Portugal’s attractions are many, but its seafood is the greatest! Portugal’s long Atlantic coastline guarantees a steady supply of fresh fish and shellfish to the country’s innumerable seafood restaurants. The Portuguese are great seafood lovers, so restaurant quality is extremely high. So high, in fact, that elaborate processing is unnecessary; Portuguese seafood is prepared simply and honestly.
Warm up for your meal with a glass of white wine Sangria with generous cuts of juicy fruit and plenty of ice. Enjoy sun-ripened black olives and tuna pate with crusty country bread to get the taste buds going. Then crack open a bottle or two of cold fresh Vinho Verde to accompany your starter of rich seafood broth, fresh octopus, or plump sautéed garlic prawns.
Keep the wine flowing as you tuck into your main, be it juicy and light sole, meaty redfish, or salmon, straight from the charcoal grill. Fish is grilled with very light seasoning to allow you to fully appreciate its freshness, while prawns are sauteed in olive oil and plenty of garlic, perhaps with a sprinkling of parsley or fresh coriander. There will always be an aromatic lemon at hand to drizzle over your fish and salad to further enhance the flavours.
During the summer months, the sardines are fat and delicious. Ask for them grilled with coarse sea salt. They will be served to you succulent and whole on a metal tray. Lift off the skin with your fork before gently moving the moist flesh off the bone and into your mouth for a deeply satisfying taste experience!
Don’t forget to order a side of Portuguese waxy potatoes in their skins and a simple salad of lettuce, white onion, tomato, and lightly seared green peppers. Douse the salad with a piquant olive oil and sprinkle with a sharp white-wine vinegar. Season with salt.
Finish your meal with a pastel de nata, its creamy goodness washed down with a strong Garoto, or perhaps take your time over a slower Galão. Perhaps you can also sample a cup of velvety Portuguese ice cream, right up there alongside Italian Gelato in quality.
For a break from the seafood, try chargrilled Frango Piri-Piri (chicken with chili) or a classic steak with egg, chips, and rice. Or sample Portugal’s rich tradition of sheep’s cheeses and smoked sausages, accompanied by fragrant mushrooms with garlic. Or dive into Portugal’s modern fusion cuisine for novel and extremely delicious vegetarian flavours, perhaps at the all-women run Tati restaurant near Santa Cruz in Lisbon.
There are a million places to eat in Portugal, but take aim at the little neighbourhood joints, where the food is as delicious as it is authentic. If you have no idea where to start, I can recommend the following restaurants in Lisbon and nearby towns:
· Grilled Whole Fish: Lobo do Mar, Av. dos Náufragos, 2970-152 Sesimbra
· Grilled chicken: Primavera, R. Morais Soares 101, 1170-293 Lisboa
· Sauteed Prawns: Baia do Peixe, Av. Dom Carlos 6, 2750-310 Cascais
· Octopus and seafood broth: Mar a Vista, Estr. Do Farol, 2450-065 Nazare
· Steak and eggs: Tasca Torta, R. Direita 79, 2510-001 Obidos
· Cheeses and smoked meat: Ha Tapas no Mercado, R. Ângela Pinto 14, 1900-067 Lisboa
· Modern vegetarian: Tati, R. Carrilho Videira 20B, 1170-079 Lisboa
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