but he threw it all out in 2000 to start the comida do buteco, an annual competition for botecos. it s a big deal here and it raised botecos from male-dominated, dirty glass joints to the centerpiece of the minera social scene. so what s on the menu? eduardo maya: boteco in minas is a bit like the italians. we eat a lot of pork here. an important thing about the boteco in minas is that they serve real food food from minas gerais. anthony: so what are we having tonight? eduardo maya: i think we are having tongue, of course. ox tongue. anthony: right, uh, i m intrigued what eduardo maya: would you like some tripe as well? anthony: i think a little tripe as well. eduardo maya: would you like some hand of the pig? anthony: yes, yes, yes. eduardo maya: so now you are gonna you are going to go deep, deep inside minas. anthony: i m happy. yes. eduardo maya: lovely. okay. [ shouts in portuguese ] anthony: ox tongue cooked with basil, mint, and pepper. perhaps the
alone. it s a philosophy that carries over to the botecos. they re basically neighborhood joints found all over brazil serving beers, cachaca, and a few homemade dishes. places like this one bar do careca. what are the requirements that define a boteco? eduardo maya: it s a place where the family is. behind the counter full-time. anthony: mom and pop. eduardo maya: mom and papa, yeah. anthony: eduardo maya is a self-taught gastronome and paterfamilias of the boteco scene here. luiz otavio, a beverage tycoon who specializes in the legendary cachaca, of minas gerais. eduardo maya: if the boteco is good, people come all over town. it s like a home outside our home. luiz otavio: it s a group therapy. anthony: what do you talk about? eduardo maya: we talk about everything but business. anthony: sports? luiz otavio: jokes. eduardo maya: sports. luiz otavio: women. eduardo maya: food. luiz otavio: food. anthony: eduardo had previous incarnations as a banker and
their products. but here, let s make the same technique but with our products. we have started saying, listen, this is good. put in your restaurant. pequi is good. they were ashamed with pequi. anthony: this attachment to the idea that french food and italian food will always be more valuable than your own thing. it s it s, uh, ridiculous concept. eduardo maya: we menieros, we don t talk much. we don t go on the top of our mountain and start to just spread the word that we have good food. we are very quiet people. you have to discover us, but we have the best.
and if you re lucky, fresh eggs. oh, there we go. eduardo maya: oh there we go, very nice. that s the tongue ox tongue. anthony: yup. eduardo maya: that s the foot. the pig s foot. anthony: right. eduardo maya: may i? anthony: oh, yes, please. luiz otavio: the food from mineas gerais has nothing to do with our climate. anthony: yeah, you re right. this is cold-weather food. luiz otavio: yes. this meal is nice. anthony: yeah, right? eduardo maya: it s a very comfort food, isn t it? he prepares the tongue every day. anthony: you have a great culinary tradition here of flavors. you have fantastic ingredients, but in upper-class bello horizonte, people are insecure about their food until recently. where did this come from? luiz otavio: it s a plague italian and french food. eduardo maya: i used to say it s a complex. anthony: right. eduardo maya: like a trauma we ve been in from who colonized us, so they posed it and we have excellent products. good prod