One of the very best places I've ever eaten in Portugal - and Ponte de Lima is a wonderful place to visit.
(New)
Just returned to this restaurant and found its quality s excellent as ever. Of course the view hasn't changed, and taking time to linger on the edge of the dirt/stone esplanade to look out over the valley is really part of the meal. You can sit and have a beer or mineral water and enjoy the heat if it is doing that marvelous Portuguese summer thing. The bar is downstairs and some visitors just go for the brew and view, I gather.
Then go upstairs - it may smell slightly of Portuguese church incense, piney and solemn - this always gets me in the mood for further contemplation of the view from the lunch table. There may not be many people around and the tranquil, large room is wonderful. The economic crisis has affected going out to eat a lot iin some areas, but A Madalena will survive and does in fact receive large groups, so it is doing well. The menu is still ample, with several styles of bacalhau or cod - I'd recommend bacalhau con migas or the house style, but any other choice would also be fine. They serve entrantes that are also filling - watch out. Meat dishes are probably excellent for those who eat those sorts of things. And of course there's the caldo verde with a good salada. Be careful of serving sizes - meia dose or half portion will feed one, so if 2 of you want the same thing, just order a dose. The half and full prices are listed on the menu.
After your meal (some of us prefer melon after the olive oil offerings, but there are other desserts, very typically Portuguese), consider having coffee and/or Port wine downstairs on the terrace again. We coincided this time with the festas of the area, so there was a lot of pied music and buzzing in the parking lot, but it was all right. There was just enough time to wander out back where the garden is populated with the glowing blue cintas (not sure of name n English).
Call me romantic, but I always feel moved when leaving this place, always want to linger some more and think about all the things A Madalena asks me to contemplate. The same thing just might happen to you. And if you are lucky, you will return over and over. Seems like I'll have to set part of a novel here in order to get my fill. read more