Little Brazil Has Made a Big Comeback in Wheat Ridge. "I feel like she's here and I feel like she's proud," says Little Brazil co-owner Kallen Marques as she looks around the dining room at the restaurant's new Wheat Ridge home at 7333 West 38th Avenue. It was her late mother Fatima's passion for food that inspired her to start the business nearly thirteen years ago, and now she's celebrating its next chapter.

Interview with Kallen Marques, owner. “Q: What distinguishes you from other businesses in your category? A: What distinguishes us is the fact that we offer authentic Brazilian food that is nothing like the Brazilian steakhouses in downtown Denver. The steakhouses are great, but a lot of our customers are looking for a more reasonably priced Brazilian meal, and sometimes they just miss the everyday Brazilian dishes and snacks. We make everything from scratch, with great quality and fresh products. We try to buy local produce whenever we can, and we stay true to the ingredients in our dishes. Also, we get a lot of comments on how people feel like they are in Brazil, at a friend’s house. We pride ourselves in creating a Brazilian atmosphere.”

Best Bites: Coxinha "A walk down many neighborhood streets in Brazil reveals countless glass-covered displays, each containing raindrop-shaped pastries illuminated under heat lamps. These are coxinhas (translation: "little thighs"). By my account, they are an acquired taste. The doughy masses, stuffed with dry shredded arrived at Little Brazil in Wheat Ridge, we can all decide for ourselves. Try it once, and it's a bit weird. Try it twice, and the coxing becomes a pleasant surprise. On the third tasting, the pastry morphs into an irresistible craving. The coxinhas at Little Brazil aren't quite as perfect as the ones I remember from my time in Juiz de Fora, but that may be nothing more than a bit of wistful nostalgia."

Every Opening This Week: Little Brazil Is Back and More. The new, bigger Little Brazil is one of four spots that recently debuted in the metro area.