Southern Hospitality: Brazilian Table

Visiting the Brazilian Table is akin to spending an afternoon at your grandmother’s or a favorite aunt’s house. Somehow, owner/chef Silvia Boff manages to prepare incredible dishes, all the while she serves as the consummate hostess, making sure you’re comfortable and have everything you need. “I have friends, not customers,” she says of her style of doing business.

“You have to taste this!” Silvia said. Taking a seat, I sampled a spoonful of the custard-like caramel flan she had prepared. It was beyond delicious. In fact, I savored the contents of the entire dish. “I use my mother’s recipe,” Silvia shared. Meanwhile, Nick Gould sampled the signature Feijoada dish and pronounced it equally as delicious.

Despite it being after closing hours, Silvia continued to invite customers to come in and take a seat or order take out. One of the visitors confided to me that’s just how Silvia rolls. She is well acquainted with Silvia, as her son is married to Silvia’s daughter. She was accompanied by the granddaughter she and Silvia share. “Silvia is always working,” she commented. “She’ll be here well into the evening preparing food for tomorrow. And she can’t turn anyone away.”  Those traits are expressed on the restaurant’s website: “My purpose in life is to bring happiness and love to everyone who tries our food. That’s how Brazilian Table was born.” The visitor also shared that holiday meals are always an adventure in that the menu consists of Pennsylvania Dutch and Brazilian dishes.

Owning and managing a restaurant is second nature to Silvia, who operated a small hotel and restaurant in her native Brazil. She also taught cooking lessons. The mother of three made the move to the United States four years ago to join her children who live here. She opened Brazilian Table along busy Main Street in Lititz in 2022.

Silvia is “passionate” about Brazilian cuisine and loves to explain its nuances to first-time visitors. “Many of them are expecting it to be hot and spicy, but that’s not the case,” she says. “It’s savory food,” she describes of the complex and rich flavors that define Brazilian fare. “People are also surprised to learn that Brazilian food has a German influence,” she says, explaining that a large German migration to Brazil occurred in the early years of the 19th century, with most settling in the southern area of the country. A similar Italian migration also introduced that country’s diverse flavors to Brazilian culinary culture. African influences became intertwined as a result of the slave trade. “It just depends what part of the country you travel to that you’ll notice those influences,” she remarks. As for Latin culture, that’s reflected in the handhelds that you find on the menu at Brazilian Table.   

The menu features soups, sandwiches/handhelds, stews (including Silvia’s signature Feijoada), acai bowls, cheesebread and, for dessert, items like guava cheesecake, yuca coconut cake and carrot cake topped with a velvety layer of warm Brigadeiro. There’s a full selection of coffee drinks, as well as the restaurant’s famous Brazilian hot chocolate and cold drinks imported from Brazil.

“I cook with my heart,” says Silvia of the menu’s key ingredient. “This is my life … I love what I do.”

26 E. Main Street, Lititz
Details: Braziliantablelititz.com