Restaurante Porta is located in the heart of Viseu historical center. I suspect they were once known as Porta 64 since some of their wall signs still say Porta 64, but their social media, namely Facebook, call themselves Restaurante Porta, or Porta Restaurant. On their FB pages, they have a robust following of 11k, with 96% recommended. Several sites have equally impressive stats. I decided to look them up because...
Unfortunately, I was there with a group dining on a fixed menu, which reduced my chances of excellent dining. A superbly well stuffed portobello mushroom was the most impressive dish of the night. A traditional prepared cod dish with much more starch than cod was the main dish. Sadly, I abandoned this dish after several bites. A visually appealing slice of cake puzzled me and all those sitting near me. We (all from USA) couldn't figure out what the flavor or texture is, even though it is familiar. After some culinary detective work, I figured out it was a pumpkin jam topped cheesecake of some local variant, which explains the piece of cinnamon décor. None of us particularly liked it.
So, why four stars? Why not lower? Even though the food didn't turn out to suit my taste, that is not necessarily the restaurant's fault when it is fixed menu. I will add that service was excellent at 5 stars level handling our very large group of forty people. We were in a private room with emerald color furniture and a muted mirror ceiling that is an excellent private space with our own bathrooms! I was impressed with the service and venue.
If I was in the area again, I would not hesitate trying them again, ordering different foods. They are very promising. read more