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Gastronomy
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This page is meant to give you an idea what you can expect to see on the menu in a Portuguese restaurant.
The Recipes part is reserved for authentic Portuguese/Regional dishes.
You can contribute by sending in your recipe (with or without a picture) to E-Mail .
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Besides the Portuguese restaurants, you can find restaurants of all kinds in the Algarve. In almost all tourist places you can find a Pizzeria, Chinese, Greek or an Indian restaurant.
There are also quite a lot restaurants whose owners are foreign. Mostly they have a somewhat international kitchen with an addition of some homeland recipes.
Though most restaurants have a Portuguese kitchen, this doesn't mean their menu contains
authentic Portuguese or Regional dishes. On almost every menu you can find Beef, Veal, Chicken and Pork recipes, whereas Lamb, Rabbit, Wild Boar are hard to find.
This doesn't go for the many Seafood restaurants though, if you like the taste of Fish, clams, shrimps, mussels, crab or whatever else the fishermen caught overnight, they serve it, fresh from the sea.
Most Portuguese restaurants serve both meat and fish, a typical Seafood restaurant emphasizes fish/shellfish off-course.
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Some tips:
- Have a look at the multilingual menus outside the restaurants first.
- For the famous Sardines, which are widely served for lunch, I recommend the special Sardine restaurants at the harbour of Portimão.
- Authentic regional dishes you can find at the restaurants in Monchique, a must!
- The regional "Chicken Piri Piri" is best served at the specialized restaurants in Guia.
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WINES:
The Algarve has four mayor wine regions, Lagoa, Portimão, Tavira and Lagos of which Lagoa is the
most important. They produce about 6 million litres annually, mainly red wine but also white and rosé.
The red wines are fruity and the whites are reasonably dry, both though are pretty high in
alcohol content.
The quality of the Algarves wines is said not to be as high as that of wines produced in other regions
of Portugal.
MEDRONHO:
Strong, jenever like spirit. Made from the red berries of the arbutus shrub.
BEER:
Portuguese beers (Cerveja) are good, major brands like "Superbock" and "Sagres" also have dark beer.
Liquor stores and supermarkets have a wide variety of international beers.
COFFEE:
Most northern European visitors will do fine by ordering their Café com leite, Coffee with milk.
In the Algarve though you might try a Bica (the locals say Café) which is a small strong espresso.
If that is to strong you can order a Bica Cheia, with some extra water.
Variations are:
Bica Duplo, double espresso
Bica Pingada, with a drop of milk.
Galão, a glass with espresso and a lot of milk.
Garoto, coffee with cream.
Cappucino, espresso with whipped milk.
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Some tips:
- Portuguese table wines are low in price and of reasonable quality.
- Don't drink Medronho in combination with beer of wine, you might regret it.
- Liquor stores are considerably more expensive than the wines, beers and spirits section of a supermarket.
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Couvert (and included in the price) bread, butter, fishpaté, cheese and olives.
Most common:
Sopa de Legumes — Vegetable soup
Sopa de Peixe — Fish soup
Caldo Verde — Soup made with kale
Salada Mista — Mixed salad
Salada de Tomate — Tomato salad
Chouriço assada — Grilled pepper/garlic sausage
Amêijoas — Clams in garlic/coriander sauce
Less common:
Creme de marisco — Shellfish soup
Pasteis de Bacalhau — Codfish Pastries
Feijão Frade — Black Eyed Beans with Onions and Garden Parsley
Milho com Atum — Tuna with corn
Rissóis de Camarão — Shrimp Pastries
Cocktail de Camarão — Shrimp Cocktail
Paté de Atum — Tuna Paste
Polvo — Octopus
Presunto — Smoked Ham
Melão com Presunto — Melon with Smoked Ham
Ovo Maionese — Egg Mayonnaise
Ovos com Fiambre — Eggs with Ham
Ovos Mexidos — Scrambled Eggs
Salada de Atum —— Tuna Salad
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Peixe Espada Grelhado — Grilled Swordfish
Salmão Grelhado — Grilled Salmon
Bacalhau Assado ou Cozido — Boiled or Roasted Codfish
Bacalhau à Braz — Codfish with potatoes and eggs
Arroz de Peixe — Fish Rice
Arroz de Polvo — Octopus with Rice
Lulas Grelhadas — Grilled Squid
Lulas Rechadas — Stuffed Squid
Gorazinhos Grelhado — Grilled small Sea-Breams
Espetadas de Tamboril — Frog-Fish Tabs
Espetadas de Lulas com Gambas — Squids with Prawns on the Spit
Linguado Grelhado — Grilled Sole
Carapaus Alimados — Boiled Mackerel
Douradas na Brasa — Grilled gold Bream
Massada de Peixe — Small Sea Basses on Charcoal
Espetadas de Salmão com Gambas — Salmon with Prawns on the spit
Espetadas de Tamboril com Gambas — Frog-fish with prawns on the spit
Cataplana — Fish/Shellfish Hotchpotch
Caldeirada — Spicy Hotchpotch of various kinds of fish
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Note: most grilled dishes come from the barbecue.
