Restaurants and bars have been doing good business in Brazil during the World Cup. For some, it has been an opportunity to learn about the art of cooking, and running a restaurant. CCTV’s Stephen Gibbs reports from Rio de Janeiro.

World Cup business means greater opportunities for Brazilian chefs

Restaurants and bars have been doing good business in Brazil during the World Cup. For some, it has been an opportunity to learn about the art of cooking, and running a restaurant. CCTV's Stephen Gibbs reports from Rio de Janeiro.

Liliane and Mirella run a catering company. In Mirella’s kitchen, they prepare classic Brazilian dishes for local weddings and parties. It’s a small operation, but also a lifeline.

Business has had its up and downs, but Liliane and Mirella believe there is a larger market for their cooking skills, and hope to turn their home-based business into something bigger.

This may be their opportunity. The two have enrolled in a program run by a local charity, where people from poorer backgrounds are taught the tricks of the restaurant trade.

For the duration of the World Cup, they have been working alongside two top New York chefs, in the city’s most glamorous pop up restaurant. However, exactly who is learning from whom?

“Brazilians have a particular way of cooking, and New Yorkers have their way. We are learning with them,” says chef Liliane Bitencourt.

“We are learning about these new ingredients, vegetables and fruits, and things that we have never seen before. So, it’s kind of like this untapped goldmine of different things and ingredients,” says Joe Capozzi, Chef of The Fat Radish.

Perhaps this could be the start of something more, such as Liliane’s dream to open a restaurant.

“I just want to see these lovely ladies progress in what they want to do,” says chef Nicholas Wilber of The Fat Radish, ‘They want to have a great catering company and I would love to see them have all the opportunities that we have here. It would be amazing to come back and have them have a little spot that is very successful.”