green forest churrascaria

good food but pricey. went here with three other people and although the price was on the high side (just shy of $200) for all of us together it was good food. the only problem with it is that if you like your meat well done or don't like any pink in the meat, this place isn't for you. although the cook altered some meats for someone with us who likes their meat well done, most were medium-rare (with the exception of turkey, chicken and pork of course). over all, i would definitely go back again. thecoldfood buffet was really good and is actually sitting straight on ice, but we didn't try the hot buffet items.

like it but with a catch. my overall experince with green forrest was mixed. like a previous reviewer i had been to a similar brazillan steakhouse in houston, tx and it was a mind blowing experience. i don't think i have eaten so well. the meat was amazing, thecoldbar was amazing, the service was amazing, the sides on the table same.

again like the previous reviewer when i got back to pittsburgh sought out out green forrest. i knew it was there but it never sparked my interest until then. all in all the food was pretty good, thecoldbar was ok, the hotbar was ok and the sides on the table again were ok. all in all the expereince was just ok. now my friend who had never heard of such a place was euphoric much the same i was at the place in houston.

in summary, there are much much better examples of brazillan steakhouses out there, just not in pittsburgh. green forrest is not even in the same galaxy as some, but all things being equal it's not too bad. i'm not sure it's worth $40, but i would pay $30 and not feel too bad about it.

not good!. after visiting a restaurant of this type in atlanta and loving it, thought we would give this one a try. not good, this place is very tired, from the decor to the service. thecoldbar was average at best, and as for the star the meat it was just okay as well. some were good others not so much due under cooking. rare is one thing raw is another. not worth the price for us, much better choices around for less. 1-10 this one gets a 4.

overpriced. the food was ok, we were in similar restaurant 2 years ago in atlanta. .restaurant was not cozy, it wascoldthere and dark and restrooms were not clean , no toilet paper.

green means go!. the green forest brazilian restaurant is a great special occasion choice. it is an all you can eat style with a variety of fabulous food. i believe they have over 16 or 17 meat selections alone. they have disks marked green and red to alert your servers to stop or go with the meat offerings. they also have a hot andcoldbuffet, which is an expansive area in addition to the meats served table side. our gang referred to the service as "swords of meat".

thecoldbar consists of many salads shrimp cocktail, oysters on the half shell, sushi and sashimi. the portabella salad was delicious as well as the grilled asparagus.

on the hot buffet they have lobster mashed potatoes and paella.
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for dessert we enjoyed the coconut flan and passion fruit mousse (when tried together was the perfect combination of sweet & tart) which were both good. there were many other options too. please be aware that desserts may not be included in your special, so please check. they also have a well stocked bar. if you have a big appetite especially for meat, this is the certainly the place to go.

check out their website for specials. i have also seen groupon specials from time to time too. on tuesdays and thursdays they have an early bird special from 4 - 6 pm: $37 instead of $42.50.

service was attentive and pleasant. also be aware that this restaurant is not visible from the main road (rodi rd), but it sits up in an office complex, conveniently located right off the parkway east, penn hills exit.

feast on meats... and many other delights!!!. green forest was amazing years ago, and it continues to be a favorite today. i have been there a couple times this past year, and each time was reliably perfect. here are some details from our most recent visit:
the owners and staff are very welcoming and attentive. they really show pride for their restaurant, and that shines through in the food.
while the meat is the star of the show, the hot bar, and to a lesser extent salad bar, are awesome. the hot bar includes feijoada, a brazilian bean and sausage stew; rice; an unmissable seafood stew in coconut sauce containing mussels, fish, shrimp, and clams; beef vegetable soup; and other rotating dishes, like lobster mashed potatoes. all were great. the salad bar is worth visiting for its selection of fine hams and cheeses, but pasta salads andcoldvegetable salads are good but not great.
then...the meat. waves and waves of meat. on your first visit from the meat server, they ask how you like your meat cooked and tend to offer you the pieces that are to your liking. i like my meat pretty rare, and every piece was cooked to my liking. after my husband and i leave, we like to see if we can remember all the meat the came around, and we counted 15. plus pineapple and garlic bread. some highlights were the parmesan-crusted filet, skirt steak with chimichurri, garlic filet cooked tableside (a new addition, i think), slab bacon, flank steak, ribeye (probably the overall favorite), turkey wrapped in bacon, filet wrapped in bacon, leg of lamb, and filet in red wine mushroom sauce. so, pretty much everything. :) to be fair, we aren't wild about the brazilian sausage, and the lamb chops were a little overcooked. but seriously, everything else was fantastic.
special shout out to our main meat server, who came around when we were slowing down to ask if there was anything particular we would like. we said that we wouldn't say no to some leg of lamb, which he brought around shortly thereafter. on that high note we admitted defeat and flipped our indicator-thingy to red, but he brought around some lamb chops right after, just to make sure we didn't want them. that was so thoughtful, he won extra points from both of us.
green forest is clearly still on top of it's game--- it's worth going to more than just once a year!

