What to Eat in Lisbon: A Food Guide

What to eat in Lisbon

• Pastéis de nata

  Custard tarts — Pastéis de Belém is the original (queue) or Manteigaria for equally good, no queue.

• Bacalhau

  Salted cod — supposedly 365 recipes; try bacalhau à brás or à Gomes de Sá.

• Sardinhas assadas

  Grilled sardines — peak season June (Santo António festival) with street grills across Alfama.

• Bifana

  Marinated pork sandwich; the classic cheap-and-fast lunch.

What to drink

Tap water is safe. Vinho verde (young, slightly sparkling white), Douro reds and ginjinha (cherry liqueur, €1 a shot in Rossio) are the local specialities.

Dining etiquette and practicalities

• Meals run long; expect a full lunch to take 90+ minutes. Espresso (bica) is drunk standing at the counter.

• Tipping 5–10% at restaurants is appreciated; round up in cafés.

• Fado houses request quiet during singing — no talking, no phones. Set-menu dinners with fado usually start ~20:30.

Where to eat in Lisbon

• Baixa & Chiado

  Grid-planned downtown after the 1755 earthquake — Rossio, Praça do Comércio and elegant Chiado cafés.

• Alfama

  Moorish-legacy old quarter under the Castelo — fado houses, miradouros and cobbled lanes.

• Bairro Alto & Príncipe Real

  Nightlife district by night, boutique shopping and design hotels by day.

• Belém

  UNESCO Manueline landmarks — Jerónimos Monastery, Belém Tower, MAAT, and the original Pastéis de Belém.