Follow the itinerary of wine bars along the block path – 02/09/2024 – Red or White

Last week I wrote a text with an itinerary of wine bars on the way to the São Paulo Carnival blocks for last weekend. I promised that this week I would make an itinerary for Carnival days. Here he is. If you don’t use it now, you can use it another time. There will no longer be carnival, but the bars will remain in the same place. I just wanted to comment on a few things before moving on to the itinerary itself.

In last week’s post, a reader asked if I had checked whether establishments allowed costumed revelers to enter. No, I didn’t expressly ask that question to everyone. Especially because the concept of costume is very flexible. Naked, or almost so, some establishments certainly won’t let you in, but most of these bars are quite informal. However, don’t think that because it’s Carnival you can go without booking. It’s always better to make a reservation, no matter how annoying it may be.

A friend of mine, who read my previous post, said he couldn’t imagine me skipping carnival. I explained that the point of the post was precisely this: there is no such thing as a boring carnival, you’re the one who didn’t drink enough. Joke! With a grain of truth, because dry carnival is really boring. Anyone who only drinks wine knows what I’m talking about. So, let’s go to the road to perdition!

Friday the 9th

Oh, open up! With popular roots, representing the category of subway workers, the Electric Train Band It’s one of the most authentic things about São Paulo Carnival. It honors samba from the city’s schools and the classics. A great way to open the carnival. The gathering will be at 6pm, on the corner of Rua Augusta and Rua Luiz Coelho. The group goes to the Municipal Theater, where it arrives at 11pm. My suggestion is to have a happy hour at Los Perros, Wine at Botecoin Bela Cintra, very close by, which opens at 4pm, has a real bar atmosphere and reasonable prices, despite the curation of the wines being top-notch.

One block that I love watching go by, even if I’m not going to follow, is Ilú Oba De Min. It’s an all-women group, mostly black, all wearing afro clothes and all playing a percussion instrument. It’s beautiful. Very strong. On Friday, they gather at 6pm at Praça da República, then take Avenida São Luís and go to Largo do Paissandú. On Avenida São Luís, inside Galeria Metrópole, there is the friendly Prose and Wine, if I’m not mistaken, the first wine bar in the center. On Friday, it is open from 12pm to 11pm. It has a good variety of labels and prices. As it is on the third floor, you can watch the parade from a box.

Saturday, the 10th

Formed by dissidents from the Vai Quem Quer Bloc, the Bastards Block It is already one of the most traditional of São Paulo’s street carnival. This year he leaves for three days. On Saturday, the meeting is at number 727 Rua João Moura at 1 pm. From there, take a walk around the neighborhood and return to the same spot at 7pm. My suggestion is that, afterwards, you go down to Baixo Pinheiros and enjoy drinking and eating well in the Miya Wine Bar. The kitchen, which is led by chef Flávio Miyamura, a partner at the restaurant, has both incredible dishes and snacks. There is also a Grand Cru importer store inside, so the options are numerous and of high quality for the same price as the importer. There are more than 100 glass labels. And you can also buy tasting doses. It’s very worth it.

Sunday the 11th

This Sunday, I suggest you wake up, have a good coffee, take the subway and go to Vila Madalena Station. From there, walk a little and arrive at Rua Filito de Almeida, next to Forum de Pinheiros. There, at 11 am, there will be a concentration of Block of Benjores, which, from the name, you can imagine what kind of music it plays. It’s a friendly block, very traditional family in Vila Madalena, which takes a short distance to Rua Rodésia, where it closes at 3pm.

Great time to go down to Mourato Coelho for the party Bacchus Balaco from the wine bar Mouth Nera, known for its rotation. The party, if you want to go straight, starts at 1pm and goes until 9pm. The party will have marches and will take place on the sidewalk. For the event, the house partnered with Somm canned wine and the 269 ml can will be sold for R$ 12.90. Very good! Just don’t forget that three cans are equivalent to one bottle. There will be pizzas and sandwiches at a good price too. If I were in São Paulo, I would go.

Monday the 12th

Waking up early to skip Carnival is against my religion, but Spectacular Charanga do França deserves us to commit this heresy. The strong point of the band, which is really a band, are the wind instruments. And the frequency. Everyone goes. The meeting is at 9 am, in front of the bar and restaurant Conceição Discos, on Rua Imaculada Conceição, 134, in Santa Cecília. Dispersion is at Largo Santa Cecília, at 12pm.

From there, I would go to Paloma, a wine bar, shop and restaurant on the ground floor of the Copan Building, which is open on Mondays until midnight. I would eat a sirloin cup milanesa with mixed leaves (R$ 65.00) and have a drink with wine, a tonic sherry (R$ 42.00) or a tinto verano (R$ 43.00).

Tuesday the 13th

Last day of Carnival, everyone’s tongue is already hanging out. I would go to a block that doesn’t get around much, like Now Go, which runs around eight blocks from Rua Barão de Limeira, from Alameda Glete to almost the train line in Campos Elíseos, from 2pm to 7pm. It is a very irreverent group, initially formed by theater artists. From there, you can take the metro to República and go either to Paloma as for the Prose and Winewhich will be open on Tuesday.