If you’re at a Brazilian beach, chances are you will encounter many beach vendors offering all kinds of things you don’t even imagine!

From seafood to temporary tattoos, going to the beach in Brazil is a unique experience. But in this post, we’re going to focus on the best part of this experience: beach snacks and drinks! In most parts of the world, you’re limited to either bringing your own food, boardwalk kiosks or restaurants near beaches, in order to get your snacks and meals in on a beach day.

But on most Brazilian beaches, especially those in major cities, you don’t ever have to leave your beach chair to enjoy a snack whilst enjoying the breeze and views. This is an essential part of the experience, and what most travelers notice as unique (besides the views), when they visit places like Rio de Janeiro, Pernambuco and Bahia.

Want just a coconut water or a bowl of açai? You got it!

But how about mixing it up a bit, and straying away from more run of the mill beach foods, and order a cheese on a skewer or sweet tapioca with condensed milk?

Different parts of the country have different typical foods served on the beach, but for this post, we’re going to concentrate on items you can find in most cities where there are beaches flooded with vendors.

Empada

It’s not easy to rank our favorite beach snacks, but we’ll start with the empada. This is a small backed and savory pie with a very light dough, which can have several fillings. You can find it in many places in Brazil, especially at small corner bakeries and lunch spots, but somehow beach empadas are extra special! If you don’t know which flavors to choose, our team ranked our favories and they are: chicken with catupiry cheese, sun-dried beef with catupiry cheese (basically, anything with catupiry cheese is a good option), or palmito, which is “palm heart”, for our vegetarian beach goers!

Tapioca

Tapioca is a granulated manioc, that when heated, turns into a very thin crust and with a very characteristic flavor, and chewy composition. On the beach, you can find it in a wrap-like format. Like the empada, it can also take several fillings, sweet or savory! This is a typically northeastern Brazilian food, and you’ll find it at breakfasts at hotels you’ll stay at in the region. Tapioca is also gluten-free, which is a great option for those who can’t enjoy the very gluten-ful empadas.

Mate Leão

In third place, we have Mate Leão, a sweet and very refreshing iced tea you will find mostly in Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo’s beaches. In most cases, you will see people drinking their Mate while eating the iconic Biscoito Globo (only in Rio!), a local brand of a crunchy, savory baked snack made from a manioc starch known as “polvilho”.

Queijo Coalho

The delicious queijo coalho, you will find on almost any beach in Brazil! It is a very light cheese, traditionally from the Northeast of Brazil, on a skewer, roasted on a grill in front of you which the beach vendor carries around with him or her. On some beaches, they’re served with “melado”, a sweet sauce that replicated honey, perfect for anyone who likes a sweet and sour combination.

Corn

And last but not least, we have the classic (to us) steamed corn. If you see a person pushing a cart on the beach with a huge pan, just go over and make sure you get your corn, served in a bowl, with melted butter on top. This is also a typical street food in other parts of the country, so if you don’t have your corn whilst tanning, you can find it at metro stop exits, and street corners in all major cities.

What to Avoid

Of course, eating and beaching can have its downsides as well. Some tips for what to avoid, in terms of beach foods, are:

• Avoid shrimp and oysters. Pretty much any seafood or fsh that isn’t deep fried should be avoided at the beach. You never know how long the vendors have been carrying these, so avoid a stomach upset by sticking to the foods we’ve mentioned above!
• Vendors who aren’t licensed – on most beaches in major cities, you’ll find vendors selling things like candy, electronics and more, with stolen items. In Rio de Janeiro, for example, licensed vendors will be wearing a name tag with a “thumbs up” sign that says “Ambulante Legal” – which means “Legal Vendor” but the word “Legal” also means “Cool,” so there is that double meaning – hence the thumbs up!
• One of the reasons you’ll find vendors who come to you on the beach in Brazil, is because there are safety issues with leaving your things unattended on the beach, here. Unfortunately, we face a tough reality which is that many people get stolen on beaches, but most of the time, this is only when you aren’t near your things. Make sure to stay with your personal items at all times, and if you are alone and want to go for a swim, throw all your things in a bag, and ask a beach neighbor to look after your bag for a few minutes. Overall though, call vendors over to you, and don’t go chasing after them unless there’s someone else to guard your things!

Do you need help to plan your trip to a Brazilian beach? Contact us!