Churrasquinho de gato (Cat barbecue) and other street food - São Paulo

Not my photo. Not even a Brazilian photo. Trust me, you do not want to google cat barbecue images.

Leaving the Palmeiras stadium on Saturday, there were a number of what are called "churraquinhos de gato" or cat barbecues. These are run by street vendors who bring in a barrel or a small charcoal grill and barbecue up some questionable meat on spits and sell them for R$3 (less than US$2) for the famished football fans. Remember that stadium food is limited to hot dogs, chips and popcorn. One can work up a mega appetite from singing songs about pigs for two hours. 

The churrasquinho de gato is not, most likely, really cat or dog for that matter. It is third-rate meat and I would suggest that the cleanliness of the barbecues is a bigger carrier of bacteria than the meat. I have personally never braved one as I am not known for having an iron stomach. On the other hand, the food that people were selling out of almost-kitchens in their cars was almost tempting. 

Just open up your trunk and you're ready to go...oh, don't forget the aluminum foil on the back window to keep things warm!

This red hatchback was doing a booming business of pork sandwiches with fresh fixings. Those three red containers on their sides on the top are ketchup bottles on their own shelf--this lady can wield them like six-shooters. The line was long but moving quickly. Two cars ahead had pizzas laid out on a board across the back seat and trunk. These are all authorized vendors, by the way, and I do love their independence and the freshness they seemed to have. 

I did not, however, brave them.