Atalho do Cais
Rua de São Paulo, 32
210 536 840
Opens every day
Price per person: €30
facebook.com/grupoatalho
Here the focus is on meat, served on the plate with various sides or on bread, or even as sushi -- count on minced meat or Wagyu entrecôte instead of salmon or tuna. For vegetarians and vegans there are about half a dozen alternatives. The space is divided into two different dining rooms, both with a bar where classic and specialty cocktails are mixed.
Cervejaria Portugália
Rua da Cintura do Porto de Lisboa
213 422 138
Opens every day
Price per person: €30
www.portugalia.pt
This restaurant has branched out to several locations (including to some of the city's shopping malls), but the two best ones are found on the riverfront. One is in the Belém district next to the Discoveries Monument and the other is by Cais do Sodré Station. It serves a traditional Portuguese menu, of which the steak is the most famous dish, but it's also strong on seafood. Beer is the usual choice to accompany it all.
Confraria Lx
Rua do Alecrim, 12A
213 426 292
Opens every day
Price per person: €25
www.facebook.com/confrarialx
After becoming "the" destination for sushi in Cascais, this restaurant also opened in Lisbon, in the Lx Boutique Hotel. It has a good wine list, together with its famous "sakerinhas" and caipirinhas.
Eat Pray Love
Travessa do Carvalho, 29
212 480 548
Opens every day
Price per person: €25
www.eatpraylove.pt
This restaurant presents a flexitarian menu, meaning a few healthy meat and fish options, but prioritizing vegan and vegetarian dishes. Brunch is served throughout the day, and on Saturday mornings it accompanies yoga and other wellness-related events. It satisfies all tastes, while encouraging a balanced diet. Among the options are tacos, hamburgers, bowls, salads and pancakes. It has a few tables outside and a shop selling homemade products and selected brands (granola, teas, wines…) On Friday and Saturday nights it features DJ sets and live music.
Graviola
Rua da Boavista, 66
(No phone)
Opens every day
Price per person: €25
instagram.com/casagraviola.pt
It claims to be a health-conscious restaurant and, to prove it, it only uses natural and mostly local and organic products. It opens early in the morning for brunch, and keeps the doors open for lunch, dinner, or any meal in between. The menu is quite varied, and includes meat and fish (chicken, tuna and salmon), plus vegan options. The interior, with a capacity for 50 people, has a laid-back atmosphere and the décor is inspired by the beach or summer days. There’s also space for six more diners outside.
Ibo
Rua da Cintura do Porto de Lisboa, Armazém A
213 423 611
Closes on Mondays
Price per person: €40
www.ibo-restaurante.pt
This restaurant, in a former salt warehouse on the waterfront, offers a gastronomic voyage to the former Portuguese colony of Mozambique. Portuguese and Goan flavors are also mixed in, and served in an attractive contemporary interior covered in white, blue, and purple, or at the tables outside.
Kong
Rua do Corpo Santo, 2
213 460 076
Closes on Sundays
Price per person: €20
instagram.com/kongveganfood
Its menu lists vegan versions of “guilty pleasures” such as “fish and chips” and hamburgers with “bacon,” but there are also dishes of the day (such as the famous Brazilian “feijoada” on Thursdays). Everything is free of animal products, including the desserts.
La Puttana
Rua Nova do Carvalho, 70
915 162 919
Opens every day
Price per person: €20
facebook.com/pizzarialaputtana
This pizzeria is wide open to the street (except on winter days when its floor-to-ceiling windows are closed), and serves crispy thin-crust pizzas using Italian products. It’s a very relaxed place with communal tables seating up to 24 people. If you don’t want to wait for your spot, you may always choose the takeout service.
Las Ficheras
Rua dos Remolares, 34
213 470 553
Opens every day
Price per person: €25
facebook.com/lasficheras.pt
This restaurant is open throughout the day and presents traditional Mexican cuisine. It was inspired by the atmosphere of the 1940s Mexican cabarets, and in addition to the tacos and enchiladas, it has a list of cocktails and tequilas. All this to the sound of Mexican and Latin American music, and until 1am on weekdays and 2am on weekends.
Manah
Rua da Moeda, 8
910 100 722
Opens every day
Price per person: €25
facebook.com/ManahLisboa
This is a place to relax at the end of the day, mixing food, cocktails and music. The dishes are Mediterranean (Greek, Turkish, Israeli, Lebanese...) and are perfect for sharing. Many nights are livened up by DJs and there’s outdoor seating.
