Tucked in Belém, Michelin-starred Feitoria brings the country’s best produce to the table. Chef André Cruz merges high-caliber techniques with traditional Portuguese flavors to create an unforgettable experience. Ingredients come from small local producers resulting in dishes such as cod with smoked caviar and potatoes or prawns with mushroom rice. For dessert, the malagueta pepper ice cream, served with organic berries, goat’s milk, chocolate, and hazelnut, is an homage to the chef’s heritage (his father was born in Angola, where the Portuguese historically acquired the chiles).

Pigmeu is a pork lover’s heaven. The restaurant in the Campo de Ourique neighborhood is an ode to the ingredient that is ubiquitous in Portuguese cuisine from north to south. Chef Miguel Azevedo Peres and his team follow a nose-to-tail philosophy when working with the hog, incorporating pig into pork fat-infused butter, a pork-filled take on the classic bifana sandwich, and pork pudding.

Chef Vítor Sobral is considered one of the trailblazers of contemporary Portuguese cuisine, often recreating traditional dishes. Of all the restaurants he has opened, A Tasca da Esquina is the longest-running and most successful in reimagining popular Portuguese recipes with a twist. Check out items like bulhão pato — clams, oven-baked octopus, sweet potato, almond, and roasted tomato — or bacalhau à monção: codfish loin with potatoes, roasted onion cream, smoked pork belly, and cabbage “migas” (a dish traditionally made from stale bread).

Ever since he gained prominence in Esporão, in the Alentejo region, chef Pedro Pena Bastos has been on a path to success. At Cura, the Four Seasons’ fine dining restaurant, he is in his best shape: exquisite plating, balanced flavors, and enough sensitivity to bring together the fresh ingredients that come daily to his kitchen from the Portuguese coast and the countryside. When you order one of the three tasting menus, the wine pairing, which focuses on local winemakers, is mandatory.

Located near the national parliament, Café de São Bento is the place to go for late-night dining or any time of day you’re desperate for an old-school steak. The meat is served grilled or fried, with chips (or french fries), signature sauce, and esparregado (spinach puree). The service is amiable, while the room is stuffed with red sofas and dark wood furniture, a classic mix of decadence and elegance. It all pairs perfectly with the throwback character of the food.

The charismatic and popular Nepalese chef Tanka Sapkota is known mainly for his Italian restaurants: Come Prima, Il Mercato, and Forno d’Oro. But at Casa Nepalesa, which he opened in 2010 and retooled in 2021, the chef serves Nepalese dishes he’s particularly fond of, like cheesy naan baked in a tandoor or Alentejano lamb curry with onion, tomato, green pepper, ginger, and spices.

Chef João Ricardo Alves was born to a Portuguese father, raised in Brazil, and trained in French cuisine. After spending time as a butcher in a traditional French restaurant, Alves got sick of meat, became a vegetarian, and went to work in plant-based restaurants. After traveling through Europe and Asia, he arrived in Lisbon to open Arkhe in the Santos district, where he applies his skills and creativity to create flavorful jus and broth as bases for his elevated cuisine. The menu changes regularly according to the best vegetables he can get. Meanwhile, sommelier Alejandro Clavijo canvases the dining room, gently pouring the best selection from his sharp, innovative list, which highlights natural wines collected on visits to winemakers around the world.

Every big city should have a bistro to call its own, a place like BouBou’s in the Principe Real neighborhood. An alum of Alain Ducasse’s empire, chef Louise Bourrat runs the kitchen, while her talented team (dominated by women) take care of the guests in the dining room — never letting anyone run out of wine. The two menus — Omnivorous and Terra (vegetarian) — include dishes focusing on fresh Portuguese ingredients, mainly seafood and vegetables, combined with global inspirations. The atmosphere is cheerful, and the service is efficient to boot. A few meters from the restaurant, the team opened BouBou’s Sandwich Club, a casual venue for street food.

For a second, you might think you’re in Paris, but really this Lisbon patisserie has emulated an atmosphere of French elegance with its Art Nouveau-style building since 1922. Much has changed over the course of a century, but some things remain untouched in one of the most iconic cafes in the city: the croquettes fried to perfection, the carved wooden display cases, and the kindness of the waiters. These days, the cafe serves lunch and dinner too, but the pastry selection is the main reason for a visit. Come for the cakes, meringues, and traditional Portuguese sweets.

