tasty, typically Brazilian dishes and reliable service make it one of the most popular restaurants in Salvador—and therefore one of the most crowded. Come early to avoid the rush. Don't skip the Northeastern specialities, like guisado de carneiro (minced mutton), moqueca, or carne do sol com purê de macaxeira (salted beef with mandioca (cassava) purée). Portions are big enough to share.