Ipanema, a Beloved Brazilian Gem in New York, Makes a Glamorous Return to the City

Continuing their father's legacy, Carlos and Victor Pedro are carrying the 40-year-old restaurant into the future with an elevated menu, luxe surrounds, and a new cafe—but the same family spirit

(From L to R) Victor, Alfredo, and Carlos Pedro in the private dining room at Ipanema. Behind them, family heirlooms and books line the shelves. Melissa Hom

Carlos and Victor Pedro grew up in Ipanema—not the famed Rio de Janeiro beach, but their father’s Brazilian-Portuguese restaurant, named after those sun-drenched shores, in the heart of New York’s Little Brazil.

The lively spot had been a neighborhood staple since 1979, when Alfredo Pedro, who immigrated from Portugal when he was 13, quit his job as an IBM engineer to buy the restaurant.