Portugal & Santiago de Compostela

[Marina Chang]

Ten days from now, we will be visiting Portugal and Santiago de Compostela in Galicia. Most of the restaurant recommendations I have found from past threads have armed us with a healthy list for Lisbon and Porto. However, we still have a big goose egg for our lists for some of the other towns we will visit: Braga, Obidos, Evora and Pinhao. We are desperately seeking suggestions.

In Portugal, we are considering Casa de Calcada (which has a Michelin star) in Amarante. This is somewhat out of our way, so any feedback would be appreciated - to help us decide whether it would be worth a long drive.

There are two Michelin-starred restaurants in Santiago de Compostela: Toni Vincente and Casa Marcelo. I've read high praise for Casa Marcelo in a thread started this time last year, but have not seen any comments about Toni Vincente. We have two nights in that area.

Any crumbs would be greatly appreciated .

- Marina.

Edited February 25, 2005 by Marina Chang (log)

[Bux]

Hopefully someone with real knowledge will step in, but I seem to recall Toñi Vincente as being sort of the grande dame of Galician cuisine. I believe she had two daughters who were also chefs with separate restaurants in Pontevedra. Toñi Vincente was where we would have liked to try when we were in Santiago de Compostela some years back. Unfortunately our trip coincided with her vacation. Campsa awarded her two soles in 2004. Casa Marcelo got one, as did Fogón Retiro Da Costinna. Toñi gets the nod in the text as well. They call her "la máxima figura de la cocina moderna en Galicia." On the other hand, Marcelo is "la cabeza visible de la cocina más creativa de Galicia." I suppose she's the grande dame and he's the new generation.

We ate and stayed a night out in Don Roberto's restaurant with rooms in San Xulian. Charming people, but I see the restaurant has lost it's Michelin star and it's rather remote. I don't recall any other stars in Santiago back then.

[kerriar]

In June 2002, I eat a very good lunch in Toni Vincente's. Unfortunately I have not kept any notes and the bill was picked up by somebody else at the table.

We had reserved a week or so in advance on the basis of a strong recommendation from a native of Santiago de Compostela and the group of about six included a few unreformable foodies.

I think the whole table took one of the menus and my recollection is of something with a distinctively Galician character - we certainly had percebes - and an overall standard fully commensurate with the Michelin rating.

The dining room is sober and "correct" but as you might expect in that part of Spain, the athmosphere was relaxed and unhurried.

Sorry if this is a rather general impression - time has that effect - but it certainly falls among the restaurants I would return to.

Where are you staying? Los Reyes Catolicos is of course impressive and the rooms are comfortable but it can be crowded and bookings are often a problem. More recently opened, the Palacio del Carmen is smaller and converted from an old convent. Although I did not stay there, it is recommended by the colleague who sent us to Toni Vincente.

[pedro]

Some of our members visited Galicia last summer. At least one of them, Rogelio, went to Casa Marcelo. This is what he wrote about it: Casa Marcelo.

If you still have some room for exploring a few more restaurants, not located in Santiago though, vserna wrote about Galicia on Best of both worlds, or: Galicia, clicking on all cylinders.

[Marina Chang]

Thanks for your thoughts Kerriar and Bux. Based on your comments, as well as the threads thoughtfully spoon fed to me by Pedro, I think I have a sense of the different experience we would get from the two restaurants. We should reserve one for each night. We had been wondering if one might have been so outstanding to merit dinner two nights in a row!

Kerriar, we will be staying at the Costa Vella, which is described as an intimate little hotel with good views. I left my husband in charge of making the hotel bookings. Your suggestion of the Palacio del Carmen would have been a good choice. We'll definitely try for it next time.

- Marina

P.S. Anyone know about those little towns in Portugal?

[vserna]

Braga: if you don't mind an ugly industrial area, São Gião is the place. (Joaquim Magalhães is a fine traditional cook, specializing in the Minho cuisine.)

Óbidos: I haven't been there in years (wonderful white, medieval town!), and back then I ate without great distinction at the pousada. Alcaide is no great shakes. Perhaps you should follow Michelin's advice and go to A Ilustre Casa de Ramiro. Hey, the name alone is worth the journey... Or go to nearby Peniche for some serious spiny lobster.

Évora: Fialho is the famous place, but some say it's going downhill after so many years; O Antão is a solid restaurant for pleasant Alentejo cuisine. But the locals might choose Luar do Janeiro (Travessa Janeiro 13). A place to verify that Ibérico ham (here, porco preto) is not just a Spanish specialty!

Pinhão: I would go a few miles outside of town and away from the famed Vintage House to sleep and eat (simply, in rustic style, with a Quinta do Infantado port) in the nearby village of Covas do Douro, at the wonderful manor (best views on the Port vineyards), Casa do Visconde de Chanceleiros.

If you are interested in Portugal's wine regions and stop at Nelas in the heart of Dão, don't miss the wonderful Bem Haja. Outstanding regional food.

[pedro]

Víctor, have you recently been to Toñi Vicente? I'm curious to know how she's doing.

