SP Night Market - Birthday Edition

We have SP Night Market next Saturday 20th at Escola São Paulo, Rua Augusta 2239, from 12pm to 9pm.

If you haven't been before it's a great place to meet new friends, business contacts, do a little shopping, have your caricature done by our featured artist,  eat some great food (we have our favourite Indian food in town, plus Paella, French pastries and of course Cupcakes and free cocktail for every-adult-one courtesy of the fantastic Del Cocktail!

Our lineup for entertainment includes a networking talk by Cassia Verginia de Resende, a talk about healthy eating by Chef Tatiana Cardoso, one of the leaders in gluten-free here in São Paulo (she is really amazing!) and to top it all off a private evening gig on the rooftop by the one-and-only Camille Miller!

This is a great review we got from Yelp

"I've found that what I seek when I go somewhere in São Paulo is to be treated as a person, (and not an anonymous "customer"), and interact with other people, which is exactly what I found at SP Night Market. Besides finding goods for sale that I wasn't even expecting to come across there, I had to chance to have actual conversations with vendors, exchanging ideas and experiences with vendors. I even socialized a little around the foosball table. I can't wait for the next edition!" Jonathan D

http://www.yelp.com/biz/sp-night-market-s%C3%A3o-paulo

SP Night Market - 11th Edition

SP Night Market is back this Saturday 5th April at Escola São Paulo. A great place to meet new friends, discover local chefs, enjoy some music and shop! The Facebook event page has more details

SP NIght Market - Anniversary Edition: Free Entry!

If you haven't had a chance to check out one of the SP Night Markets, this is your chance! They are celebrating their first birthday and giving free entry to everyone! It's on Saturday 21st September from 12 - 9pm at Escola São Paulo, Rua Augusta 2239. You will be able to try some of my cupcakes of course!

There are also going to be lectures, live music, thai food... the theme of this edition is LOVE SP!

SP Lovers ❤

At our last Gringoes.com networking event I met a whole bunch of new people (new to me). Some had lived here for over 10 years, others barely 10 days and not all of them were "SP Lovers" but there were a few and I love when I make that connect. One of the newly arrived stood between two "SP Lovers", and he said at the end of our conversation* that he was so excited to meet us because he was already an "SP Lover" but had only met a handful of "SP Haters" so far. I know, I know, I'm being a little divisive and that really everyone exists on a spectrum here.. some days are great in this city, some are not so great. I'm a 99.9% SP Lover.

So most of you living in the city will be have discovered the 99Taxis app. It's available on your smartphone and you don't have to talk to anyone to get a taxi. It sends a message to taxistas in the area, and one of them will accept your request and you can follow their route until they arrive. It's the most popular as it's free for taxistas as well so all of them are on it, and you have get a much faster response. I imagine it will be one of the most popular apps for "no-speak-português tourists during the World Cup. Another one of my favourites, especially when my Portuguese was not so great on the phone, is Rádio Táxi Vermelho e Branco where you can actually type in your reservation online (Faça sua reseva). I'm using it right now to book a taxi for tomorrow morning!!

BTW, put Saturday 21st September in your diary. SP Lovers will be celebrating the first anniversary of SP Night Market at Escola São Paulo and showcasing some of the favourite and best in this city! (and it's going to be FREE entry!)

*We were talking about how much we love to use the metro here, seriously! I like taxi's and the metro - whatever is going to get me somewhere fastest!! 

A pure networking event - Wednesday 24th April, 8pm

Some people hate networking. Others love it. Even though I'm one of those who love getting out and meeting new people, I still don't like the actual term "network" - I think because traditionally, the idea of networking was going out to meet people who could benefit you. I think now networking has become a whole range of things, especially when you have just moved to a new country. It becomes just not just about business, but connecting with people who have similar ideals, lifestyles and beliefs as you. Finding friends, finding your soulmate, finding drinking buddies or if you're lucky you find one person that fits all, hah! But unless you are one of those social butterflies, with no shame or has no qualms of approaching a stranger, sober and saying hello - it can be an uncomfortable and strainful evening trying to find someone interesting to talk to.

