i. Biography
Chef of Bar da Dona Onça in São Paulo, Brazilian Janaína Torres began this arc by founding that address in 2008; it now extends to her work as owner and chef of A Casa do Porco. Across those São Paulo venues, the movement is clear: regional Brazilian ingredients, Latin American range, and a cooking language that can speak through feijoada, coxinha, pressure cookers, and a pork-based tasting menu.
Beginnings
The starting point is 2008, when Torres founded the São Paulo venue that remains central to her public work. Its food is built from regional ingredients from across Brazil, served in hearty dishes that include feijoada and coxinha. That foundation gives her cooking a specific geographic charge. Her specialty is Brazilian and Latin American cuisines, not as a broad label but as a working field: ingredients, preparations, and dishes tied to place. At the restaurant, one of the clearest craft notes is pressure cooker cuisine. It is named as part of her work there, alongside the kind of generous Brazilian dishes that make the kitchen’s identity legible without needing explanation. Torres has described the purpose behind that approach in direct terms: “My cooking is focused on Brazilian ingredients. So that is my role today: to be fine dining cooking, but very accessible.”
The Rise
As the restaurant became the first major point on the arc, its signatures sharpened. One is the onça-pintada, a jaguar caipirinha made with tangerine and passionfruit, described by 50 Best as a must-try signature drink at the São Paulo address. The drink has significance in how it sits beside the food rather than outside it: citrus, fruit, and a name tied to the house. In a career built on Brazilian ingredients, that signature carries the same directness as the plates. Her own language about cooking has stayed close to service and culture. “The mission of a cook is to like serving, to like caring for people, to preserve the cultural heritage of their country.” That sentence gives the rise its frame. The momentum is not away from accessibility, but toward it; not away from Brazilian references, but deeper into them.
Today
The primary role remains chef of Bar da Dona Onça in São Paulo, where hearty dishes made with regional Brazilian ingredients define the work. The kitchen’s pressure cooker cuisine gives that role a concrete technique, not just a title. At A Casa do Porco, Torres is owner and chef. There, her work includes a pork-based tasting menu, a separate expression of her range within São Paulo hospitality. The present also reaches beyond the kitchen. In 2025, she became godmother of Celebrity Xcel. Her view of fine dining returns to access and memory: “I've always believed that fine dining should be accessible, not intimidating. Food brings us together, connecting us through new flavors, traditions, and shared memories.” Across the arc, the through-line is precise: a Brazilian chef whose work moves through regional ingredients, Latin American cuisine, pressure cooker cooking, and the social act of serving.
Profile updated July 2026
FAQ
Asked of Janaína
Where did Janaína Torres begin their career?
She began this public career arc by founding the São Paulo venue in 2008.
What roles has Janaína Torres held?
She has been founder and chef of Bar da Dona Onça and owner and chef of A Casa do Porco, both in São Paulo.
What is Janaína Torres doing now?
She works as chef of Bar da Dona Onça, owner and chef of A Casa do Porco, and godmother of Celebrity Xcel as of 2025.
