Like Water for Chocolate (Or In This Case … Steak)

By Brjden Crewe

“If I wouldn’t eat it, I wouldn’t serve it.” 

— Anna Gomes, co-owner/manager of Via Brasil Steakhouse

If passion for serving patrons fresh and great-quality food were a person, it would be the co-owner and manager of Via Brasil Steakhouse, Anna Gomes, whom I was fortunate enough to speak with recently as we discussed quality food standards, the volatile state of the restaurant industry in Las Vegas and the resilience needed to sustain a prosperous run as one of, if not the best, steakhouses in the valley.

Since 2008, the husband-and-wife team of Anna and Adam Gomes has curated both a traditional and modern Brazilian steakhouse experience, powered by their passion for people, family and delicious, savory food. Their focus is on pleasing patrons’ taste buds through what matters most — a standard of culinary precision and education, coupled with the freshest ingredients that help their chefs prepare an assortment of flavorful cured meat cuts, artisan cheeses and Brazilian favorites like feijoada, pão de queijo (Brazilian cheese bread) and coxinha — all made from the heart.

The title I referenced for this blog comes from the 1989 novel “Like Water for Chocolate,” written by Mexican author Laura Esquivel. In short, the protagonist, Tita, is a young Mexican woman who can magically transfer her emotions into the meals she cooks, allowing anyone who eats her food to share the emotions she’s feeling while in her kitchen. If Tita is sad when she cooks a dish, anyone to whom she serves it becomes sad. If she’s jovial or cheerful while cooking, those emotions are passed into the food and then on to whoever eats it. You get the drift. And speaking with Anna about her love for the food experience at Via Brasil Steakhouse, she reminds me of Tita.

The team also recently opened Loaded Empanadas in 2024, having found a need to create Latin food that is both healthy and delicious. Many restaurants prepare empanadas with frozen dough, but the Gomes family, known for using only the freshest ingredients, prepares theirs with prime beef, fresh shrimp and fresh chicken breasts.

It isn’t until you taste food made from the heart that you taste the difference. With every cut of hand-sliced steak delivered to your table by one of the hand-selected chefs at Via Brasil Steakhouse, you get to share in the joy Anna has for serving the best food they possibly can and the care she has for anyone lucky enough to experience it.

Another part of her joy is educating their young chefs about the fast-fleeting qualities of today’s young culinary students, a professionalism only achieved by understanding that patience and precision will always succeed in a fast-food world. From teaching their chefs the proper way to cut ribs and prepare their lobster to understanding how to use a thermometer to find the perfect temperature for the succulent steaks they serve every day, Anna is incredibly passionate about her food. And you can tell.

I believe this attention to detail is the “secret sauce” for the success of Via Brasil Steakhouse. With their doors having been open for 18 years, this incredible feat is nearly an unthinkable accomplishment in the challenging and difficult state of owning a restaurant today. This year alone has seen over 20 food establishments close in Las Vegas, with economic hardships, high food and supply costs, and an assortment of competition cited as causes for the closings.

But Anna has some advice for young restaurateurs interested in opening their doors in the future: Feed those who visit your restaurant like you would feed your family. Teach each person who works for you and represents your brand how to feed your family with care and delight while treating those same people who work with you like family as well.

That’s the experience you receive at Via Brasil Steakhouse. Anna and her team serve food to visitors just like Tita in “Like Water for Chocolate,” with her magical ability to channel her deep emotions into her food. Except the family at Via Brasil Steakhouse only channels joy into everything they serve you and yours.