Internation events use to be great for networking when I first arrived in town over 3 years ago. I really enjoyed their events and met some of my closest friends through the events and the online forums. Everyone went there for the same reason, to meet people for all different types of reasons. Now it's just turned into one big meat market... I can't talk to man without them assuming I'm hitting on them, or talk to another woman because I'm a woman and irrelevant in her focus for the evening. Not my cup of tea!

So the team from SPNM have come up with SP Night Connect which is pure networking. They help you meet people in a much more relaxed environment, introduce you to people and you get to have a few drinks at the same time. When you confirm your attendance, you fill out a questionnaire so they know what you are looking for and they will actively work that evening to make sure you meet people that you need to meet. It's productive, efficient and you won't leave the evening thinking - what a waste of time!

The next one is on Wednesday 24th April, hosted by PJ Clarkes in Itaim from 8pm onwards. The group will be diverse and dynamic, and if you end up sitting to someone you already know (and don't like), give one of the organisers a nudge so they can move you to another table. It costs R75 per person which includes a welcome drink, and three rounds of appetisers as you sit at each round of introduction and conversation.

Click here for more information.

Mini cupcakes at SP Night Market this Saturday

We will be bring back the mini cupcakes this Saturday 13th April afternoon at SP Night Market. We also have guest check Roxana Picado Reider who is bringing her delicious chocolate chip cookies and brownies! Come stop by and have a taster, check out the beers from Cevejaria Nacional, eat some ceviche, listen to some groovy musicians, buy some hats and of course eat cupcakes - and they are so small you can literally eat dozens!

SP Night Market is on this Saturday 13th April from 2-7pm at Escola Sao Paulo, Rua Augusta 2239.

Folha de Sao Paulo

My first claim to fame here in Sao Paulo! We were interviewed at the last SP Night Market by Folha de Sao Paulo, a weekend publication. The Sixth Edition of SPNM will be on Saturday April 13th from 2-7pm in Jardins, put it in your diary!

Check out the article online here.

SP Night Market - 5th Edition

SP Night Market is back this Wednesday 6th March! We have a fabulous new Brazilian vegetarian chef PLUS a new private chef is in town. Of course Sophie & Theo's cupcakes will also be on sale! Come and check out the market and meet some new friends.

Entry is R20 per person, includes a welcome drink from Del Cocktail and live music from Prato Principal!

See you all there xx

What to do in Sao Paulo

The new food fair, Feirinha Gastronomica has started every Sunday in Vila Madalena, Rua Girassol 309 from 11am - 7pm. They have essentially set up a stands in an empty parking lot. There is a maximum of 230 people at a time and so, even though we arrived at 11:30am there was already a queue. It is the one good reason to take children so you can skip this queue...

I had a tostada from Oba Restaurant for R15, always delicious but trying to eat it one handed, hold my drink and look after a 3 year old was not easy! There was prawn ceviche from the Costa Ricans (R10) and disgusting cupcakes (of course I'm biaised, but even my daughter or dog wouldn't eat them) and our favourite Sabores da mi Tierra from Colombia, who also sold at our last beloved SP Night Market.

Don't expect to hang out and have a lazy lunch there. Today was hot and stifling, with nowhere to sit so I think we were in there for a maximum of 15 minutes.  As today was only their second edition, I would hope that once it becomes more "normal" rather than novelty it will be a much more pleasurable experience.

And for those of you who like a little bit of sunday dancing in the train, you have to go to soul.set festa. Great for people watching - the fabulous, the dancers, the other people-watchers. The venue was a business park near Lapa - a little bit of a pain to get to if you don't have a car. Very well organised event with valet, security, drink bar, temaki bar... and an outdoor DJ set. soul.set founder DJ Leonardo Ruas was fab today. The event runs from 3-10pm on a Sunday, once a month. Highly recommended. Earlier in the session at this venue would be ok for children as there are grassy areas for them to run around in.  Don't go if you don't like dancing!

SP Night Market - Third Edition

The Third Edition of SP Night Market will be this Sunday 25th November, hosted by Plug N Work. It will start at 1pm and there are going to be some of my favourite vendors and foodie people from Sao Paulo there - including Deepali, the indian food lady and Colombian empanadas, two of my favourites!! Check out the event, and other vendors here

https://www.facebook.com/events/249038478555895/
http://www.spnightmarket.com

** UPDATE: SP Night Market has just confirmed a Malaysian Food vendor! Whooppee!!