Been twice. It's a little trendy, and a little overpriced, but the food is pretty good. Good date place, as every woman I've met who's been there seems to like it. I won't go back unless someone else is paying though.
And I'm not sure how or if that one is connected to the one next to Posse East near campus (which I would prefer 10 times out of 10, by the way).
its still run by the same folks, when they made the move from the location by crown & anchor to the burnet road location, they decided to go a bit more upscale, and focus more on the brazilian dishes and move away from the tex-mex type dishes. that may be the difference you noticed. i enjoyed both versions. i have been to the new one on burnet about a dozen times, as i live nearby. however, i haven't been in a couple months because we like to sit on the patio outside. i think they have good seafood and steak dishes, and they have a version of stroganoff made with chicken and rice that my wife and i can easily split along with splitting an appetizer and a salad. really good tomato salad when its in season. i would agree that its a good date place.
I have been to the one by Crown N Anchor and it's good. They have a version of chicken fried steak (milanesa) that is really good. I like the little dough/cheese ball things too.
I've been once on a date. Went on a Monday or Tuesday and had the place to ourselves. Wasn't thrilled with spending over a $100 on dinner for a first date, but I will go again. All the food was very tasty and service of course was good for us.
There is definitely a Brazilian restaurant/bar within spitting distance of The Posse called "Sao Paulo's". I'm producing a jazz record there in a couple of months. Maybe they just changed ownership, but not concept?
I have been to Sao Paulo's which is currently in the former location of Sampaio's, at least that is my understanding. I don't know if they are owned by the same people or not. I have been to both and while Sao Paulo's was good, I found Sampaio's to be outrageously good. I don't know how you spent over $100 on a first date. My guess is that you did a fair bit of drinking. My group got a couple pitchers of their Brazilian sangria which I enjoyed very much, and we were still under $50 a person. I really enjoyed the place, although I'm not a big fan of trendy places. At least it's not as trendy as some downtown places. There is a Brazilian restaurant in Dallas called La Dune (spelling? and pronounced Doon-E) I can tell you that the prices are pretty comprable to Sampaio's so I just thought maybe that is about what good Brazilian runs. Anyway, just wanted other's feedback. I did have the flat iron steak. I should note that I guess. I thought it was fantastic.