Food, Wine and Wanders in Lisbon

Lisbon is a very attractive and fascinating capital city with a lot of Old World charm. It was once the hub of a world spanning empire that ranged from Brazil to Indonesia and has a great historical depth. This can clearly be seen in the old centre of Lisbon with its cobbled and narrow streets, historical buildings and many famous dead people on statues taking centre stage in many of Lisbon’s squares.

To get a great view of the centre ...
...worth paying a visit to Saint George Castle (Castello de Sao Jorge) which is on a hill overlooking the old centre. That is if you can find a way to it through the maze like complex of alleys and streets surrounding it which don’t seem to have any signposts towards this notable attraction ! The castle was once the site of an old Islamic fortress which was converted into a bastion of royal power. Indeed it was where the King of Portugal received the ... more

Lisbon is a very attractive and fascinating capital city with a lot of Old World charm. It was once the hub of a world spanning empire that ranged from Brazil to Indonesia and has a great historical depth. This can clearly be seen in the old centre of Lisbon with its cobbled and narrow streets, historical buildings and many famous dead people on statues taking centre stage in many of Lisbon’s squares.

To get a great view of the centre and indeed a vast portion of the city it is worth paying a visit to Saint George Castle (Castello de Sao Jorge) which is on a hill overlooking the old centre. That is if you can find a way to it through the maze like complex of alleys and streets surrounding it which don’t seem to have any signposts towards this notable attraction ! The castle was once the site of an old Islamic fortress which was converted into a bastion of royal power. Indeed it was where the King of Portugal received the infamous explorer Vasco da Gama after his globe trotting adventures to India. You can happily clamber on the battlements taking the expanse of Lisbon’s red tiled roofs in. However try not to stumble on some lethal stairways which lack handrails.

When negotiating Lisbon’s streets do keep a keen eye on the traffic. Some drivers in Lisbon seem to have a natural flare for speeding, tailgating and disregarding pedestrians on road crossings. This can make negotiating Lisbon’s streets quite hairy and I usually took to letting the locals cross the road first ahead of me. Fortunately if you want to avoid a lot of walking Lisbon does have a functional and very cheap public transport network giving you the varied choice of bus, tram or underground. I did not take the tram but the bus network was more extensive than the underground. I found the underground to be good value at 1.35 euros for a return ticket but it is worth sometimes buying a day long travel card for 3.85 euros which can be used on both bus and tube (I don’t know about the trams). If you do want to hire a car to explore beyond Lisbon be prepared for some rather non-defensive driving from some of you fellow road users, petrol almost as expensive as the UK (1.30 – 1.40 euros/litre) and toll motorways. The latter were quite pricey as I found roughly a 60km trip cost 6.20 euros !

On my first few exploratory trips to Lisbon’s centre I found it to have a very individualistic feel with few chain shops and lots of small outlets, establishments, bars and cafes being predominant. The centre itself unlike the mazy streets that surround it is easy to negotiate as it is built on a grid system. This was because in 1755 the previous incarnation of the centre was demolished by a massive earthquake and was rebuilt based on a more modern grid. Unfortunately there are some spots of obvious poverty with some begging and if you wander away from the centre you may be unsubtly offered drugs (did I look like I needed them ? I’ll just stick to tea and wine !). However if you pay no attention you will not get hassled.

There are plenty of cafes to eat out at serving a whole range of fare from traditional Portuguese to foreign (Italian, Indian, Chinese etc.). Prices are quite cheap by UK standards and lunchtime food seems to be well cooked, tasty and unpretentious. I particularly enjoyed grilled sardines which is a Portuguese speciality washed down with a crisp white Vinho Verde wine while lounging away in the shade on a blazing summer’s day. In fact you can rarely go wrong with seafood in Portugal as it is often fresh, well cooked and tasty. Watch out for salted cod, Bacalhao, another popular Portuguese food. I will say if you are a vegetarian or vegan you will probably find Portugal hard going as options tend to limited in cafes and restaurants. The Portuguese do not seem to be keen on serving many vegetables and you may find yourself eating a lot of mixed salad side dishes. Bear in mind that tipping at cafes and restaurants in Portugal is a low key affair, usually some low value loose change is acceptable. Do try some cakes and pastries as a dessert after lunch or even for breakfast as the Portuguese are really good at creating a wide variety of fattening treats including their deliciously infamous custard tart (pasteis de nata).

Being a wine freak I chanced upon a superb establishment called Vini Portugal on the Commerce Square (Praca do Comercio) near the river front of Lisbon’s centre. This institute is funded by Portugal’s wine producers and gives out free samples of wine to try. The staff are multi-lingual, very knowledgeable, friendly and appreciate your feedback on Portuguese table wine. You are able to sip the wines in cool comfort in Vini Portugal from some impressive tasting glasses and also view some of the literature on offer to enhance your knowledge of Portuguese wine. From my point of view I really enjoyed the zesty, aromatic and refreshing white wines from Vinho Verde from the north of Portugal which can have a slight fizz and are good when drank young and the reds of Alentejo from the south. Portuguese red wines do tend to be rather tannic and often need food to go with them so if you want a softer wine to try on its own then sample one that has had a few years of bottle aging especially if it is from a very traditional region like Dao. The Dao wines generally when young I found tend to be so tannic that they should be served on a plate with a knife and fork rather than in a glass. For softer reds the hot vintage of 2003 produced some wines from Alentejo which are relatively soft and drinking well. Also do not be put off by the fact that the Portuguese make a lot of wine from their own unique grape varieties e.g. Touriga Nacional/Trincadeira/Castelao for the reds etc. The results can be quite tasty ! If you buy wine from a supermarket you will also find wine very cheap by UK standards (you can get a good, tasty bottle of red for 2-3 euros).

Returning back to the centre of Lisbon for an evening out I found that the Bairro Alto area next to the centre had an abundance of restaurants and bars. Wandering into a traditional Portuguese eatery I ordered a steak which was tender and tasty but I noticed they seem to be obsessed with serving them with a fried egg on top ! This actually was quite tasty and was washed down well with a young, fresh and fruity house red. In typical Portuguese style I had a yummy creamy dessert to finish with. Finding a good cocktail bar was easy after dinner but if you are a beer drinker be aware that in Portugal there is a limited choice of lagers (usually Sagres or Super Bock) that tend to quite strong (5-6% alcohol). The standard glass size that beer gets served in is an ‘Imperial’ that sounds a lot larger than it actually is (about 25cL). If you want an imported beer then they can be pricey. Indeed if you find yourself in an upmarket bar then drinks prices are high which must be eye-wateringly expensive if you’re on Portuguese wages ! At the end of this venture I could have easily chosen a venue to ease away the early morning hours but was so stuffed and knackered that my need for bed overtook my desire to remain out !

Finally, if you are worried about language issues many locals speak some English so it is not a nightmare if you do not know any Portuguese but they do appreciate it if you learn the odd Portuguese word. Be aware that its pronunciation is completely different to Spanish even if they do read in a similar manner.

Overall if you like a city with a lot of historic depth that is easy to get around with a good mix of sights to see and lots of unpretentious eateries and bars then Lisbon may be worth a visit ! 

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