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Cocktail de Camarão — Shrimps Cocktail
Omelete de camarão — Shrimps Omelet
Amêijoas — Clams in garlic/coriander sauce
Conquilhas — Small Clams in garlic/coriander sauce
Gambas — Prawns
Lagosta Grelhada — Grilled Lobster
Lagosta ao Natural — Fresh Lobster
Lagostim — Langoustine (scampi)
Lavagante — Lobster
Arroz de Marisco — Seafood Ricestew
Camarão Cozido — Boiled shrimps*
Gambas — Large Shrimps*
Camarão Tigre Grelhado — Grilled Tiger shrimps*
Mexilhões — Mussels
Ostras — Oysters
Percebes — Mussels
Santola — Crab
Sapateira — Crab, somewhat bigger than Santola
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* - Shrimps come in 3 sizes, first the well-known shrimp (Camarão) than the Gamba, which is considerably bigger,
and as third the "Camarão Tigre", Tiger Shrimp, which again is bigger than the Gamba.
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Lombo de Porco Assado — Pork Loin Roasted
Lombo de Porco de Monção
— Pork from the oven with chestnuts
Carne de Porco à Alentejana — Pork with Clams Alentejo Style
Espetada de Carne — Grilled Meat on the spit
Costeletas de Porco — Pork Chops
Entrocosto de Porco — Pork Ribs
Febras de Porco — Pork Fillet
Entremeada — Thick slices of bacon
Leitão Bairrada — Suckling pig
Bife de Vaca — Beefsteak
Bife a Portuguesa — Steak Portuguese Style
Bife do Lombo — Beefsteak of loin
Bife do Lombo com Pimenta — Peppersteak
Costeletas de Novilho — Bullock Cutlets
Cozido à Portuguesa — Meat stew
Rosbife — Roastbeef
Rabo de Boi com Grão — Oxtail with chickpeas
Vitela com Amêndoas — Veal with almonds
Vitela Assada — Veal from the oven
Vitela Estufada — Stewed Veal
Costeletas de Vitela — Veal Chops
Espetadas de Vitela — Veal Tabs
Espetadas Mistas — Mixed Tabs
Costeletas de Borrégo — Barbecued Lamb Chops
Espetada de Lombinho — Lamb on the Spit
Ensopada de Borrego — fried saddle of lamb in a garlic sauce
Bife de Avestruz — Ostrich Steak
Iscas com Elas — marinated liver
Cataplana de Carne — Meat Hotchpotch
Feijoada — Black Beans/Meat/Sausage Hotchpotch
Favas — Broad Beans/Meat/Sausage Hotchpotch
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Frango Piri Piri — Chicken Piri Piri
Frango Assada — Grilled Chicken
Bife de Peru — Turkey Steak
Pato Bravo — Wild Duck
Arroz de Pato — Roasted duck mixed with rice
Faisão no Forno — Pheasant Oven Dish
Faisão Estufado — Stewed marinated pheasant
Coelho à Minhota — Fried rabbit
Javali Estufado — Wild Boar Stew
Churrasco de Javali — Grilled Wild Boar
Carne de Veado — Loin of Venison
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The Portuguese are very fond of their "Doces" which means "Sweets", that covers it perfectly,
all cakes, tarts and custards are highly sugarized. A lot of restaurants have their Doces da Casa, homemade sweets.
Widely served are the Puddings/Mousses, Ice cream, Fruit or a Fruit Salad.
Arroz Doce — Ricepudding
Pudim Flan — Caramelpudding
Pudim Molotoff — Whipped Egg white with Caramelsauce
Pudim de nozes — Pudding with Nuts
Mousse de Chocolate — Chocolate Mousse
Mousse de Amêndoa — Almonds Mousse
Salada de Frutas — Fruit Salad
Torta de Claras — Confiture made with egg whites
Tartes Diversas — Varied Pies
Bolos à Fatia — Slice of Cake
Ananás ao Natural — Fresh Pineapple
Fruta da Época — Seasons Fruit
Gelados — Ice cream
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AFTER DINNER:
You finish your dinner best by drinking a Tawny Port, Medronho or
Amarquinha (Almond Liquor)
followed by "Uma Bica" (espresso café)
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