When Brazilian bar Buteco opened at the Beacon in Grant Park in 2018, it offered a full list of Brazilian cocktails and coffee drinks, as well as bites like chicken cheese coxinha and steak or chicken skewers prepared and sold out of a food truck just outside the restuarant.
Four years later, the drinks remain a strong part of Buteco’s identity, but owner Rafael Pereira has decided to go in a different direction with the food.
Chef Timothy Rufino and partner Carl V.T. Gilbert recently joined forces to launch Butaco, which operates out of the food truck next to Buteco. The pair have also worked together at Atlanta restaurants Lazy Betty and Juniper Cafe.
Credit: Butaco
Credit: Butaco
“We decided to let go of our food program for a number of reasons, and wanted to find people with a passion and the experience to take it over,” Pereira said. “We realized tacos were a good move, in terms of bringing people in and also keeping things Latin American. It was a win-win situation.”
The “eclectic” take on tacos includes al pastor, carne asada and chorizo seasoned with chervil, cotija, chimichurri and annatto seed. Other dishes include beans and rice, elotes, watermelon salad and the option to make any taco “birria” for an extra $1. Desserts like Mexican chocolate ganache and cardamom-cinnamon sugar churros round out the menu.
The menu, which will change seasonally, was designed to be “super simple, quick and deliverable,” Pereira said. “We’re aiming to please, and it’s such a good complement to what we’re already doing here.”
That includes a cocktail menu with new drinks including the Ko Ko Bop with Caravedo pisco, peach soju and yuzu syrup, and The 19th, inspired by the constitutional amendment that guarantees women the right to vote. The beverage selection, still available to order from inside the bar, also includes traditional caipirinhas and a full coffee menu.
While the Brazilian food menu is mostly going away, feijoada, a black bean stew, will be served on special occasions, and the restaurant will continue to host live samba, capoeira martial art demonstrations and other Brazilian-themed events.
In addition to its Beacon location, Buteco also opened a location in the Southern Feedstore food hall in early 2022.
Butaco’s hours will mirror Buteco’s: 11 a.m.-11 p.m. Tuesdays-Wednesdays, 11 a.m.-midnight Thursdays-Saturdays and 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Sundays. Butaco will also be available for delivery via UberEats.
1039 Grant St. SE, Atlanta. butecoatlanta.com.
Scroll down to see the opening menu for Butaco:
Credit: Butaco
Credit: Butaco
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