Tuesday, May 04, 2010

Libra Brazilian Eatery + GIVEAWAY & Coupon

Using Random.org, Congrats go to Moonbeam's Auntie for Winning Dinner for Two at Libra Brazilian Eatery!

Thanks to Libra for supplying me with photos for this blog post. Unfortunately, I lost my Libra photos when my external hard drive crashed. :(


Last month, I received an invitation from Kathy Kwon who does PR for Libra Brazilian Eatery in Culver City to check out the restaurant. When I first read the email, the word "Libra" was the only thing that stuck in my mind and honestly, I was scratching my head over it. What does astrology have to do with Brazilian food, I wondered. I soon found out from Street Gourmet LA blogger, Bill Esparza.

More ...

First, libra is Portuguese for pound. Second, kilo restaurants, as they are known in Brazil, are quite prevalent in that country. In short, both at Libra and kilo restaurants, the cost of the food is based on its weight. Now I get it. Thanks, Bill. In the case of Libra, the food cost is calculated by the pound and not kilo, since our American sensibilities aren't quite geared towards the metric system. Specifically, Salads + Hot Sides are $8.45/lb, Salads + Hot Sides + BBQ are $9.75/lb while BBQ only is $12.95/lb.

Libra is owned by Marcelo Ahn, who also owns M Grill, a churrascaria in Koreatown and Libra's executive chef is Marcelo's sister, Carol Ahn, who creates and oversees the revolving 40+ menu items at the restaurant. Other than the food by the weight aspect, Libra is different from the other Brazilian restaurants because it's a buffet that also has a grilling station for a variety of barbecued meats.

This is no ordinary buffet. It starts off with a hand washing station and then goes into a really long salad bar featuring fresh and flavorful foods that reflects a global influence on Brazilian cuisine. All the food is made from scratch and if you're vegetarian/vegan, there are 30+ items for you to choose from like hearts-of-palm salad, grilled eggplant, snow pea salad, pickled vegetables and more. Hot items can include anything from an oxtail stew to various pasta dishes. Carnivores don't despair. As mentioned, there is also a grilling station where you can order Portuguese sausages, one of the best chicken thighs I've ever eaten as well as other cuts of beef.
As mentioned, I lost my Libra photos or else I'd be showing you that for around $21, I was able to get one very full plate of various veggie items, a plate of each bbq meat they had, dessert and a mineral water. Paying by the pound may seem a lot, but it's not as much as you would think. I didn't go home hungry. What you get in exchange is delicious food, prepared well and that will satisfy both carnivore and vegetarian alike. I think Libra is truly a welcome addition to the Culver City dining scene.

Libra Brazilian Eatery
3833 Main Street
Culver City, CA 90232
(310) 202-1300
Libra By The Pound on Urbanspoon

To see what other bloggers have to say about Libra and more photos, check out:

harb knock life
starchy marie

PRIZE GIVEAWAY!

Now that you've read and seen some pictures of my experience at Libra Brazilian Eatery, you can enter for a chance to win Dinner for 2.

There are two ways to enter:

1. Leave a comment and tell me why you'd like to you'd like to this free dinner for 2. (Please leave your email so that I can contact you. Spell it out like abby at pleasurepalate dot com)

2. Tweet: Win Dinner for 2 at Libra Brazilian Eatery via @pleasurepalate http://bit.ly/9QGX39

Please note that if you do tweet the contest, you have to comment back and let me know that you did so, so that I can keep track of it. If you don’t let me know that you tweeted then I won’t count it as an entry.

Contest ends Monday, May 10 at 11:59 AM, PST and a winner will be randomly chosen from all entries. Good Luck!

COUPON

If you just can't wait and would like to check out Libra for yourself, print out the coupon below to get 15% off your meal. Good until May 31, 2010



^

17 comments:

cmaryann said...

I would love a chance to try Libra Brazilian eatery. I love Brazilian food and am always looking for new fun and exciting places to try.
summerwyne at gmail dot com

Anonymous said...

WHo wouldn't want to eat at one of Abby's recommendations? Free would be the cherry on top.

ccrashcup at mad dot scientist dot com

romanholiday said...

My boyfriend has two great loves: Korean BBQ and Brazilian BBQ. While we love places such as Fogo de Chao, I'm suffering from a bit of palate fatigue and would love to try somewhere new that will satisfy both his carnivorous and my more-omnivorous leanings.

romanholiday710 (at) gmail (dot) com

Anonymous said...

Based on my recent (and first) Pleasure Palate experience, I agree with ccrashcup....if Abby suggests it, I wanna go!...Mark

rbmd at redondobeachla dot com

Anonymous said...

i'm considering moving to culver city and would love to see what my future city has in store for me!

c at unfun dot org!

Lynda said...

My brother's birthday is coming up and he has always always always wanted to try a brazilian place! This would be perfect for his bday meal.

lyndagp at gmail dot com

Lynda said...

tweeted about the giveaway [oshkoshbgosh123, or lyndagp at gmail dot com]

Moonbeam's Auntie said...

I had the opportunity to experience these "por kilo" (by the kilo) restaurants during two trips to Brasil and I and SO HAPPY that this concept is finally picking up here in the U.S. Eu amo restaurantes por kilo! Love M Grill, too. Choose me! :)

vdevera at yahoo dot com

Ambiggity said...

I can only imagine (and hope!) that Libra is staffed with sexy Brazilian employees to oggle. Combine that with yummy platters of meat and I'd be in hog heaven!

amber dot bechtel at gmail dot com

I just tweeted about the giveaway: @Ambiggity

Sue said...

My husband I love brazilian food! It'd be awesome to try this place!
schoo601 at hotmail dot com

Carrie Carr said...

My husband works for the Public Works division in the City of Culver City, I had my first child in Culver City, my parents live in Culver City, my family and I always make it a point to try the latest foodie places in Culver City. So to win this particular giveaway would be a very welcome opportunity for us to continue our Culver City tradition...and the possibility of it being FREE would make it all the more sweeter!

carrie dot carr at myflourgarden dot com

Carrie Carr said...

Hi, Abby...I forgot to mention that I also tweeted this on my Twitter page.

carrie dot carr at myflourgarden dot com

Anonymous said...

By having dinner at LIBRA I could make it up to my husband for the bad place I chose for our one-year anniversary last week. And he would enjoy tons of beef, chicken and hopefully lamb as would I.

kelebek@att.net

Anonymous said...

As a starving graduate student living in a fairly small city on the east coast for the next five years, I truly miss living/eating in Los Angeles and all the food the city offers! I'll be back in a couple of weeks and some Brazilian fare would be a nice way to wake up my dormant taste buds for a summer of culinary outings all over LA.

orangedictionary at yahoo dot com

gourmetpigs said...

It's still pretty rare to find non-bbq Brazilian food in LA. I missed the Libra media thing last time, so I'm really curious now and want to try it!

gourmetpigs at gmail dot com

Lasana Smith said...

@Lasana

I tweeted about this giveaway and encouraged others to enter although I REALLY would like to win this giveaway myself as I LOVE trying new restaurants in LA and am a foodie! Brazilian food is incredible. Also as I have been unemployed, I haven't been able to afford to eat out as often so winning this giveaway would mean a lot to me!

Unknown said...

Went by Libra last night, and they said they'd decided to change their paradigm -- now an "all-you-can-eat" setup, rather than by the pound. They're doing some interior changes as well, in the next week.

I've eaten there twice now, and highly recommend it! Don't forget to try the couscous salad.