Downtown Review: SushiSamba Rio

The samba dancing, drum-beating, singing spectacle that takes place during Favela Night at 10 p.m. Wednesday alone is something to see — Brazilian dancers clad in like Vegas-style getups with glitz, glamour and feathered headbands; singers performing on a stage with a five-piece band; Congo street drummers pounding away; restaurant patrons getting up to join in the dance. It’s all a little much, but so much so it’s kind of silly, and it makes for some rollicking entertainment, especially when you’ve had a few mojitos, caipirinhas, sake, or, whatever.

The food is another plus. On this particular night we sampled a slew of some new menu items. One standout was the “quinotto,” a Peruvian dish with braised short ribs bathing in a creamy, risotto-like, quinoa mixture with nutty, sharp, manchego cheese and herbs. The term “wicked” is sort of outdated in our book, but it works for a description here.

Another favorite was the lobster and king crab gyoza. What a treat, and we’re told one of the most popular menu items — chunk shellfish in a toothsome and buttery, not greasy, encasing with a spicy-soy flavored sauce they refer to here as su-shoyu. We also liked the seared otoro Kobe beef — super-thin, super-delicate slices of carpaccio-style beef with sautéed shiitake mushrooms and a truffled tofu sauce that tasted nothing like tofu and everything like pureed truffles.

The rock fish a la plancha (pictured) was also a crowd-pleaser. Perfectly cooked (and we mean perfectly, as in not overcooked and maybe a little undercooked), meaty, and fresh white fish with a sweet-salty sauce made with grapefruit and something resembling a soy sauce. The jumbo shrimp ceviche (also pictured) with passion fruit, cucumber and cilantro had great flavor, but sadly the shrimp seemed a little chewy and overcooked.

SushiSamba can be a little on the expensive side, but if you’re looking for something a little more special and unique, it’s best to come in on these Wednesday nights. It was a lot of fun, and if you don’t have or care about it being a school night, head upstairs afterward to the super-chic lounge on the top floor with large windows overlooking city buildings, low-slung banquettes, a long bar, and nice spaces to hang with small, or even large, groups.

SushiSamba Rio, 312-595-2300, located at 504 N. Wells St., is open Sunday through Tuesday from 11:45 a.m. until Midnight, Wednesday through Thursday from 11:45 a.m. until 1 a.m., and Friday and Saturday from 11:45 a.m. (for brunch) until 2 a.m.