Mixed feelings about this review. Food and ambiance were wonderful. Service was odd.
You will definitely need to call ahead to reserve a table if you want a window or railing view, otherwise you'll get an inner table for sure, and sometimes you'll have to wait for even that.
We were greeted by the young woman who would be our server, Sofia. At first she seemed friendly, but quickly became completely inaccessible throughout our meal. As others have pointed out, tapas plates come helter-skelter, and the waitstaff help each other by delivering one another's plates. The other woman and man who served us, were very friendly, and the young man stopped and talked with us for a while about Portugal (very warm and congenial). Sofia, unfortunately, was responsible for taking our order, bringing our drinks, then later, getting our check to us, coming back to process our credit card, etc. and her tasks took FOREVER. Order wasn't taken until two other tables were seated and tended to, then after eating, we were left with empty plates for a long time. Had to flag her down for the check (after making eye contact multiple times and nodding), then waited 10 more mins before it came, then longer for her to return for c-card processing. Meanwhile, she quickly attended to people seated about 10 minutes after us, who had an equal number of courses, and were out of there 15 minutes before us. IDK if she has something against Americans or what? Sofia really put a damper on our experience (our last night in Lisbon), and we'd have given them 5 stars otherwise.
The other staff, food, and ambiance, were excellent!
So the atmosphere is that mix of urban edginess and Etsy-style rusticism which we saw throughout Lisbon. Trendy slate tapas plates, vintage style galvanized chairs, industrial-ish light fixtures, but sleek floors, walls, bar facade, and sexy looking balcony. Warehouse-y chalk board menu on the wall, etc.
We had a few small plates, but didn't stick around for dessert due to service issues mentioned above.
Scrambled Eggs with Truffles, were probably our least favorite. The truffles, if they existed, required a magnifying glass. Truffle oil in them? If it was there, the taste needed a magnifier too.
The Pork Loin in Ginja was very tasty. Pork was tender and juicy from the stew of Ginja in which it was cooked. Potato wedges accompanied it, and were pretty good, fresh cut, real potatoes. A good combo, but I could have just eaten double the pork, it was really good!
The eggplant gratin with salad was okay. It was a little mall restaurant-y for me. We chose it because we thought the preparation would be less like superbowl potato skins, and more like a mini souffle. Our bad. It was decent, just a little too cheesy junk food-y for what I was after.
The highlight of the meal was the spinach puree with quail's egg. OMG, SOOO delicious! The spinach part was like creamed spinach, with a layer of mashed beans above that, with, I believe, a bacon flavoring in them, then fried quail's eggs on top. It was then drizzled with like a Balsamic honey glaze. Amazing taste combo that I would never have imagined. So, so, so freakin' good! Definitely a highlight of the culinary experiences on our trip!
The views of the city and of Ponte 25 de Abril are really beautiful and make this place a really special spot for dining. A very cool experience among many great options in Lisbon. read more