Where to eat in Lisbon
Lunch and Dinner times
In Portugal lunch (almoço) is eaten around 1 pm, and dinner (jantar,) around 8 pm. Try not to delay going for dinner as many restaurants start closing at 9 pm.
Typical dishes in Lisbon
Cake shop
Typical Portuguese dishes tend to clash with Spanish tastes. Some typical dishes are: caldo verde, a broth made with cabbage and potato; sopa de nabos, a soup using turnip leaves; cozido à portuguesa, Portuguese stew; migas à alentejana, a mixture of marinated pork and bread; feijoadas, haricot or pinto bean stews accompanied by pork.
Highlights in desserts are piñonates, a pine-nut conserve; the pastries of Belém; sweets (made from oranges); rice pudding; and pears cooked in wine.
Food that better suits Spanish tastes includes cataplana de mariscos, a seafood stew cooked in a pot; squid; fish soup; and fish - especially cod, Portugal’s favourite fish.
We mustn’t forget other typical products, such as wine and cheese.
Be careful with the aperitifs
A long held custom in restaurants is to put aperitifs on the table, which, unlike in other countries, are not complimentary, and if you drink them you have to pay for them. If you don’t want to try them, the best thing is to ask for them to be taken away.
Best areas for dining out
One of the liveliest areas, with the greatest number of restaurants, is the Rossio Square. In its surrounding streets you can find restaurants of all sorts.
If you want to dine listening to fados (as the saying goes, if you go to Lisbon and don’t eat while listening to fados at least once, you lose the essence of the Portuguese soul), you’ll find many fado restaurants in Alfama and Bairro Alto.
