Culinary Backstreets Lisbon

25/06/2024

Come spring, Portugal revels in green-hued produce: fava beans, asparagus, artichoke, spinach and other leaves. Peas feature in this bounty, especially in the form of ervilhas guisadas, peas braised with Portuguese sausages, typically crowned with poached eggs.

Get the recipe: https://hubs.la/Q02D9H2j0

Ervilhas Guisadas, Portuguese-style braised peas, are a favorite springtime dish in Lisbon. We visited Os Papagaios restaurant to get the recipe for how it’s made.

30/05/2024

Gambrinus, in operation since 1936, is the type of restaurant with fully-suited wait staff, white tablecloths, signature plates, wood paneling on the walls and a menu that touches on items such as foie gras and crêpes Suzette. But for generations of Lisbon diners, especially chefs and others in the hospitality industry, food writers and photographers, Gambrinus means one thing: its bar.

Find out more: https://hubs.la/Q02yYyxp0

Secret menus, suits, siphon coffee, service from another era…just a few things you’ll find at Gambrinus, one of Lisbon’s beloved bars in operation since 1936.

27/05/2024

The star of the show at Canalha are the ingredients: the freshest fish, vegetables and meat, cooked cleverly to preserve the flavors. The lunch menu features two daily specials at a reasonable price, always traditional dishes without any twists, but the open tortilla (also called tortilla vaga in Spain) is one of the most popular dishes.

Read more: https://hubs.la/Q02yvr1m0

Canalha is the latest project of chef João Rodrigues, a neighborhood restaurant in Lisbon with a focus on local produce and simple, traditional dishes.

11/04/2024

The Black Sheep is all about sourcing interesting bottles. It’s one of the only places in Lisbon that regularly serves sherry, fortified wines from the south of Spain. There’s typically a bottle of a Portuguese fortified wine open, too – oddly enough, a rarity in Lisbon wine bars – and they also have several bottles of champagne from smaller producers. And although their list plucks from a variety of countries, there is an emphasis on bottles from Portugal.

Read more: https://hubs.la/Q02sCGBL0

Lucas Ferreira and Bruna Ventura, the co-owners of wine bar Black Sheep Lisboa, have created a cozy space to try low-intervention Portuguese wines in Lisbon.

26/03/2024

Located in Lisbon’s Alfama district, Casa São Miguel is something of a living museum of Portuguese pastries. The space has a distinctly Art Nouveau feel, yet the centerpiece is a glass case filled with around 30 different pastries and sweets.

Read more: https://hubs.la/Q02qHkgK0

We visited Pedro Nunes and Leonor Oliveira at their Lisbon pastry shop, Casa São Miguel, which features regional sweets from around Portugal.

14/03/2024

Meet Lili: she’s the friendly labrador who greeted us at Adega Belém, a winery located right at the edge of one of Lisbon’s most visited neighborhoods.

Read more: https://hubs.la/Q02ptx510

28/02/2024

Daniela of Olá Daniela - Portugal Travel & Food Blog has declared us the tour for “Serious Foodies,” and that’s exactly what we’re going for! We’re for the intrepid eaters who always “wish food tours were longer and went deeper.” Read more from Daniela here: https://hubs.la/Q02mvSPz0

Portugal’s capital is a serious foodie destination. Here's a carefully curated list of the very best of food tours in Lisbon.

26/02/2024

Mozambican, Portuguese and Cantonese – with a fair bit of Indian thrown in. On the surface, it’s an utterly unlikely culinary mashup. But it makes perfect sense at Bula Bula, a restaurant on Lisbon’s northern outskirts.

Read more about this local gem: https://hubs.la/Q02mdpmP0

The menu at Lisbon’s Bula Bula dips into African, African/Indian and, on Sundays, Cantonese dishes – in a way a microcosm of the former Portuguese colonial world.

20/02/2024

Yes, tripe may be polarizing, but the Portuguese approach might be the most user-friendly. Find out why (and get the recipe!): https://hubs.la/Q02lBG6T0

A Camponesa Sta Catarina

14/02/2024

Feeling tentative about tripe? Don’t worry: this might just be the soup for you. It starts with a mirepoix, a French base that adds celery and carrots – and in this case, smoked bacon – to the mix, creating a super user-friendly approach to a sometimes divisive ingredient.

Get the recipe: https://hubs.la/Q02l0C3k0

We visited Antiga Camponesa, a Lisbon restaurant, to learn how to make dobrada, a classic white bean and tripe stew, from chef Gareth Storey.

05/02/2024

Lisbon’s fresh markets are disappearing – but some that remain have opted to transform part of their spaces into food courts, a phenomenon sometimes called the “Time Out effect,” after the high-profile market of the same name. How is this going? Is it helping local vendors? Our contributor Austin Bush investigates: https://hubs.la/Q02jNYjg0

Lisbon’s traditional fresh markets are slowly morphing into contemporary food halls, an attempt to keep up with the city’s rapidly growing tourism following the “Time Out” market model.

06/01/2024

King cake, or bolo-rei, was brought to Portugal from Toulouse, France, by one of the oldest bakeries in Lisbon, Confeitaria Nacional. Over the years, the bolo-rei has become a staple during the festive season, especially for Dia de Reis (Epiphany) on January 6, when it’s baked in its fanciest form with a nougat crown (made of caramel and almonds) and fios de ovos (“egg threads,” or eggs drawn into thin strands and boiled in sugar syrup). https://hubs.la/Q02fx2F-0

Confeitaria Nacional was the first bakery in Lisbon to make the bolo-rei (king cake), which is still a bestseller at Christmas and Epiphany.

29/12/2023

This year, Lisbon bureau chief and lead guide Célia Pedroso managed to explore the world without leaving the Portuguese capital, savoring flavors from Angola and Goa, while also returning to some local classic Portuguese spots that, year after year, continue to provide her with unforgettable culinary memories. Where did she go? What did she try? Find out: https://hubs.la/Q02dRdQC0

Our local Lisbon team takes a look back at their favorite meals and moments of 2023, from Portuguese classics to new spins on old desserts.

17/11/2023

Lisbon has a lot of wine bars, but we’re here to help you sort out which ones you need to visit. Read our guide to some of our favorites here: https://hubs.la/Q029dXdH0

These days, there’s no shortage of good wine in Lisbon. Here’s our list of the best wine bars for every occasion, with plenty of natural wines and lively Lisbon atmosphere.

13/11/2023

Want to buy groceries like a local in Lisbon? Mercado 31 de Janeiro, in Lisbon’s Saldanha neighborhood, has gone through a lot of changes, but it remains a relevant marketplace for Lisbon shoppers.

Get all the details on this market: https://hubs.ly/Q028DZRk0

09/11/2023

Your friends or family are visiting Lisbon for the first time. Where do you take them to eat? If you’re us, it’s a no-brainer: Pica-Pau.

Restaurant Details/Location: https://hubs.la/Q028hQZJ0

🖊️+ 📸: Austin Bush

01/11/2023

If there’s one Portuguese ingredient familiar to all, it’s probably salt cod. And if there’s one Portuguese salt cod dish that’s best known, it’s likely bacalhau à Brás. This mix of things everyone likes – potatoes, eggs, onions – is probably what makes it a top choice. https://hubs.la/Q027lH5N0

🖊️+ 📸+ 🐟: Austin Bush

We visited Lisbon restaurant Pica Pau to learn how to make bacalhau à Brás, Portuguese salt cod with eggs, onions, and matchstick potatoes, with chef Luís Gaspar.