Monte Mar Lisboa
Rua da Cintura (Armazém 65)
213 220 160
Closes from Monday to Wednesday
Price per person: €40
www.montemar.pt
It’s a famous restaurant in Cascais and it also had a stand in the Ribeira Market, so it was only a matter of time before it opened another spot on the waterfront in central Lisbon (west of Cais do Sodré’s ferry station). It’s in a converted warehouse with two levels, but the place to be is the terrace outside. It features an industrial-chic décor in dark tones, and has seating for about 200, inside and out.
Famous for its fresh fish and seafood dishes, it serves lunch and dinner with a view towards 25 de Abril Bridge, including from the interior through large windows. One of the most popular dishes is the hake fillets with cockle rice, but there’s always the fish of the day, grilled or baked, in addition to the lobsters and crabs.
It also has a small bar, serving cocktails and gins.
Orteá
Rua Dom Luís I, 19
936 217 616
Opens every day
Price per person: €20
instagram.com/ortea_vegancollective
It’s not just the greenest restaurant in Cais do Sodré, it’s also the greenest in the entire city. Its interior is surrounded by plants and its food is completely free of animal products. The delicious desserts change daily, and are sweetened with natural sugars, such as agave, dates and coconut sugar.
Pap'Açorda
Avenida 24 de Julho, 49/Mercado da Ribeira
213 464 811
Closes on Mondays
Price per person: €40
facebook.com/papacorda
One of the city’s classic restaurants (which in the 80s and 90s welcomed celebrities like Robert De Niro, Sean Connery and Catherine Deneuve) moved from his original home in Bairro Alto to the upper level of Ribeira Market, but has kept its menu of traditional Portuguese cuisine with a certain contemporary touch. The specialties are açorda (a soupy dish of bread and seafood) and the most delicious chocolate mousse in town.
Sala de Corte
Praça D. Luis I, 7
213 460 030
Opens every day
Price per person: €35
saladecorte.pt
Meat lovers love this restaurant, and not just for the meat. Everything is delicious, including the appetizers, the sides, and especially the desserts. It also offers a good selection of Portuguese wines.
Segundo Muelle
Praça D. Luis I, 30 - Loja 4B
931 169 158
Opens every day
Price per person: €30
facebook.com/segundomuelle.portugal
The menu is 100% Peruvian, which is basically a fusion cuisine with influences from the Indigenous peoples, Spain, Japan, China and Italy. As you’d expect, there’s ceviche and several piscos to choose from. The contemporary space receives plenty of natural light and is still lit by bulbs hanging from ropes on the ceiling.
Soi - Asian Street Food
Rua da Moeda, 1C
912 895 391
Opens every day
Price per person: €25
gruposushicafe.pt/soi
This restaurant takes you on a journey through the streets of Asia, through the décor and the intense aromas and flavors. On the menu is the best street food from different countries and the interior features the typical neon lights that illuminate the great metropolises of the East. Inside or on the small terrace outside you can enjoy soups and various curry and rice noodle dishes, more or less spicy.
Sophia
Praça Dom Luis I, 34 - Loja 9
210 499 710
Opens every day
Price per person: €25
sophia.com.pt
Entirely devoted to Italian cuisine, this restaurant with two small terraces (one in the interior courtyard and another outside) faces the Ribeira Market. It serves pizza and the traditional dishes eaten at a typical Italian grandmother’s house, using natural ingredients. The pastas are made in house on a daily basis, while the pizzas are made from barbela wheat with natural fermentation. Everything from the ceramics to the décor (made of wallpaper and lots of plants) is meant to make you feel like you’re eating at a grandmother's house.
Taberna Tosca
Praça de São Paulo, 21
218 034 563
Opens every day
Price per person: €25
tabernatosca.com
Facing Praça de São Paulo, this contemporary restaurant wants to bring back the old Lisbon tradition of a relaxed place for get-togethers accompanied by traditional Portuguese dishes. At lunchtime there's a meat, fish or vegetarian choice, while at other times there's a selection of wines, cheese and petiscos (tapas).
Vicente
Rua das Flores, 6
218 066 142
Opens every day
Price per person: €25
facebook.com/vicentebycarnalentejana
A former coal warehouse is now this restaurant specializing in meat from Portugal’s Alentejo region. It kept the brick-vaulted interior, and created a dimly-lit dining area. It mostly serves steak, but there’s a variety of appetizers, as well as the choice of burgers and steak sandwiches.
