Korean restaurant operator Sun At Food hopes to make inroads in the Asian barbecue market with a newly launched Brazilian steakhouse brand.

Texas de Brazil, an authentic Brazilian-American “churrascaria,” or steakhouse, founded in 1998 in the United States, opened its first restaurant in Asia under a partnership with Sun At Food in Seoul on Thursday.

The firm, which operated American family restaurant chain Tony Roma’s in Korea for nearly 20 years until last year, is now venturing into more ethnic cuisine that pledges to offer a new dining experience with 15 different grilled steaks and seasonal salads.

“Consumers in the U.S. as well as Asia have been showing growing interest in Brazilian dishes over the past five years,” said Nam Soo-jung, founder of Sun At Food, at a news conference to mark Texas de Brazil’s launch.

She plans to open nine more Texas de Brazil restaurants here by 2020 and also make inroads into other Asian markets such as China. Texas De Brazil, now has 39 U.S. and six international locations.

“I see strong potential for the brand as churrasco is gaining traction in Japan and Chinese are showing high preference for barbecue and an open kitchen,” Nam said.

Nam added that the annual sales of the new steakhouse is expected to reach 5 billion won ($4.2 million) per restaurant, while those in the U.S. make an average of 8 billion won each year.

Texas De Brazil serves an array of grilled flank steak, lamb chops, herb-marinated pork loin and Brazilian sausage on sword-like skewers taken directly from the grill.

“Why is it different from other dining brands? Because the concept of Brazilian churrascaria has a great value and it has entertaining factors that give a new dining experience,” Salim Asrawi, Texas De Brazil’s chief operating officer said.

Skilled carvers serve the various cuts of meat on tables and guests can indicate when to bring more meat or when a break is needed by flipping a small card placed beside each diner.

For Koreans who are famous for their love for samgyeopsal ― pork belly barbecue, usually with soju ― the southern Brazilian steakhouse may offer a chance to taste a broader range of roasted meat cooked over charcoal and with a glass of wine.

Meanwhile, Sun At Food also said it will launch its own Korean dining brand Morac in Wan Chai District, Hong Kong, in January next year.

“To nurture Sun At Food as a global dining firm, we adopted a two-track strategy by bringing in famous overseas restaurants and exporting our own brands,” Nam said.

Mad for Garlic, the firm’s Italian wine bistro chain is set to launch its first restaurant in the Middle East market after signing a partnership agreement with Al Ahli Holding Group of the United Arab Emirates. Last year, the chain raised $48 million in private equity funding led by Standard Chartered Private Equity.

Sun At Food runs 11 restaurants of five brands, including Sichuan House, Bistro Seoul and Sikdang Don, nationwide.

By Park Han-na (hnpark@heraldcorp.com)