If the most popular foods of Rio de Janeiro have one thing in common, it is their informality. You can find fine restaurants in the city, but they do not set Rio apart from other places. What does set it apart, and what invariably brings its residents, known as "Cariocas," together is the unpretentious food they eat in bright, loud, crowded bars and restaurants, on busy street corners, or after a day at the beach. Here: A view of traditional bolinhos de bacalhau (fried codfish balls) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, May 7, 2016. (Photo by Sergio Moraes/Reuters)

A fisherman carries a large Pirarucu (Arapaima gigas) at the Piagacu-Purus Sustainable Development Reserve in Amazonas state, Brazil, on October 24, 2019. The pirarucu -a giant fish of the Amazon, that had been on the verge of extinction- can measure up to three meters and weigh more than 200 kilos. The soft and tasty white meat fish is nowadays served in renowned restaurants in Rio de Janeiro. (Photo by Ricardo Oliveira/AFP Photo)

In this June 20, 2014, file photo, lobsters are processed at the Sea Hag Seafood plant in St. George, Maine. More and more American and Canadian-caught lobsters have been turning up at fancy restaurants in China, marketed as “Boston lobster”, say Maine-based processors. One processing firm owner says it's now the biggest live lobster important day of the year after Christmas in Europe. (Photo by Robert F. Bukaty/AP Photo)

A young woman looks at her smartphone sitting in front of a mannequin use to keep social distancing at a Chinese cuisine restaurant in Tokyo, Japan, 27 July 2020. Japan's total number of COVID-19 cases crossed the 30,000 line showing the new coronavirus pandemic is spreading across the country and not only in Tokyo and Osaka megalopolis. (Photo by Franck Robichon/EPA/EFE)

A sales woman of a fish shop shows king crabs to a customer and negotiates the price in Noryangjin Fish Market is seen on August 1, 2015 in Seoul, South Korea. Noryangjin Fish Market was established in 1927 as Gyeongseong Susan in Jung-gu near Seoul Station and moved to its current location in 1971. (Photo by Shin Woong-jae/The Washington Post)

British professional tennis player Emma Raducanu after she was made a MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire) by King Charles III at Windsor Castle on November 29, 2022 in Windsor, England. (Photo by Andrew Matthews – WPA Pool/Getty Images)

Los Angeles Kings center Zack MacEwen, left puts Edmonton Oilers center Ryan McLeod int the bards during the second period in Game 3 of an NHL hockey Stanley Cup first-round playoff series Friday, April 21, 2023, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Mark J. Terrill/AP Photo)

Kyrgyz dancers perform in an event gathering bedouins and nomads from around the world as part of the annual King Abdulaziz Camel Festival in Rumah desert, northeast of the Saudi capital Riyadh, on March 19, 2019. (Photo by Fayez Nureldine/AFP Photo)