[vserna]

Same as always. Sound, solid. A bit old-fashioned by now. Excellent home-prepared foie gras, as ever. But I'd go to Casa Marcelo myself.

[pedro]

Same as always. Sound, solid. A bit old-fashioned by now. Excellent home-prepared foie gras, as ever. But I'd go to Casa Marcelo myself.

←

That's exactly what I was curious about. Whether the innovative style by Galician cooking standards that Toñi represented not that long ago would still be that innovative.

[Marina Chang]

Victor, you are a life saver. We will only be staying one or two nights at each of these smaller towns in Portugal, so we should be able to try out most of your recommendations. We'll make a special point of seeking out Bem Haja.

Appropos of nothing, after Pinhao, we are making a special trip over to Caceres for a day, just to eat at Atrio, our favorite Spanish restaurant south of Madrid. We lunched there about five years ago and thought they surely deserved more than one Michelin star. We ordered their superb tasting menu and so enjoyed the glass of Pedro Ximenez that marked the end of our meal that José Polo very kindly provided us with a mini-tasting and tutorial on the various Pedro Ximenez dessert wines. It's been too long since that lunch, and I see that the Michelin Man has since been there again and agreed with us.

When we return in late March I will be sure to report back to everyone on our dining experiences.

Looking forward to some navajas, percebes, and maybe some berberechos.

- Marina.

[Marina Chang]

Returned last week. Here is a portion of my report on our eating experiences. I'll add more later, as I continue to gather my notes.

We didn't do too well in Braga, Portugal. Since we were staying in the Bom Jesus area above town, we were too lazy to negotiate our way down into the confusion of roads of downtown and opted to eat in the hotel restaurant (Hotel do Elevador). The menu description looked good, but the execution was pretty average. The portions, however, were enormous. I always feel bad sending food back, but no two people could have finished our meal. The vinho verde (Muralhas de Monção, 2003) we ordered was very pleasant.

Lisbon:

Based on a roaring recommendation by Steve Klc, we went on a mission to find the Restaurant Pico no Chao (Rua de O Seculo 170), Tel 21431973. When we finally found it in the Bairro Alto – a 10 minute walk from the Solar do Vinho do Porto - it looked closed. The phone number was disconnected, and while we smelled the aromas of food cooking through a little broken window, the place was locked shut, with only an old paper menu tacked next to the wood door. We attempted to visit again at 9:00 PM, when it should have been in full swing according to the menu (opens at 8:00 PM), and it was still locked up tight.

However, we did find another new restaurant just around the corner and a block up the street: ‘O templo dos sabores.’ It was small, very modern and inviting - opened within the last six months by a young chef, Fabio Amaral, from Brazil. His dishes were non-traditional combinations of ingredients and flavors, and the prices for these complex and labor intensive creations were ridiculously cheap. We began with gratis pre-dinner flutes of cava and fresh strawberry bubbly drink, along with very tasty pastry puffs filled with a steaming hot chicken mixture. The fish ‘bolinho(s)’ or croquettes with lemon ali-oli sauce, and the light, but creamy, onion soup were all excellent; as was the fish in filo dough with leeks, apples and oyster sauce. The accompaniments for the bread basket were equally ambitious: goat cheese and basil spread, garlic butter, and eggplant relish/spread. For entrees we ordered the pork tenderloin with honey and lime sauce, and bacalhau com molho de espinafres, which were good but not up to the same standard as the appetizers. The chocolate dessert was excellent, consisting of a fresh hot very chocolate-y cookie with a scoop of chocolate ice cream. We were excited to discover this new restaurant, but worried that it might go the way of its neighbor Pico no Chao, down the street. The streets are almost exclusively residential, and remote with almost no foot traffic. Although it was a Saturday night our restaurant had only two other couples the entire night.

We found a good hole in the wall eatery for Goan food, Restaurante Zuari (41 Rua S. Joao da Mata) at Santos-o-Velho (#15 tram to the Santos stop for the Antiques Museum). The small place also serves as a local bar/café for elderly guys, including one who talks to himself. The owner/cook is very engaging and speaks fairly good English. His curries are good and hot, excellent samosas, homemade mango ice cream, and a bebinca that he is very proud of.

Went to the ‘marisqueira’ Ramiro (Avda Amirante Reis), which is similar to eating at a Maryland crab house, but with fantastic pata negra jamon and huge piles of buttered toasted bread instead of corn on the cob. Half way through our meal we saw things go past that were not on the menu, such as buey de mar (ox-of-the-sea) crabs. Already on our third glass of beer and with wooden mallets pounding on our spider crab, while snacking on garlic cilantro clams, and garlic shrimp, we passed on the other crab. We should have checked out what was under the glass at the front counters of seafood, Rather than ordering off the menu. Incredible place for shellfish and people watching.

Like good tourists we stopped at the Cervejaria daTrinidade. It was percebes season everywhere we went and we finally ordered a plate here, to munch with our dark Sagres beer on tap. Good thing I observed a man eating a huge plateful at Ramiro’s the night before, and knew to twist and pull to get at the interior meat. Delicious with beer, like peanuts of the sea.