The cocktail scene in Portugal is booming, thanks in part to Red Frog, a groundbreaker that has earned a spot on the World’s 50 Best list. The speakeasy has the intimate vibe of a bar from the Prohibition era, but the drinks are made with modern techniques involving gadgets such as centrifuges, rotovaps, and sous-vide machines. Think seaweed from Azores mixed with vodka and rhubarb, or Greek yogurt in a cocktail with pet-nat and brioche distillate. To eat, a short but efficient menu (with olives, jamón, and bell pepper hummus) pairs well with the alcohol.

At this unobtrusive taberna in the enchanting Chiado neighborhood, chef-owner André Magalhães presents flavorful and inventive dishes to share. As the waiter walks you through the blackboard menu, you might hear about how the kitchen team was inspired by an old recipe the chef dug up, a fresh ingredient Magalhães brought from the market, or a dish from the growing local Asian immigrant communities. Magalhães is particularly interested in the connections between the cuisines of Portugal and its former colonies, where the chef has traveled extensively to learn about local foodways.

This two-story restaurant between charming Chiado and nightlife hub Bairro Alto is restless chef Ljubomir Stanisic’s fancy, funky, punk-chic, no-bullshit, fine-dining flagship. Start with a cocktail at the bar (among the best in town) and then, at the table, go for a spinach and cheese burek (an homage to the chef’s Serbian roots), the mushroom and shrimp risotto, or the beetroot tartare. Don’t miss the dishes that have been served since the opening, dubbed the Top 100, such as the spicy octopus with honey and sweet potato puree or the dry-aged Rossini loin tataki.

In Portugal, bread is a religion. And in Lisbon, Isco, located in the Alvalade neighborhood, is one of its sanctuaries. Along with a hundred loaves of bread in different shapes and flavors and viennoiserie staples that come out of the ovens every day, guests can enjoy a few dishes and sandwiches (crispy chicken with pickles, sardines, or tortilla with tomato) created by chef Natalie Castro. Enjoy your meal with another edible sacred to the Portuguese people: wine. There’s a significant list to wash down all those carbs. Don’t leave without grabbing a choux craquelin (choux pastry filled with pistachio and cassis), a cake, or a tartelette to go.

Famous chef José Avillez owns a restaurant empire in town. With its two Michelin stars, his restaurant Belcanto, at the heart of the charming neighborhood of Chiado, is the most acclaimed fine dining venue in Lisbon. Here, the chef and his team serve modern Portuguese dishes a la carte or on two conceptual tasting menus (Classics and Evolution). Explore Portugal through his creative takes on tasty classics like suckling pig and lupini beans (a Portuguese obsession) with ajo blanco and horse mackerel.

In a refurbished Chiado building from the 17th century, celebrity chef Henrique Sá Pessoa serves the hearty, sophisticated dishes that earned the restaurant two Michelin stars. The menu reflects influences from around the world (mainly Asia), but the chef approaches them from a Portuguese point of view, as in salted cod (with cilantro, kale, and brandade) or Iberian suckling pig confit (served with turnips and black pepper jus). Go a la carte or try the five-course Coast to Coast menu to marvel at the local ingredients from the sea (lobster, razor clams, red mullet), prepared with elegance and skill.

It is impossible to pass by this corner pastry shop in Chiado without stopping to marvel at all the mouthwatering sweet treats that fill the window. The sugary, eggy tarts and pastries are made according to centuries-old traditional recipes developed by Cistercian monks in the monastery of Alcobaça, where the original Alcôa was founded in 1957. Many baked goods even come with religious names like queijinhos do céu (heaven’s cheese), ovos do paraíso (eggs of paradise), and toucinho do céu (bacon from heaven).

Opened in 1936, Gambrinus is an institution serving classic items like seafood rice, kidneys in Madeira wine, and crepes suzette made tableside. In a city where eating at the counter is a way of life, Gambrinus has perhaps the most famous counter in Lisbon, where locals huddle together to eat croquettes with mustard or snack on a prego (a garlicky, thin-sliced beef sandwich) with a beer. As at many traditional restaurants, each day of the week brings specific dishes, such as empadão de perdiz (partridge pies) on Mondays and roasted salt cod on Fridays.

