A fishy experience: bacalhau and sardines in Portugal

 Our fam LOVES seafood. So it was such a delight to be able to visit Portugal and eat seafood in practically every meal!

 

Grilled Sardines @Restaurant Farrol

Pastel de Bacalhau at Casa Portuguesa do Pastel de Bacalhau—we first saw this store in Sao Jorge castle. I felt it was such a tourist trap, touting “Portugal Experience” and even offering a combo of Pastel de Bacalhau with Port wine. The prices are also on the expensive side at over Eur5 each. But after seeing the third branch and feeling like I have yet to try an amazing Pastel (called Bolinhos in the North) de Bacalhau, we gave in and got some. And boy, was I glad we did! We bit into the warm and creamy codfish cake with Queijo da Serra in the centre and it was just utterly delicious! Bacalhau (dried, salted cod) is a staple in Portuguese diet from its history of exploration, using salt to preserve the codfish caught during long naval voyages. Interestingly, cod is not native to the coastline of Portugal. The Serra de Estrella cheese from the mountains of Serra da Estrela region was soft and rich and has a protected designation of origin in the EU (like Port). And rightly so, given the rigorous process to make this from sheep’s milk. Whether or not you have the opportunity to try other Pastel de Bacalhau from local bakeries (which we did), I recommend you give this one a try.

made fresh in house Pastel de Bacalhau @Casa Portuguesa do Pastel de Bacalhau

Pasteis de Bacalhau at Casa Portuguesa do Pastel de Bacalhau

 

Bacalhau com Natas (salted cod with cream)—a traditional Portuguese dish, Bacalhau com Natas is wonderful comfort food. We tried this at Churrasqueria Lebre, a cafeteria-style joint at Fatima. While there were some big fishbones to watch out for, the dish was very tasty. The fish was moist with chunky flakes easily falling off with the fork. The cream was a nice contrast to the saltiness of the cod. Prices were very reasonable at Lebre and as it is cafeteria-style, it made for fast dining, which is especially important if you have a bus to catch at the nearby station.

Bacalhau com Natas @Churrasqueria Lebre

 Sardines—depending on which reference you trust, Sardines can very well be Portugal’s national fish. It is, after all, and unlike cod, fished (in abundance, so they say) off the shores of Portugal. Canned or tinned sardines are available not just in grocery stores. You can find them at stores selling only sardines. One of the fun places we got some sardines was The Fantastic World of Portuguese Sardines (Mundo Fantástico Da Sardinha Portuguesa). There was one right at the Lisbon airport but went to the one in Baixa. They showcase sardines in fun, colourful tins. They feature tins with the year (from 1916 to present) and includes some interesting trivia related to that particular year—a great souvenir. The store itself was a fun place to explore, feeling like a carnival with vibrant staff on hand to assist. There was a variety of flavours (spicy, tomato, olive oil, etc) and even other seafood such as shrimp, octopus and cod.

tinned seafood from Mundo Fantástico Da Sardinha Portuguesa

Mundo Fantástico Da Sardinha Portuguesa

 Grilled sardines—of course we had to try grilled sardines instead of just the tinned ones. We had some at Restaurant Farrol in Alfama. It was a humble dish, nothing pretentious, just the plain, grilled sardines. It had too many tiny bones (that I couldn’t just swallow) so I didn’t quite enjoy it as other meatier fish.

grilled sardines

 

While this is supposed to be about fish, I do have to mention octopus. We usually have octopus either in Takoyaki form or grilled from frozen. Imagine what a delight it was to have it fresh, grilled. Utterly delicious. Cooked well, the octopus was not rubbery at all, but deliciously tender to the bite. We had grilled octopus, octopus salad and even octopus rice from various places such O Corrido in Alfama. Some are tastier than others, and servings vary, of course (the one at Gelo in Baixa was half onions) but we enjoyed all our octopus meals.

grilled octopus @O Corride

octopus rice @Restaurant Farrol

 

I did have to try the bifana (pork sandwich) and, of course, Francesinha. I cannot yet abandon my love for red meat, but I will take seafood any day in a heartbeat.

Neighborhoods of Lisboa

 

Alfama, Lisbon

The hilly roads and being not quite where the action was, were some reasons we were initially hesitant to stay in Alfama area during our trip to Lisbon. However, our location ended up to be great for us, being close to the trains we needed to take for our day trips and away from the noisy bars when the fam wanted to rest in the evenings. Alfama is one of the oldest neighborhoods in Lisbon that was not heavily damaged in the earthquake/tsunami of 1755 that practically flattened the other areas. During the Moorish occupation, Alfama was a poor area populated by fishermen. Today, it is a labyrinth of narrow, cobbled streets and steps where the architecture was kept intact. No skyscrapers are in sight, no modern structure distract from its charm. During the day, we marveled at the cobbled streets, some showing some design or pattern and we looked in awe at the building facades decked with azulejos. Some evenings, sounds of Fado music from the quaint cafes float its melancholic beauty through the neighborhood.  

streets of Alfama

azulejos-clad building being restored

We spent a couple of days in Alfama and Baixa-Chiado area. For most of the time, we walked or took transit. But we also booked a TukTuk tour to be able to cover more ground and take us through steep hills. We also did as tourists do and took the Tram 28 which took us on a scenic ride across the city.

one of many TukTuks in Lisbon

the historic Tram 28

Some of the things to see:

Sé de Lisboa (Lisbon Cathedral)—also called, Santa Maria Maior, is the oldest church in the city. It is a beautiful church built in the 12^th century which has survived earthquakes, and battles and has been restored several times. This is open to the public but there is a fee to tour the cloisters.

