If there ever were a way to make lovely but landlocked Austin feel like a quaint, colorful beach town, Rio's Brazilian figured it out. Grab a seat beneath one of the many colored umbrellas outside, and the casual Brazilian eatery takes on the form of a beachside bar—only, this would-be surf shack overlooks Pleasant Valley Road rather than the sand and sea of Ipanema.

I first heard about Rio's by word of mouth when in a desperate search for gluten-free dining options around town. Yucca, the centerpiece of many Brazilian meals and snacks, is a root vegetable that's naturally glutenfree and an exceptionally great substitute for french fries or dough for salgadinhos, an empanada-like pastry filled with meats, cheeses and veggies. The best item on Rio’s menu, in my humble, allergy-ridden opinion, is the Bolinho de Aipim de Queijo, a yucca root pastry stuffed with smoked gouda cheese and roasted red pepper.

The white sangria is so sweetly refreshing and packed with fresh tropical fruit that you’ll have to be careful not to reach for it as if it were water. Even more fun? BYOC: Bring Your Own Cachaça. Come armed with a bottle of that Brazilian rum, and Rio's will provide all other ingredients needed for a classic Brazilian cocktail like a caipirinha. You don't come to Rio's to have a rushed meal; you come to Rio's to forget about your to-do lists and time constraints and surrender yourself to a slow-paced, Latin-inspired dining experience.

And there is always plenty to take in beyond the palate. It's a diverse crowd that visits Rio’s, whether in the form of a drum circle or an adventurous, food-loving couple looking for off-the-radar restaurants. Settle in at a table in Rio’s eclectic interior, and you can easily imagine that the patrons have just stumbled in from a long day at the beach in search of an authentic, freshly prepared meal or strong tropical drink.

For me, a few hours spent at Rio's is a transformative experience that is the next best thing to an actual plane ticket (or at least a cheaper alternative) to South America. Not only is the food fresh to order and true to its roots, the atmosphere never fails to ignite my wanderlust. I have no doubt that Rio's has a long-lost-brother of an establishment nestled in a quiet nook somewhere on the exotic Brazilian coastline.