Più Higienópolis

The Verdict

Most people assume a mall-based Italian restaurant in São Paulo is a concession to convenience over quality. Più Higienópolis corrects that assumption. Holding back-to-back Michelin Bib Gourmand awards in 2024 and 2025, this is the strongest case for Italian cooking in the $$ price tier in the city. If you have been once and played it safe, return with more ambition; the drinks program and the kitchen both reward the repeat visitor who orders more deliberately.

What Più Higienópolis Actually Is

Più sits inside Shopping Pátio Higienópolis, one of the more polished mall environments in the city, which means you arrive through retail corridors but land in a room that takes its food seriously. Chef Marcelo Laskani runs an Italian-focused kitchen that has earned Michelin recognition for consistent value delivery; the Bib Gourmand designation specifically signals quality cooking at prices that do not require a special-occasion budget. At the $$ price point, you are not choosing between quality and affordability; Michelin has already that both coexist here.

For a Bib Gourmand holder, that number suggests reliable execution across high visit volume rather than occasional brilliance. If you went once and found it consistent but not surprising, that is the baseline, not the ceiling.

The Drinks Program: Worth Your Attention

Italian restaurants in São Paulo's $$ tier often treat the drinks list as an afterthought, defaulting to a short wine list and a handful of cocktails that exist to fill the menu. At a venue that has earned repeat Michelin recognition, the expectation should be higher, the drinks program at Più is worth treating as a destination in itself, not a preamble to the food. For the return visitor, this is the area most likely to change your read of the venue. Italian-leaning wine selections typically anchor the list at restaurants with this kitchen profile, so if your previous visit was beer or soft drinks, a more considered approach to the wine pairing will shift the experience materially. Aperitivo-style drinking before the meal is also the correct way into an Italian format at this level, arrive a few minutes early and use the drinks list as an entry point rather than an afterthought.

The broader context: Italian restaurants in São Paulo that hold Bib Gourmand status are not common. Venues like Picchi, Borgo Mooca, and Bottega Bernacca each represent different price and style positions in the Italian category in the city. Più's specific combination of mall location, $$ pricing, consecutive Michelin recognition makes it an outlier worth returning to with more curiosity about what the full experience offers.

Timing and When to Go

Shopping Pátio Higienópolis draws a consistent local crowd from the surrounding Higienópolis neighbourhood, one of the more residential and family-oriented areas of central São Paulo. Weekday lunches tend to attract a business and neighbourhood crowd; weekend lunches fill faster given the mall foot traffic. For a more settled experience with better table pacing, a weekday dinner is the right call. Avoid peak mall hours on Saturday afternoons if you want the room to be quieter, a more relaxed mid-week evening is when the kitchen is least stretched and the service most attentive.

If you are travelling to São Paulo and building an itinerary, this works well alongside a broader neighbourhood exploration. For full São Paulo planning, see our full São Paulo restaurants guide, São Paulo hotels guide, São Paulo bars guide, São Paulo wineries guide, and São Paulo experiences guide.

Booking and Access

Booking difficulty at Più is rated Easy. The mall location means walk-in access is more realistic here than at standalone restaurants with comparable recognition, but calling ahead for weekend evenings is the sensible move. No online booking details are published in the venue record; the safest approach is to contact the shopping centre directly or plan a weekday visit without a reservation if your schedule is flexible.

Pearl Picks Nearby

If you are exploring Italian in São Paulo more broadly, Marena Cucina and Casa Santo Antônio are worth your time at different price points. For Italian dining further afield in Brazil, Lasai in Rio de Janeiro represents a different register entirely. Italian at the highest global level has reference points in venues like 8½ Otto e Mezzo Bombana in Hong Kong and cenci in Kyoto, useful calibration if you are benchmarking São Paulo's Italian scene against international competition. Elsewhere in Brazil, Manu in Curitiba, Manga in Salvador, Mina in Campos do Jordão, Orixás | North Restaurant in Itacaré, and Castelo Saint Andrews in Gramado round out a national picture of serious regional cooking worth tracking.