 

Sé de Lisboa

Across from the cathedral is the Igreja Santo Antonio (Church of St. Anthony) which is dedicated to Portugal’s patron saint, Saint Anthony. There you can find the crypt which marks where he was actually born. A painted tile also showcases the visit of St. Pope John Paul II to this crypt.

 

 Igreja Santo Antonio

Church of Santa Engrácia (Now National Pantheon)—originally a church from the 17^thC where construction began and was not completed until the 20^thC. It is now the Panteão Nacional where important Portuguese personalities are buried, including presidents, writers, singers and of course, football players.

 

Panteão Nacional

Near the Pantheon and every Tuesday and Saturday, they have the flea market (Feira da Ladra) where sellers display their goods on small tables or on blankets along the square. It is said that markets such as these have been in existence from the 12^thC. There are artisan goods and jewelry, ceramic ware, antiques, books, clothes, coins, and even azulejos tiles (which are protected and supposedly can only be sold under special permits). Some police roam the area to keep the peace but it seemed quite safe to us. The colorful work of André Saraiva stands in the background by the wall of the Jardim Botto Machado.

 

mural @Feira da Ladra

Roman ampitheatre—close to the Lisbon cathedral, the Teatro Romano de Lisboa features unearthed ruins of the ancient Roman ampitheater. It is also free to visit!

 

Teatro Romano de Lisboa

Castelo de São Jorge--The medieval Castle of Sao Jorge stands atop the hills of Alfama. The fortified walls are quite imposing. They were able to preserve the towers and the castle boasts a wonderful viewpoint of the city. 

 

entrance to Castelo de São Jorge

If you are not able to make it to the castle, some of the areas with beautiful vistas are:

Miradouro das Portas do Sol—has panoramic city views where you can see the traditional red roofs and churches of Alfama.

 Miradouro da Graça—one of the city’s famous hills on the border of Graça and Alfama showing fantastic views of the city rooftops and the Tagus river. Some of the beautiful sights you can see include the Ponte 25 de Abril (25 de Abril Bridge) where cars and trains can cross over the river. And across to Almada, you can also can catch a glimpse of the Christ the Redeemer statue (inspired by the one in Rio de Janeiro) which is the monument of the Santuário de Cristo Rei shrine dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus Christ. By the viewing area, you will find one of Lisbon’s oldest churches, the Chapel of Our Lady of the Mountain, from the 13^thC.

 

city views from  Miradouro da Graça

Chapel of Our Lady of the Mountain

In Baixa-Chiado, we started from Rossio square area. We walked through some of the bustling stores in Chiado down to Rua Augusta. A mix of restaurants, stores, bakeries flank Rua Augusta culminating in the Arco da Rua Augusta (Rua Augusta arch) on the Praça do Comércio. The arch commemorates the city's reconstruction after the Great earthquake.

Rossio Square

 

Chiado area

the pink street, Lisbon

Arco da Rua Augusta

This area is more cosmopolitan and here you can find stores of some of the popular European brands and as well many of the goodies you would like to get (pasteis de nata, pastel de bacalhau, souvenirs, and more). Tourists abound in this area and the streets are quite busy with patios of restaurants and cafes. In Rua Garrett, you can also find the oldest bookstore in operation. Bertrand Bookshop was first built in 1732 but was reconstructed along with the rest of Lisbon after the 1755 Earthquake.

Baixa is the lower part while Chiado is the higher part of the area. You can walk or take the Elevador de Santa Justa (Santa Justa Lift), a historic elevator originally designed to help locals navigate Lisbon’s hilly streets.

Elevador de Santa Justa

 We couldn’t leave Lisbon, and Alfama, without catching a Fado show. We booked a (cash-only) prix fixe dinner and show at O Corrido, across the National Pantheon. While a bit on the pricey-side, the 3-course meal with choice of appetizer, main dish and dessert was delicious. The Fado music was truly wonderful. The Fado genre is characterized by melancholic songs about longing, fate, destiny, typical of what the people would sing when their sailors went out to sea (especially during the maritime voyages). O Corrido featured 3 Fado singers, each doing a set of 3-4 songs. The music was just so moving and the melody just cuts through even if we could not understand the lyrics.

 

@OCorrido, Alfama

It was our first trip to Portugal. We made Lisbon our home base and went to several day trips from there. Our itinerary was packed and yet there were still so many more places to explore! And while we thought we were only going to visit this place maybe once, we really hope to visit many more times in the future. Eu amo Lisboa!