i reviewed this place a few years ago and.... ...i still love it. we went here for my birthday this evening and my wife, daughter and i had a wonderful time. excellent service, and the meats were stellar. they even let me check out their rotisserie rig at the back of the restaurant and it is a stellar setup. swords of meats slowly turning over hardwood coals under the constant eye of the chef. i asked how they got some of the different cuts (many of which you really cannot find in the us stores) and interestingly enough - they butcher all their meats in house. the only other place that i know that butchers in-house is tessaro's. the meats are well seasoned (salted) and have some interesting cuts, skirt, flank, picanha (they call it a tenderloin, but it is actually a top rump steak - phenominal), filet, ribeye, top sirloin, beef rib, roasted prime rib. yes, i tried them all. my favorite is skirt and picanha. they also have a very good turkey wrapped in bacon, chicken thighs, pork loins, whole salmon, house-made sausages that were excellent and a very nice duo of lamb leg and loin chops. there is also a nice array of sauces at thecoldbar.coldappetizers were excellent. nice looking sushi (didn't have it - takes away from meat space), nicely prepared roasted/grilled/marinated vegetables, smoked salmon (twist my arm!) and a nice cheese/cured meat board. they did have some hot dishes on the buffet, but that would draw the focus away from the meat (focus man!), but they did have fejouada (sp?) - the national dish of brazil with black beans and pork, but that is a true gut bomb and although delicious and for many brazilians a true taste of home - it is like eating concrete... albeit delicious concrete. after eating most of noah's ark - my daugher still managed to have a craving for dessert. we ordered a chocolate mousse that was truly outstanding - incredibly rich and had that "we used really good chocolate" taste.

overall - it was excellent. was it cheap? no, but considering that i've paid well over $100 for the 3 of us to go to what turned out to be a marginal restaurant, paying $42 per adult an $16 for a child (plus drinks and a dessert) - it was not cheap, but it was a quality meal and a very nice experience and it was worth it in the end. i would have spent close to that on a dinner (apps, entree, dessert) at the grand concourse and eaten a crap meal amongst a bunch of bluehairs on a tourbus from ypsilanti, or worse yet, gone to a red lobster.

on a constructive criticism note - the place could use a little sprucing up in the decor. it hasn't been updated since i first came there years ago.

eat here. the food is great, different, and it is truly worth that extra couple of bucks. starve yourself for a couple of days and get your meat on. you will not be disappointed.


-----24 jun, 2009-----

all hail the meat! definitely an experience as the servers wield large swords of meat fulfilling your carnal desires. my favorite cut is the skirt steak - the cut often unavailable at the local giant eagle (unless you want to head to whole foods and pay way too much). it is a little on the pricey side but the quality of the meat is well-worth it. a day of fasting prior to visiting is a good idea - clean mind = tastier meat.

where's the beef??. the beef is here! so is the lamb, pork and chicken.

i like this place. it was delicious, plentiful and clean. i have no issues with this place whatsoever. although i would suggest that if meat isn't your favorite dish, you may want to consider some place else. and yes, the beef comes rare - but i overheard others asking for well done, and they prepared it for them. the pork, chicken, ribs, etc were cooked appropriately - but i love the rare beef.

