I was going to write “10 Things to Eat in Portugal,” but that quickly turned into “15 Things to Eat (or Drink)” and kept growing. I easily could have added even more items, but I wanted the list to be digestible (haha) for travelers with limited time. That just goes to show how many unique Portuguese dishes there are to try!
1. Pastel de nata
Of course, you can’t visit Portugal without having a pastel de nata (custard tart). In fact, you’ll probably have multiple pastéis each day! (Check out our list of favorite places in Portugal to eat pastéis de nata.)
2. Bacalhau
Jonathan and I grew up in an agricultural area of California with a large Portuguese immigrant population (including Jonathan’s family). Based on the food I ate growing up at community events or friends’ homes, bacalhau is always the very first food I think of when I think of Portuguese food. Bacalhau is the Portuguese word for cod, and there are slightly less than one million ways to prepare it. Jonathan favors the com nata (with cream), Megan really likes the a bras (cooked with potatoes), but there are endless variations to try.
3. Pastel de bacalhau (or bolinhos)
If you look at the first two items on this list and put them together, you get cod pastries! These are called bolinhos in Porto, but in the rest of the country, they’re more commonly referred to as pastéis de bacalhau. (And don’t worry, they don’t contain custard–the “pastel” is the only thing they have in common with pastéis de nata.)
4. Bifana
A bifana is a simple pork sandwich served on delicious bread. You can also order a prego—a similar sandwich made with beef. It’s easy to remember which is which if you remember the starting letters don’t match (bifana = pork, prego = beef).
5. Sardinhas no pão
These sardines on bread are nothing like the sardines you’ve seen in the U.S. They are a staple at the religious festas (festivals) in Portugal, like the huge Feast of St. Anthony (i.e. Lisbon Sardine Festival) held in Lisbon each June. Also, in Portuguese, “no” means “on.” So don’t be like me, who was looking for these sardines all night and couldn’t figure out why they were all served with “no” bread! (Duh.)
6. Frango piri piri
Or, for us English speakers: Piri piri chicken! This refers to any chicken cooked with piri piri sauce; the chicken is usually grilled but can also be baked, and it often comes with a salad and/or fries on the side. Look for a restaurant that specializes in piri piri chicken for the best experience; churrasqueiras (barbecue joints) are usually your best best. In fact, that’s why I included the above picture; the food doesn’t look so great (we demolished the chicken before I remembered to take a photo), but you can see the churrasqueira we visited in the background. (This was in Faro, as the Algarve is the most famous region in Portugal for piri piri.)
7. Bolo de arroz
For a quick bakery breakfast or snack, I love these rice muffins. There’s not much else to say about them–if you like rice and you like muffins, try one!
8. Cataplana
Although great seafood can be found throughout Portugal, hardcore seafood lovers should head down to the Algarve (the southern coastal region) for a cataplana: a seafood dish prepared in a clam-shell pot typically made of copper. As you can see from the photo above, our cataplana included multiple types of fish and shellfish topped with crispy bread. Different varieties are available if you have specific seafood tastes.
9. Francesinha
For another regional dish, this “heart attack” sandwich is unique to the city of Porto and features multiple types of meat stacked between bread, then topped with cheese, beer sauce and sometimes an egg. I’m not going to lie—neither Jonathan nor I really loved francesinha. But, we only tried one, and I’m sure it depends on how the sandwich is made. (We’ve heard Café Santiago has the best francesinha in town, so you might want to start there.)
10. Queijadas
Like bacalhau, I ate many queijadas growing up. In fact, until I visited Portugal, this was the first pastry I thought of when I thought of Portugese pastries (not pastéis de nata, though now I know better). At the risk of being eaten alive by the Portuguese for describing it this way, a quiejada is like a small pastel de nata but can have different fillings. For example, the small round pastry in the photo above [on the right] is a queijada de Sintra, which tastes like Christmas because of the cinnamon in the filling.
11. Travesseiro de Sintra
For another pastry option, try a travesseiro de Sintra [above picture, to the left of the queijada]. This sweet treat is a puff pastry filled with egg and almonds and sprinkled with sugar. What’s not to like? To try a queijada and/or travesseiro, word on the street is that Casa Piriquita has the best pastries in Sintra. (And the crowd it draws in the afternoon makes me believe it!) The pastries pictured above are from Café Saudade if you don’t feel like waiting in line.
12. Polvo
Another common seafood option all over Portugal is polvo, or octopus. This sweet, slightly chewy flesh is made many different ways including in stews, but one of our favorites is grilled with mixed veggies and potatoes [pictured above]. If you’re a big seafood fan or adventurous eater, don’t let the little suction cups deter you … give it a try!
13. Broa de milho
We had delicious bread at a café in Lisbon [pictured above]. It was so delicious I had to ask the waiter what it was, and he answered “broa.” After some Googling, I think (hope!) it was broa de milho, similar to American cornbread (but not quite). Don’t forget: In Portugal, if you eat it, you pay for it. So that delicious bread they’re bringing to your table isn’t free (but is probably worth the few euros it will cost you–especially if it’s broa!).
14. Nata ice cream
If you’re an ice cream (or gelato) fan, be sure to enjoy a nice cold scoop of nata (cream) during your time in Portugal. Nata ice cream is especially good when paired with a scoop of your favorite fruit flavor! (Santini is an excellent ice cream chain shop in Portugal.)
15. Ginja in a chocolate cup
And now for the drinks: Ginja (also ginjinha) is a sweet berry liqueur popular in Portugal. It’s often served in a small chocolate cup for one euro or less. (Pro tip: Put the whole chocolate cup in your mouth after drinking the ginja. If you try to bite the cup, you’re going to have a big mess! Yes, I may know this from experience….)
16. Port wine
Of course you can’t visit Porto (or anywhere in Portugal, but especially Porto) without trying port wine! (Check out our city guide to Porto to learn more about port wine and our favorite places to taste port.)
17. Vinho verde
Despite what its name may suggest, green wine is not made from green grapes; the “green” refers to the youth of the grapes. Vinho verde can be red, white or rosé wine that is released sooner than usual after harvesting. Many varieties of vinho verde are slightly sparkling, but this isn’t always true.
18. Sagres or Super Bock
For beer drinkers, Sagres and Super Bock are the most popular Portuguese beers. In the photo above, you can see Jonathan enjoying a Sagres in Sagres, one of the many visit-worthy towns along the southern coast of Portugal.
19. Garoto
Finally, as you may know from our previous posts on Portugal, I’m not a huge fan of the small, bitter espressos (bica or cafesinha) common in Portugal. So I was delighted to discover the garoto—a small espresso with milk! Unfortunately, we only saw garoto in Lisbon, so it may not be common elsewhere, but it’s the perfect pairing to a pastel de nata for an afternoon (or morning … or evening …) snack.
Of course, this list doesn’t even scratch the surface of all the Portuguese dishes and drinks you can enjoy when visiting this beautiful country, but it captures all our personal favorites.
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