With your three days conference registration, you'll have lunches included, as well as dinner on Thursday and Friday. If you're looking for places to eat beyond these days, be assured that delicious food is not difficult to find in Porto. From traditional recipes to refined contemporary cuisine, you’ll easily discovery fish specialities, fresh seafood and succulent local meats.
Here are some lovely suggestions that might open your appetite.
Cantinho do Avillez
José Avillez is one of the most famous Portuguese chefs and owns several restaurants in the country. The cuisine is Portuguese-inspired but also influenced by Avillez’s travels. On the menu, there are seasonal Portuguese dishes with a dash of imagination: from flaked codfish with melt-in-your-mouth olives to giant shrimps with spices. In terms of atmosphere, this restaurant is super friendly, cosy, and relaxed.
Location: Rua Mouzinho da Silveira, 166
DOP Restaurant
Located in a building from the 14th century, this restaurant has a signature cuisine based on traditional Portuguese flavours that chef Rui Paula recreates with some international influences. The interior décor of the restaurant also combines modernity with tradition, respecting the imposing building in which it is set, making the costumers feel good in an urban casual and cosmopolitan sophisticated atmosphere.
Location: Palácio das Artes – Largo de São Domingos, 18
Pedro Lemos Restaurant
This is one of the city’s finest restaurants. It presents Portuguese cuisine reinterpreted by the chef after which the place is named. It only uses fresh seasonal ingredients, so the menu changes frequently, but there are always unusual and creative dishes. The wine list is excellent, offering almost 200 options to select from. It also displays and sells gourmet products.
Location: 140 Rua do Padre Luís Cabral, 974
S.O.S.
Salmon, Oysters, and Seafood give the name to this restaurant that only serves fish and seafood. It is known for the quality of the fish and seafood dishes, raw and smoked, tartar and ceviches. This restaurant is also characterized by a good selection of white, rosés, and fresh sparkling wines.
Location: Largo de S. Domingos, 33
daTerra Baixa Restaurant
When you step into this restaurant you will immediately feel the connection to nature. The inside is characterized by a minimalist decor with wood and neutral colours as protagonists, which contributes to a very serene and relaxing environment. This is a vegetarian restaurant that serves healthy meals containing biological, fresh, and high quality products, ideal for those who are mindful about what they eat.
Location: Rua Mouzinho da Silveira, 249
Café Santiago
One of Porto’s specialities is “francesinha”. This typical dish is made of steak, ham, and sausage placed in the middle of two toasted bread slices – all covered with cheese and a special spicy and beer-flavoured sauce. Sometimes one can ask for an egg on top and the dish is usually served with French fries. This place is probably the most popular spot to taste this dish, so it can get crowed quite quickly. The service is fast and the location is superb, right in the city centre.
Location: Rua Passos Manuel, 226
Solar Moinho do Vento
Located in a 16th century building, the origins of this restaurant date back to 1905. It serves traditional Portuguese dishes, such as rabbit stew, “Fava” beans stew, or rice with ribs, turnips and chorizo. All dishes are created by Lucília Moreira, a very nice and talented lady, who is in charge of the cuisine.
Location: Rua Sá de Noronha, 81
Casa Aleixo
Located near the “Campanhã” train station, this is a place that should not be missed. It is known for its fried octopus fillets, considered by many to be the best in town. The owner drives 35 km daily to purchase the freshest octopus. By the end of the meal, customers may be asked to move to the “torture chamber” to drink coffee and pay the check.
Location: Rua da Estação 216
Casa Guedes
Considered by some to be the place that serves the best pork sandwich in the world, here you’ll find simple pork sandwiches, and some more elaborated with typical Portuguese cheese from “Serra da Estrela”. The bread is slightly warm and that makes the whole difference. Everybody in Porto knows about this place, so part of the experience of going there is exactly that: mingling while eating extremely well in a crowded room!
Location: Praça dos Poveiros, 130
Tasca da Badalhoca
This family business is one of the oldest taverns in Porto and has been open for 120 years. A small and cosy place, famous for its dry smoked ham sandwiches (“presunto” sandwich) and other delicacies, such as the egg sandwich – a roasted pork meat sandwich with traditional ham and cheese.
Location: Rua Dr. Alberto Macedo, 437
Conga
The owners of Conga returned from Angola in 1976 when they decided to open this place. Located right in the heart of the city, near the City Hall, this snack-bar made its name with a simple recipe known as “bifana”: bread, pork meat (very thinly sliced) and spicy sauce. The secret is in the sauce! And the recipe is, of course, well kept within the family. There are some gourmet options to try, all of them inspired by traditional Portuguese cuisine.
Location: Rua do Bonjardim, 314
Rei dos Galos de Amarante
This is a small family business where visitors will be able to sample unique items from Portuguese gastronomy. From roasted lamb, tripe stew, roasted duck and the crown jewel “arroz de cabidela” – homebred stewed chicken with rice, seasoned with blood (from the chicken), and vinegar. It may not sound as good as it tastes, but trust us, Portuguese fellows: this is a true delight! In order to taste such delicacy, one needs to order it two days in advance.
Location: Rua das Taipas, 121
Cervejaria Galiza
Established in 1972, Cervejaria Galiza has been for many years a landmark in the city of Porto. Famous for its “francesinhas” and the freshest seafood, and open every day until 2 am, it’s the perfect place for you to indulge in after-hours.
Location: Rua do Campo Alegre 55
Café Aviz
Café Aviz was inaugurated in 1947 and its genuine atmosphere resisted stoically over the decades. It is famous for its tearoom, café and billiards. You must try the “francesinha”, probably Porto’s most famous dish. It is made with sausage, ham, cold meats and beef steak, covered with melted cheese and spicy sauce.
Location: Rua do Aviz, 27
Galeria de Paris
This former textiles warehouse is now one of the trendiest spots in town, open throughout the day as a café-restaurant, and later on as a bar. The décor features the original cabinets, now holding vintage pieces. The menu varies every day and includes typical Portuguese “petiscos” (tapas), always with a vegetarian option
Location: Rua Galeria de Paris, 56
Cafeína Restaurant
With a cosmopolitan ambience this restaurant is located by the sea in the “Foz” district in a 19th century manor house covered in yellow and black tiles. The Portuguese food here is influenced by Italian and French cuisines. The menu changes on a regular basis, but usually revolves around luscious cuts of meat and fresh fish.
Location: Rua do Padrão, 100
Abadia do Porto
Located in the historic centre of Porto, the restaurant Abadia was founded in 1939. It is said that the name of the place – abbey in English – comes from the fact that pilgrims used to rest and eat here before going on pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela. Abadia is well known for its traditional Portuguese dishes like roasted lamb, Gomes de Sá codfish and “Tripas à moda do Porto”, a typical dish from Porto made with beef tripe.
Location: Rua Ateneu Comercial do Porto, 22-24
Reitoria
Near the Natural History and Science Museum, Reitoria (The Rectory) combines in the same space a wine bar, a focaccia house and a steak house. Housed in a beautiful 19th century building with two floors, carefully restored in order to maintain the original structure and façade, here you can enjoy a glass of wine with some delicious tapas in the late afternoon, or a more exquisite dinner prepared with the best national and international meat.
Location: Rua Sá de Noronha, 33