Our Take on Carioca da Gema

You do not find Carioca da Gema so much as it finds you. On any given night in Lapa, if you follow the sound of a cavaquinho and the smell of cold chopp drifting out onto Avenida Mem de Sá, you will end up here. Rio's most beloved samba bar has been the beating heart of the neighbourhood's music scene since 2000, and it has never once tried to be anything other than exactly what it is.

The room is narrow, tiled, always warm. Live samba bands play every night from around 8pm. The crowd is an honest mix of locals from the Zona Sul, tourists who did their research, and musicians who are here to watch or be watched. There are no gimmicks, no cocktail menus designed to photograph well. You drink cold beer in plastic cups or a caipirinha from a bored but efficient bartender, and you dance, or at least you try to.

This is what live music bars in Rio de Janeiro look like when they are working at full power. The city's broader bar scene is richer than most visitors realise, but Carioca da Gema is where the soul is. Go on a Tuesday or Wednesday if you want to hear the music without fighting for space. Weekends sell out.

What to Order

Chopp Brahma

Cold draft lager in a plastic cup. The correct way to drink in Lapa. Simple, ice-cold, and consumed standing up.
Caipirinha Clássica

Lime, sugar, cachaça. Nothing else. At R$18 this is one of the best-value drinks in the city.
Pastel de Queijo

Fried pastry filled with cheese, sold from the kitchen window. The only food option and the only food option you need.