Lunch in Portugal

There are many reasons why I like Portugal, and having lunch is near the top of the list. Visiting a country means getting in tune with its rhythm of life, and I am especially happy to play along and make lunch the centerpiece of my day just as it is for many Portuguese.

Walk through any residential area and you'll find an amazing number of places to eat. My favorite catch-all term for these places -- confeitarias, cervejarias, restaurantes, and the like -- comes from our friend, the soon-to-be-famous travel personality Robert Wright, who calls them 'neighborhood joints.' Somewhat like the ubiquitous bars in Italy, these joints usually have a counter displaying snacks and pastries, making them convenient places to stop in during the day for a quick bite, an espresso, or a glass of wine or beer. There's also anywhere from two to twenty tables, and if the sidewalk is wide enough a table or three outside.

Hungry customers start coming in around 12:30 and by 1:00 the joint is packed and stays busy until 3:00 or so. There's usually a menu, often in several languages, but no one looks at it. The important information is the hand-written sign or blackboard announcing the Pratos do Dia, the Plates of the Day, generally a couple of fish dishes and a couple of meat dishes, maybe a soup, whatever the kitchen was able to get fresh that morning. And the 'plate of the day' is just that, a meal of fish/meat, some potatoes (boiled, roasted, or fried), and a vegetable served on a single largish plate.

After a day or two of experimentation I quickly found what I liked best: a small fish, usually dourada (bream) or robalo (snook), grilled simply with olive oil and perhaps garlic. Each day's lunch was thus a matter of walking up and down the street looking for a place that had the peixe grelhado (grilled fish) that I wanted. If no one had a whole fish, I'd go for a grilled garoupa (grouper) steak. These lunch plates range from about €5 to €7 ($6.50 to $9) and a half liter of house wine is €2 to €4.

Early in our trip we had lunch with Robert as he researched Lisbon's beautiful azulejos, ceramic tile art, for one of his upcoming guides. Not only did he introduce us to the great roasted chicken and hot piri piri sauce at Bonjardim but, more importantly, he helped us decipher the code of Portuguese eating.

Another highlight of our trip was a wonderful dinner at Tia Matilde with our dear friends Ana and Manny. We were lucky to meet them on our first night in Lisbon last year, and since then they have taught us so much about Portuguese life, culture, and food.

As usual, we did a lot of walking and a bit of museum-going, this time to the Museu de Arte Antiga and the National Azulejo Museum. Lisbon is a city of hills ringing a central valley; there are several remarkable miradouros, lookout points, and two of the best are very near our apartment in Largo da Graça. There are few things in life more pleasant than sitting at one of these miradouros and watching the city below, the colors shifting as the sun travels overhead.

After eight nights in Lisbon we took the train to Porto, our first visit there. We had a nice loft apartment in the Santa Caterina neighborhood not far from the Bolhão subway stop and the Via Caterina shopping mall. There was more walking and exploring, strolls across stupendous bridges spanning the Douro River, dinner at Abadia, a glimpse of what may be the world's smallest truck, a leisurely afternoon at the tasting rooms of Taylor and Offley port houses, and a jaunt on our last day out to the beach at Foz.

We had to leave very early Tuesday morning to catch a flight to Madrid and from there back to DFW. By 4:30 pm CDT we were back in Texas, talking wistfully about what a pleasant time we had and when we will go again.

Here's my Flickr snaps from the trip. For even more viewing pleasure, here's the slideshow version.