“Fine dining is dead,” reads one poster as you step into this ultracasual venue in the Mouraria neighborhood. Tasca Baldracca is among a new generation of tascas (no-frills, affordable, traditional restaurants) where chefs are showing that the genre can be updated without losing the essential character of the neighborhood hangout. Though it may look casual, the restaurant surprises with food made with refined techniques and quality ingredients at affordable prices. There’s a lively mood in the dining room, where dishes designed for sharing generate a convivial atmosphere. Start with the couvert (good sourdough bread and spreadable goat cheese), followed by items such as beef tartare, gizzard tempura, or roast suckling pig.

The bifana is Lisbon’s quintessential street food, consumed by the hundreds every day in the busiest neighborhoods in town. It is a simple sandwich with thin slices of fried pork shank (the best venues fry the meat in pork fat) stuffed into a crusty roll. To enhance the flavors, some places add a good amount of mustard poured straight from the squeeze bottle or a few drops of piri piri (hot sauce). Bifanas do Afonso, on the famously steep Rua da Madalena, is one of the most popular venues for the egalitarian delicacy. Long queues are undeniable proof of the quality of the sought-after sandwiches, which have been served there for over 40 years.

On the way to São Jorge Castle, O Velho Eurico appears as if by providence, a cozy pit stop to replenish your energy with excellent Portuguese food, ideally on the charming terrace in the shade of some leafy trees. The old restaurant is now a place of pilgrimage, with the lines and sold out reservations for weeks to prove it. The menu is in the hands of young cook Zé Paulo Rocha, part of a new generation of Lisbon’s rising chefs, who have worked to move the dining scene forward. Expect traditional items made with a hint of modernity, like the excellent octopus carolino rice, pig head and white beans, bread pudding with beer caramel, and much more from a menu that changes daily.

This unassuming but elegant, modern restaurant in the downtown Sé area has been a mandatory visit since it opened in 2017, thanks mainly to talented chef Antonio Galapito, who creates recipes that are luscious, creative, minimalist, and beautiful. The former sous chef under acclaimed chef Nuno Mendes while they were both in London, Galapito focuses his micro-seasonal menu at Prado on organic ingredients from Portuguese producers. Order a little bit of everything to share, ideally with a glass of natural wine from the fantastic selection.

After building a promising career for several years, João Sá now helms his own kitchen at downtown restaurant Sála. The restaurant’s atmosphere is informal, while dishes are creative and contemporary, combining Portuguese heritage with global influences. Highlights include Sá’s version of monkfish with cauliflower and caviar, red prawn with Thai tom yum and Brazilian vatapá, and a balanced dessert made with almonds, miso, and beer yeast. You can’t go wrong, whether you order a la carte or get one of the tasting menus.

There are only seven tables at avant-garde Boi-Cavalo, a former butcher shop in the heart of Alfama, where chef Hugo Brito shows off his creativity with inventive dishes designed for adventurous diners. The internationally inflected menu, which changes seasonally, might include cozido rice with pink prawns, lettuce gazpacho with potato dauphine and XO sauce, or oysters with grape leaf tempura and homemade vinaigrette. The wine list is short, but offers a good mix of small producers.

Located in a 19th-century building that is now a hotel in the Graça neighborhood, Plano is a two-in-one restaurant. On most days, guests eat indoors in a charming, airy dining room with minimalist decor. But on hot summer nights, chef Vitor Adão sets up his kitchen in the intimate garden around the pool where, with the help of a charcoal grill beneath the orange trees, he cooks over open fire as if he were in the countryside. The six- to nine-course tasting menu changes frequently, highlighting the best local produce from each season.

Tascas, which serve traditional comfort dishes at affordable prices, are a Portuguese institution. They proliferated in the early 20th century, but Maçã Verde (Green Apple) is a more recent specimen, tucked in a former snack bar in front of Santa Apolónia station. The restaurant serves hearty dishes such as chanfana (goat stew) and secretos de porco preto (fatty strips of black pig), all well-prepared by Dona Laura, the friendly cook in charge.