Sanxenxo & Santiago de Compostela:

Our two favorite meals of this trip were at Pepe Vieira in Sanxenxo, and then at Casa Marcelo in Santiago. Our meal at Pepe Vieira was just marvelous, probably the highlight of our trip. It is outrageous that this restaurant does not have even a single Michelin star. It deserves at least two stars! We ordered the tasting menu and were served seven dishes before our two desserts and the final sweet. I believe the tasting menu cost only about 38 euros per person. We had some of the most perfectly prepared seafood I’ve eaten anywhere. Rivaling dishes at any of the top places in the San Sebastian area. Five of the seven dishes revolved around fish or shellfish. A few of the dishes were being served for Lent. My favorite was the caballo, a mackeral type fish, which was en escabeche, with a prune sauce garnish, a local Galician apple sorbet, stunningly sweet, mild, juicy orange sections, and pine nuts. The fish was very lightly cooked, and outstandingly tender, juicy, rich, with wonderfully fresh texture. We asked our server/sommelier, and the chef’s brother, Xoan -winner of Spain’s Golden Nose Award - for a local wine recommendation, and wow did we ever get one! He unhesitatingly recommended the 2002 Gorvia, from the Quinta da Muradella, D.O. Monterrei, made from the Galician Mencia grape. Aromas of plums and licorice, a deep, dark, rich, complex wine with good fruit, soft tannins, and that was as smooth as silk. Only 400 bottles (not cases) were produced and all of them purchased by Pepe Vieira, Casa Marcelo, or Pepe Solla. We learned 2002 was only the second release of this wine; and although the producer has been making it for 10 years, he refused to sell it until he deemed its quality good enough for public consumption. It was quite amazing, wow. The new release might be out by now.

Will continue and report on Casa Marcelo next.

[Janice]

We are off to Santiago de Compostela for 4 nights next Wednesday.

I've been a bit slow in doing my research due to work and various other annoyances.

Does anyone have an updates on the suggestions here?

We will have a hire car so we can get to some of the places out in the countryside as well as in Santiago itself.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

Janice

[Pelayin]

Hi Janice,

Casa Marcelo is great. We are spending a few days at La Toja next week and I will have to find some way to convince my wife for a trip to Santiago

Now seriously, there is a very small tavern in Santiago called "La Bodeguilla de San Roque" where they make comfort food from Galice and they do have a great winelist at reasonable prices. Guitián, Emilio Rojo... served in Riedel glasses. Great place if you are a wine lover. Located at Rua San Roque, 10 minutes walking from Plaza del Obradoiro.

P.

[Janice]

Thanks very much for both recommendations - they sound great.

Will get on the phone to Casa Marcelo asap.

I assume the other place would not require reservations?

I'm very excited about this trip gastronomically, if annoyed that I have been able to plan more thoroughly.

Janice

[Pelayin]

I assume the other place would not require reservations?

←

That will depend on your time of arrival. If you arrive early (say before 9pm) I do not think you will have any problem. Telephone is 981564379 and they are closed on saturdays!!!

Ask for crayfish croquettes (croquetas de marisco). Their Arzua-Ulloa cheese was great last year as a dessert (or pre-dessert if you are in that mood).

P.

[PauloR]

Sorry I made this post one year, after your visit

In Portugal, we are considering Casa de Calcada (which has a Michelin star) in Amarante.  This is somewhat out of our way, so any feedback would be appreciated - to help us decide whether it would be worth a long drive. 

←

Forget Casa da Calçada. It does not deserve a visit.

S.Gião is a better choice. As Victor said, it's a ugly industrial area, but one one the best restaurants in the region. It's 30 minutes driving from Porto in the village of Moreira de Cónegos. ( TELEFONE 253561853 ).

Very dificult to find ( ask for " Estádio do Moreirense" , its the football stadium)

In Évora, " Fialho " and " Luar de Janeiro "

In Estremoz " São Rosas"

In Lisbon area.

100 MANEIRAS, in Cascais ( new portuguese food ) Nice place, good food, good wine list. Menu with wines by the glass 55 euros, TELEFONE 214835394

FORTALEZA DOO GUINCHO ( 1 michelin star )

Chef Antoine Westterman

http://www.guinchotel.pt/english/

If you like seafood, ( Shrimp, Lobster, Percebes ) go to Ericeira ( near Sintra).

Restaurant " Mar à Vista ".

It's probably the ugly and noisiest restaurante in Ericeira, but it have the best lobsters, langostines .... in Lisbon area. Telefone: 261 862 928

In Lisbon

Restaurante Eleven ( 1 * michelin )

The menu with paired wines is very nice.

http://www.restauranteleven.com/

Restaurante Tavares.

Oldest restaurant in Lisbon.

http://www.tavaresrico.pt/index2.asp

Restaurante Terreiro do Paço ( new portuguese food )

Restaurante O Solar dos Nunes ( regional food )

Galeria Gemelli , Italian

Very good, very nice place to go in the evening. Very good wines by the glass.

TELEFONE 213952552

If you like grilled sardines go to Peniche, near Obidos. There are lots of restaurants with sardines. Ask for the best.

Edited May 19, 2006 by PauloR (log)