i also liked thecoldfood selections, the seafood, mussels, clams, shrimp and salads galore. along with the never ending parade of meats and thecoldselections - they also have chaffing dishes with hot sides. they were tasty as well.

in my humble opinion it was all fresh, and the place was clean. and possibly, it's not as good as the churrascaria in texas or brazil, but this is penn hills after all, and most of us aren't heading south anyway.

i suggest waiting for the groupon, it essentially gives you a bogo.

try it, you'll like it.. even if you're not a big meat eater, you will love this place. theircoldbar is extensive and includes shrimp and crab as well and some of the best sushi i've had surprisingly. and the meat is high-quality and melts in your mouth. i am not a "buffet person" but i loved this place. when you pull up to this place you might be apprehensive as the interior and exterior needs updated.

carnivore heaven. my husband loves this place. loves it. i like it but i'm not a fan of rare meat (which is how many of the meats are cooked). there are too many types of meat to sample them all and thecoldbar has a nice variety. i think the overall experience is worth the expense.

show up hungry. dined here last year for valentine's weekend. we were pleased with our dining choice; we went early, for a lunch and dinner, and sat and ate for a long time.

the atmosphere is okay, though not particularly special. the waiters were nice and the service was good. don't waste your time on thecoldbar; get a little something, but save most of your calories for the main star: the meat.

the wide variety of meat was nice; some were better than others. we sat for three hours or more, talking and eating and enjoying ourselves.

warning: the desserts are really good, but they charge separately for each dessert. our waitress didn't make this clear and we got a little surprise when the bill came. they aren't too expensive, though.

amazing!. everything about the green forest is wonderful! i just couldn't wait to go back and eat again! yes, it's expensive, but worth every penny! i'd suggest if you are not a fan of really red/rare meats, this is not the place for you. but if you're a meat lover, it's perfect! all of the food is fresh and hot! the entire buffet consist ofcoldseafoods and seafood salads...some people prefer hot seafood, but thecoldis just as tasty. the servic was wonderful! they made sure we had everything to make our dinner enjoyable! the setting is not what i expected, but the food made up for it! this is definitally worth the drive from greenville, pa to penn hills. i'd take this drive any day of the week!

good for a new experience. this place, i'm not so sure about. it was definitely something worth trying once, but don't think we will go back. i enjoyed thecoldsalad bar the most. the meat was all pretty fatty. if you like your meat done well, i wouldn't suggest it. everything is very rare... yes, the hot sides were pretty gross...there was even meat in the mashed potatoes...i, personally, am not too much of a red meat eater. and it was very pricey! for two buffets, a pitcher of sangria and two mixed drinks it was $160! yikes! that did include gratuity, which the waitress failed to tell us about...i don't like this trick...good thing someone else in our group noticed it! i would have rather of went to a nicer place for this much money spent.

never disappoints. having your office close to this restaurant can be hazardous to your wasteline :) great to see now licensed. service was prompt, meat was great and thecoldbuffet was awesome.

green forest. i ate here on new year's eve for the second new year's eve in a row. the decor of the restaurant is nice upon entering but is not nearly as nice in the seating area. regardless of that both the bar and buffet are impressive.

i started off by going up to thecoldbar which had a wonderful selection of different foods. it contained everything from savory meats and fresh parmesan cheese to crab legs and even some sushi and sashimi. honestly, i could have been happy with just eating from the buffet the whole night but the best was yet to come. if you have ever been to a brazilian steakhouse before then you know the ridiculous selection of meats that they have. everything that they brought out seemed to be cooked perfectly with my favorites being the skirt steak and the parmesan encrusted filet. the meat servers were also very much on the ball and new meats were arriving at the table almost every minute that i had my card turned to green. overall it was probably the best experience i have had here and i have never had one that was not pleasurable.

the bottom line is that this is the only brazilian steakhouse in pittsburgh which is ok because it is a good one and i will definitely be back in the future. don't expect to get off cheap when eating here but it is still well worth the price for all of the wonderful cuts of meat that they have.