It’s been more than a decade since São Paulo, Brazil, natives Marco Rabello and Cristian Maciel began serving up Brazilian dishes in Kansas City, Missouri.
At the time, the duo said their goal was simple: to fill a Brazilian cuisine-shaped hole in the market.
“We learned that there was a lack of Brazilian food in Kansas City,” Rabello said. “We started craving Brazilian food ourselves.”
After working up a following on the Missouri side of the state line, the restaurant finally crossed that line this year. Taste of Brazil opened a new location at the Oak Park Mall at the end of September, marking its debut on the Kansas side.
Taste of Brazil opened at 11149 W. 95th St.
- The restaurant occupies a space on the upper level of the Oak Park Mall, which is just off 95th Street and Quivira Road.
- The space is near the entrance of the mall’s food court.
- Taste of Brazil is open at Oak Park Mall from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday.
Taste of Brazil serves on-the-go Brazilian snacks
As Taste of Brazil’s “Express” location, the Oak Park Mall location does things a little bit differently from the River Market spot.
The menu at Oak Park Mall focuses on some of Taste of Brazil’s “street snack” standouts, such as acai bowls, Brazilian cheese bread, and coxinhas (a Brazilian snack with shredded chicken inside deep-fried dough).
“We are selling what we think is the best to represent us and Brazil,” Rabello said.
Given that the Oak Park Mall’s space doesn’t have as much room or a kitchen on site, the duo decided to keep it simple in terms of the menu.
The mall location also contrasts nicely with the City Market location, they said — given that the two areas tend to have different busy periods.
“At the City Market, we don’t do as much business in the winter time, but over here is the complete opposite with people coming inside in the winter time,” Maciel said. “So it’s going to offset that a little bit.”
This marks Taste of Brazil’s debut in Johnson County
Taste of Brazil’s original location opened at the City Market in Kansas City, Missouri, in 2013.
The eatery later expanded operations with a food truck in 2016, their own cheese bread manufacturer in 2021, and a location inside the Kansas City International Airport’s new terminal in 2023.
Over the years, the duo said they’ve noticed a demand for Brazilian cuisine on the Kansas side of the state line. In fact, they said, some of the City Market location’s customers often make the drive from cities like Overland Park and Olathe.
“At the same time, we’ll be exposed to shoppers here that have never heard of us,” Rabello said. “That’s what we love to do: We love to educate new customers (to) a new cuisine, new different flavors.”
Beyond the Oak Park Mall, Maciel and Rabello said they’re considering expanding Taste of Brazil even further in Johnson County — though they’re seeing how things go at the mall first.
“We’ve been exploring the idea to come down south for a minute now,” Maciel said. “After being established on the Missouri side, we found the Oak Park Mall was the perfect fit for us.”
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