connoisseurs of the intermingling of socialising and eating, cariocas are great enthusiasts and advocates of the concept of brunch.

originating from america, the term 'brunch' is a fusion, both semantic and literal, of 'breakfast' and 'lunch' - in 1895, guy beringer, a journalist for hunter's weekly magazine, wrote a plea for the creation and implementation of a new, earlier and lighter alternative to lunch.

the trend began to flourish in the states in the 1930s amongst movie-stars and the travelling elite - this meal usually takes place between the conventional hours of breakfast and lunch, at around 10 and 11, replacing the two meals of which it is a synthesis.

the principle centres around the idea of making eating a communal, social and prolonged event, sometimes sprawling into the early afternoon - there are a variety of different breeds of this meal, which many cariocas engage in with great zeal.