Lílian Varella’s bar in the state of Minas Gerais was a great hit: Celebrities showed up in droves and when the designer Ronaldo Fraga held his first post-London fashion show there. But 10 years is a long time to be in the same place, so Varella eventually decided to pack up and move to São Paulo. Her success followed her: Drosophyla’s eccentrically stylish aesthetic and exotic offerings are just as irresistible to the smart set.

Located in a 1940s house with no sign on the door, it features a wall decorated with plastic animals, lamps are made of pasta strainers and a five-meter-long display of souvenirs Varella picked up on her voyages to China, New Zealand, French Polynesia, Easter Island, Indonesia and other far-flung locals. An oriental-style garden with a giant 30-year-old Brazilian Jabuticaba tree sits at the back.

Drosophyla’s hand-drawn menus reveal a mixture of traditional cuisine from Minas (like the Empada de Queijo Meia Cura, a cheese-filled patty) and international dishes such as the Polynesian Huahine (tuna, carrots, cucumber, tomato and coconut milk). The very unusual caipirinha cocktails are also deliciously successful, especially the basil and star fruit ones.