Janaína Torres

A Casa do Porco, São Paulo

The charismatic Brazilian cook democratising the premium dining world

Janaína Torres is a multi-tasking phenomenon. Not only does she lead the kitchen at the hugely popular A Casa do Porco in her home city of São Paulo, she also manages to oversee a range of other hospitality venues, as well as campaigning on issues including food education, dining accessibility and social inclusivity.

First, the cooking: the menu at A Casa do Porco is, as the name suggests, all about pork in myriad forms. In contrast to most venues listed on The World’s 50 Best Restaurants, this is a casual, accessible space – and its boasts one of the world’s best-value tasting menus at around US$60 per person, alongside a la carte options. Guest can tuck into traditional artisan sausages, cassava croquettes and the slow-roasted pig, delicately cooked for six to nine hours over an open flame. Combined with a cracking cocktail list, its offerings have propelled A Casa do Porco to the No.12 ranking in the world.

While the restaurant was co-founded with her chef ex-husband Jefferson Rueda, who remains her business partner, Torres has been running the culinary operations for several years. She launched the latest menu, called Somos de Carne e Osso (We are Flesh and Bone), to great acclaim in 2023, inspired by her own stories of human failure and success.

Back in 2008, Torres opened O Bar da Dona Onça, a casual neighbourhood spot in the iconic Copan building in the city centre. The bar-restaurant was so successful that it helped fund the launch of A Casa do Porco in 2015. Her and Rueda’s portfolio now extends to organic hotdog kiosk Hot Pork, ice cream shop Sorveteria do Centro and accessible canteen Merenda da Cidade. All are located in the same unflashy downtown neighbourhood where Torres grew up.

Running through Torres’ culinary career is a thread of democratisation: she is passionate about opening up the gastronomic sphere to as many people as possible, from marginalised communities to schoolkids in the city. She worked with São Paulo’s government to train school cooks and improved the nutrition of 1.8 million children, replacing processed ingredients with fresh, healthy options. During the pandemic, she mobilised thousands of Brazilian chefs and hospitality workers to pressure the government for vital financial support, while she and her team also fed the hungry during the crisis.

Now, the chef can add ‘international ambassador’ to her extensive CV: as the holder of The World’s Best Female Chef 2024 title, she sees it as her mission to showcase traditional Brazilian cooking on the global stage, as well as help empower women to challenge machismo culture. Her social activism is as alive as ever, and she will no doubt use the attention this accolade brings to positive effect.

Now read the article and watch the video with Torres:

The World’s Best Female Chef Award recognises an individual who has impressed critics and gourmets from around the world and it is part of 50 Best’s mission to honour and give a platform to female role models within the culinary industry. The accolade is voted for by the Academy, formed of 1,080 independent restaurant industry experts and well-travelled gourmets from across the world.