The Os Esquilos restaurant, in Floresta da Tijuca, celebrates its 80th anniversary

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At the Os Esquilos restaurant, names such as Frank Capra, Evita Perón, Elis Regina, Milton Nascimento, Tom Jobim, Luisa Brunet, Mariana Ximenes, Fábio Assunção, Harrison Ford, Herson Capri, Regina Duarte and many others appear alongside anonymous customers. The scene is almost always the same: a burning fireplace, creaking floorboards, squirrels crossing the garden and the sound of macaws coming from inside the forest. Access takes a little time, the road requires attention, but whoever arrives has the feeling of entering a refuge, a place where time slows down and the city seems distant.

The history of the house begins long before the kitchen was put into service. The property was the residence of Baron Gastão de Escragnolle, an important figure in the history of the Tijuca Forest and linked to Dom Pedro II. Decades later, in 1942, the mansion caught the attention of an Italian recently arrived from Turin: Hugo Busca, known for hosting impeccable dinners for Rio’s elite. Two years later, he met Getulio Vargas; the following year, he received the concession from the president that would officially transform the space into a restaurant.

— This trust was decisive for everything to exist — says Anna Paola Busca, daughter of the founder and current owner, who took over the house after the death of her father in 1986.

Since the concession, the house has established itself as a meeting point for artists, politicians, intellectuals and families who considered Alto da Boa Vista as a party refuge. Among the illustrious visitors was Getulio Vargas himself, who met friends there and, later, Virgínia Lane – according to the artist, it was here that the relationship between the two began. The fact is that space was the scene of one of the then-president’s best-known romances.

This is just one of the records in the exhibition. Anna says much of the history has been lost to time.

— It’s a living collection — defines Anna. —A lot of things have disappeared for good, but a lot of things have reappeared.

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Among the memories preserved, there is a more recent one: that of Carolina Justi, physiotherapist, who got married there in 2014 and ended up leaving an object there which, without imagining it, would become an integral part of the restaurant’s environment.

— A friend had her daughter baptized there and the Chipmunks came into my life — Carolina remembers. — When I entered for the first time, I felt an immense desire to have a ceremony there. I hadn’t even thought about formalizing the union yet, but the place had an impact on me.

Years later, when she and her husband decided to officially marry, there was no doubt.

— The restaurant was the first and only one I looked for. We wanted something small, unique, intimate. And this environment already had all that – he said.

Carolina’s mother-in-law, an expert crafter, hand-painted additional decorative pieces, including a sign with the “Rules for a Happy Marriage,” which included kisses, hugs, praise and forgiveness.

— We decided to leave it at the exit. And it became a success, he says. — I was very happy when I found out she was part of the restaurant.

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The relationship with space developed with the family. Some time later, Carolina returned to baptize her son, now 9 years old, born with Down syndrome, which was only discovered at birth.

— The baptism was very moving. The ceremony was magical, he said.

Birthdays and other celebrations follow one another, creating a real family timeline within the restaurant. A common movement there, according to Anna:

— It’s exciting to see families who come back generation after generation, people who say: “I’ve been coming here since I was a child. »

This mixture of memory and permanence also appears in the signatures of the client book. Evita Perón had lunch there in 1947 and the illustrated menu of that day has been preserved. Elis Regina and Ronaldo Bôscoli celebrated their wedding there after formalizing their union in the simple Mayrink Chapel (1855), nearby. The restaurant also became the setting for the recording of the TV Globo show “Estrelas”, hosted actresses such as Malu Mader, Mariana Ximenes, Luiza Brunet and Sophie Charlotte and was frequented by names such as Fábio Assunção, Minotauro and Helena Ranaldi. Milton Nascimento was present at Tunay’s son’s wedding. Tom Jobim passed through the house, even if the exact trace has been lost over time.

And there are curious episodes, like the day Harrison Ford appeared. He ordered a typical Brazilian dish – chicken, rice and beans – before heading to a nearby trail.

“People even thought he got lost in the forest,” Anna said.

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The sustainability of the restaurant over the decades also depends on its cuisine. The menu has changed little, preserving the style of the 1950s and 1960s. Specialties include medallion with Roquefort sauce, pepper steak, salmon with passion fruit sauce and traditional fondue, especially popular on days when the temperature in Alto da Boa Vista reaches up to nine degrees below the rest of the city. For the festive weekend, the restaurant is preparing a special menu with shrimp skewers, Greek rice, milk pudding and dry martini (R$187 + 10%).

This combination of gastronomy, memory and nature appears upon arrival at the manor, where toucans, agoutis, butterflies, monkeys and of course squirrels roam freely in the park.

— My father joked that he had swapped the Piedmont Alps for the Atlantic Forest — Anna said, smiling. — He said they both had the same mountain charm. I was born in 1962, when the restaurant was already 17 years old, and I have very vivid memories of the people running in the garden and the Sunday lunches, full of laughter and smells that marked my childhood.

She also remembers the wood stove and the attentive way in which her father greeted each customer:

— I’m sure he would feel immense pride to see that the dream he started is still alive, growing and renewing itself with the same passion.

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Maintaining a restaurant in a national park, he says, is a privilege that requires constant attention.

— Questions of preservation, logistics, access and even climate have always required a lot of work. But the greatest reward is seeing that Os Esquilos has become a place of loving memory for so many families. Our dream is that the Tijuca forest is increasingly valued. Who knows, maybe reach 100 years old in the third generation? We are studying cultural and gastronomic tourism projects, always respecting the environment — she says.

Among the 80 pieces in the commemorative exhibition, Anna highlights a photo that brings together three generations of the family: “The portrait of the heritage, the dream and the courage that gave birth to this story”.

Today, alongside her husband Luiz Eduardo Xavier de Souza and her daughter Valentinna Busca Xavier de Souza, she runs the restaurant born from the pioneering spirit of her father. Together, the three plan to expand initiatives aimed at cultural tourism and environmental education – a natural path for those who live in the heart of the forest.

— We believe in the importance of the forest for Rio. We want to reach 100 years of living participation in this history, he says.

Anna sums up what has driven the family from the beginning:

— Our main goal is for people to eat well and keep great memories of here.