A long lunch in Lisbon.
Three days of tiles, tinned fish, & low light along the Tagus. By Constance Royer · photographs by the desk.
The trouble with Lisbon is that almost no one comes for a single thing. It is a city that rewards a list of small ambitions — a particular bookshop in Bairro Alto, a particular restaurant in Cais do Sodré, a particular bench in Príncipe Real with a view of the river — and frustrates anyone who arrives with one ambition only. Better, then, to come with a long lunch in mind, and to let the rest assemble around it.
We have stayed in many parts of the city. The simplest recommendation we can make is Príncipe Real, which is uphill from everything but downhill from the part of yourself that needs an early night.
Where to sleep
Casa do Príncipe
Eight rooms, courtyard, library. fr. $226/nt.
Pensão Tagus
A pension above a quiet fado bar. fr. $168/nt.
Where to eat
- 12:30 · Cervejaria Ramiro — clams, prawns, steak sandwich to finish. Av. Almirante Reis.
- 14:00 · Cantina das Freiras — closed Sundays. Travessa do Ferragial.
- 20:30 · Boi-Cavalo — set menu, no choice, that's the point. Rua do Vigário.