Mercadinho do Osimar

About this location

A few stories people tell about this place

1. At dawn, when Mercadinho do Osimar usually buzzed with early shoppers, a lone delivery driver unlocked its doors to an empty parking lot. The air was crisp and quiet, except for the distant sound of roosters crowning in nearby farms. As he pushed his cart down the aisles, he noticed something strange—a bag of bananas seemed to be smiling back at him. Smiling bananas? In Brazil, they say that’s good luck! By the time the sun rose fully, our delivery driver had stocked up on more than groceries—he’d picked up a bit of local superstition too. Now whenever someone asks why he always looks so cheerful, he just shrugs and says, ‘Smiling bananas brought it!’

2. At midnight, when Mercadinho do Osimar should’ve been quiet and empty, a voice called out from the dark aisles: ‘Hey, where’s that free sample of ham?’ A voice replied softly from behind the deli counter: 'Oh, it's you again! I thought I'd locked up all the samples.' A delivery driver chuckled as he walked down the aisle, shaking his head with a smile. The store closed at midnight for a reason.

3. At dusk, when Mercadinho do Osimar closed its doors for the day, a soft humming could sometimes be heard from inside. No one paid much attention until one night, a curious neighborhood child peeked through the window and saw an old man dancing alone among the shelves. The child told everyone in the neighborhood, but no one believed him—until one evening, while getting groceries, a regular noticed the old man’s shadow moving behind the aisles. Turns out, it was just an enthusiastic delivery driver doing his best impersonation of Osimar Santos during Carnival. The whole town laughed, and now, every sunset, people gather at Mercadinho do Osimar to watch the ‘dancing delivery guy’ and share stories over a cold drink.

4. At midday, when Mercadinho do Osimar was crowded with lunchtime shoppers, an announcement echoed through the aisles: ‘Attention, please! The store has run out of everything except bananas—an entire truckload!’ A delivery driver, frantically waving his clipboard, appeared in the aisle and announced, 'But wait! There's also a single box of strawberries!' A neighbor overheard and quipped, 'Well, I guess we'll be having banana-and-strawberry sandwiches for dinner tonight.' And so, amidst laughter and confusion, everyone left the store with their improbable haul.