Velho do Rio, as he became known, earned this nickname during the time he lived on a boat in Recife, with long prematurely white hair and beard. Later, he moved to Manaus, where he married and set up his street stall. Every day, he goes to the Feira do Panaí in downtown Manaus, where he carefully selects the fish he will serve to his customers. According to him, the preparation has no secrets: just salt and lemon. “The taste comes from the hands of the person preparing it,” he says. When grilling, he first places the fish with scales facing down, and then flips it. The large stall set up on the sidewalk catches the attention of passersby, but what attracts customers is the quality of his product and his friendliness. “My business,” he says, “sells more than pizza and hamburgers in the early hours of the morning.”