Barry McGowan, CEO of Fogo de Chão which has over 50 locations in Brazil, Mexico, the US, and Middle East, announced in an interview with National Restaurant News that it is introducing vegan alternatives to its meat-heavy menu.
Plant-based meats in South America is forecasted by The South American Meat Substitute Market Research Report 2018-2023 to double in size by 2023, so it is no surprise that eatery’s in this region are keen to explore this demand.
Fogo de Chão features the ‘churrasco’ experience, where guests pay a set price for all-you-can-eat meat, passed around on skewers and knives by servers. Mr McGowan did not elaborate as to where the animal free options will be sourced from but stated that they are exploring several ideas.
“We’ve been working on plant-based proteins for about two years. Our price includes everything, so why wouldn’t we offer that? There’s no risk.”
McGowan did not reveal if the options would be from popular brands such as Beyond Meat or Impossible Foods, only that the chain was exploring “several ideas.”
