Owned by the Italian Fasano chain, this award-strewn and beautifully appointed restaurant is frequently cited as the best Italian in Rio, although quality like this comes at a cost. The high-ceilinged, wooden-floor building exhibits the clean, contemporary design that is the Fasano hallmark and the menu contains wonderful pastas and risottos, as well as excellent fish and meat dishes; a second Rio branch operates in Barra da Tijuca.

Após 20 anos na esquina de Aníbal de Mendonça e Redentor, em novembro de 2020 o restaurante mudou-se de mala e panelas para o Hotel Fasano, na Vieira Souto. Com projeto do arquiteto Miguel Pinto Guimarães, tem ampla varanda de frente para a praia, para quem prefere ter a experiência gastronômica a céu aberto, em sintonia com o estilo de vida carioca. À frente da cozinha está o italiano Luigi Moressa, que participou da abertura do Gero na cidade, em 2002.

Gero does not come with a small price tag, but it does come with high end dining, in brick-wall rooms lit naturally by the sun. It has been recommended in the Michelin guide this year alone, and in the Veja Rio magazine in 2016. This is one of the priciest Italian restaurants in the list, but it is also perhaps the best experience, due to the combination of rich ingredients, cooked skillfully to compose plates of italian delicacies.

Lunch spots like Gero and Forneria are surrounded in Range Rovers as the most beautiful people in the world scurry from air-conditioned car to climate-controlled restaurant. Rain is omnipresent, but no one owns an umbrella and the beach somehow still manages to be busy. Late day, the comfort of a pool is the privilege of the few.

Rua Anibal de Mendonça, 157; tel: 21-2239 8158www.fasano.com.br Open daily for lunch and dinner $$$$. Gero is one of the hotspots on Rio’s gastronomic map, popular with those who matter in artistic, financial and political circles. Part of the Fasano family that also owns and runs the hotel in Ipanema.

Vieira Souto, 80 – IpanemaRio de Janeiro – RJ, 22420-000, Brazil(21) 3202-4030 Visit Website Open in Google Maps. Gero Rio, which opened in 2002, is a stylish restaurant that serves modern Italian cuisine in a well-furnished setting.

ADDRESS: Rua Aníbal de Mendonça, 157, Ipanema, Rio de Janeiro. PHONE NUMBER: (21) 2239-8158. Under Rogério Fasano’s management, Gero opened its Rio branch in 2002, in the wake of the São Paulo restaurant’s success.

Gero Rio, part of the Fasano Hotel complex, is located at Ipanema, Rio de Janeiro. This elegant restaurant specializes in serving up modern interpretations of Italian cuisine in a tastefully decorated setting.