Metzi

Should You Book Metzi?

If you have been to Metzi once, coming back reveals what the first visit might obscure: this is not a novelty concept riding a cross-cultural hook. The Mexican-Brazilian combination that chefs Eduardo Ortiz and Luana Sabino brought to Pinheiros has earned consecutive Michelin Plates in 2024 and 2025 precisely because it holds up on repeat. Book it for a date, a small celebration, or any meal where you want something that feels considered without requiring the full ceremony of São Paulo's $$$$ tier. At $$$, it delivers more creative ambition than most restaurants in its price band.

The Room and the Experience

Metzi sits on Rua João Moura in Pinheiros, a street that does steady evening traffic without the circus of the Vila Madalena blocks nearby. The address puts it in comfortable walking distance of the neighbourhood's better bars, which matters if you are planning a night that extends past dinner. The space is compact enough to feel intentional rather than sparse, the layout rewards intimate groups of two to four. For a special-occasion dinner, the scale works in your favour: you are not lost in a large room, the kitchen's output is visible enough that the meal has momentum.

Ortiz and Sabino both came through Cosme in New York, which gives Metzi a specific culinary reference point. Cosme built its reputation on treating Mexican technique as a serious foundation rather than a shorthand for casual eating, that sensibility travels. Here, Brazilian ingredients and preparation methods are worked into that framework rather than layered on top of it as decoration. The Michelin description points to dishes such as a mushroom quesadilla and fish a la talla as evidence of how that dialogue between the two kitchens functions in practice. These are not fusion flourishes; they reflect a menu built around what happens when two culinary traditions are taken seriously on equal terms.

In São Paulo's competitive restaurant environment, it reflects consistent satisfaction rather than viral novelty. Venues that spike on buzz often settle lower. Metzi's score, holding across nearly five hundred visits, suggests the kitchen is reliable and the experience repeats well, which is exactly what you need when bringing a guest somewhere for the first time.

Late-Night Positioning

Pinheiros is one of São Paulo's more functional neighbourhoods for an evening that moves between venues, Metzi's location is a practical asset if you are building a night around more than one stop. Dinner here before moving on to one of the area's bars is a well-worn sequence for a reason. The restaurant's portion of the evening is substantial enough to anchor the night without running so long that you lose the window for whatever comes after. Hours are not confirmed in our data, so contact the restaurant directly to confirm last-seating times, particularly on weekends when Pinheiros bars run late and dinner bookings can compress.

For a late dinner specifically, Metzi is a better choice than nearby options that close their kitchen early or shift to a reduced menu. The neighbourhood has enough activity that arriving at 9 PM or later is not unusual, the compact room does not feel like it is winding down the way larger dining rooms sometimes do in the final hour of service.

Who Should Book

Metzi earns its place on a São Paulo itinerary most clearly for two profiles. First, anyone who wants Michelin-recognised cooking without moving to the $$$$ tier: D.O.M. and Evvai both sit a price tier above, while the ambition at those addresses is different in scale, Metzi is not making up the gap with shortcuts. Second, anyone who wants a creative menu for a date or small celebration that does not require navigating a tasting menu format. The à la carte structure gives the meal flexibility that a fixed progression does not.

If you are specifically seeking Brazilian cuisine with the same level of creative intent, Maní is the closest peer at the same price tier, though the cooking there leans into Brazilian-international rather than the Mexican framework Metzi operates within. Tuju is another option if the creative angle is your priority. For a wider view of what São Paulo's restaurant scene offers, see our full São Paulo restaurants guide.

Outside São Paulo, the Mexican-influenced creative cooking at Pujol in Mexico City represents the benchmark in that tradition. Metzi is not attempting to replicate it, but if your frame of reference runs through that kitchen, the Cosme lineage shared by Ortiz and Sabino will be apparent. Elsewhere in Brazil, Lasai in Rio de Janeiro and Manu in Curitiba represent how other cities are approaching creative cooking at the same level of seriousness.

How It Compares