This place is a small, traditional tasca that has been run by husband and wife team, Sr. Duarte and…read moreD. Alda, for over 40 years. The place does look every bit its age. The tiled wall has some children painting on it, not sure what the significance is. It's known for its namesake, grilled sardines, although my husband is not a fan of the very fishy and boney little fishes, despite its health benefits. (Interesting, another tourist couple the table over shared the same sentiments...) So, if you want to avoid the fish, there are also other standard Portuguese fares. Usually the locals recommend bitoque, a fried beef steak, or feijoada, a meat and bean stew. My local friends enjoy a good chat with the owner, and as she is a regular, we also got some complimentary dessert as well. Won't be a place I'll tell others to seek out of the way, but if you want to experience some authentic fare in a mom-and-pop with good prices, this place has been around for a while.

From the moment I first laid eyes on Restaurante Sardinha, I knew there was something special here…read more I remember getting off the train at Santa Apolónia station having just arrived in Lisbon from Porto. I had just set out on my 30+ minute walk to my Airbnb in Bairro Alto when this restaurant caught my eye. It's unassuming and looked like the type of place that only locals eat at. Perhaps it was the laundry hanging from the windows above, the old timers seated by the doorway, it just had character and I told myself I'd have to come back and try it. And try it I did. I came twice while in Lisbon, and would have made it a third time had they not been closed (breaking my heart) my last day in town. I am absolutely in love with this restaurant. It was by far my favorite while in Portugal. The man who I think is the owner and was my server is awesome. He too had character and helped me navigate the handwritten menu (which I also loved). The food is awesome and tastes homemade. Their house wine is fantastic too as was their coffee. Prior to coming here I had not known anything of sardines other than the canned variety, which I do like and which are a big industry in Portugal. What I did not know was how great freshly grilled non canned sardines were. I got to experience that here. I also got to experience their Feijoada, which was delicious. The pork was so succulent coming right off the bone with zero effort.This was Portuguese comfort food at its finest. There's another thing I loved about this place. I've been to a dozen Michelin star rated restaurants, with varying experiences. Some have been amazing and others incredibly disappointing and just flat out bad (one of which left me ill). I plan on trying others in the future, but for me, there's something special about a place like Restaurante Sardinha. Not overcomplicating a dish and just making simple damn good food is an art form in its own right. As is the ability to create positive deep emotions within you, which I felt here on both visits. Simple does not mean easy, and achieving simple food that's delicious is no easy endeavor at all. I respect world renown chefs and many are highly deserving of the applause, but give me grandma's cooking any day of the week and I'll take it over the next big thing each and every time.

If you blink you might miss it. The front is inconspicuous and easy to miss. Initially thought it…read morewas a graffitied abandoned building. The inside is however simple, clean and roomy. The main reason I went was the local dishes and vibe and they didn't disappoint. Service was friendly, but they did let me struggle with my limited Portuguese to oder. Once they realized I was trying they met me in the middle with their limited English. In the end Obrigada.

Very cheap, very good food. The menus are all in Portuguese but the guy will walk you through the…read moremenu in English. Cash only.

Stumbled upon this place while walking and it was great! Pork cheek dinner was garlicky and…read moredelicious with very reasonable prices. Wine was about €4 a glass, dinner was €12 for a lot of food. Also I asked about gluten free options and they edited the pork cheek dish to accommodate- very helpful and friendly service. My friend got the veal and it was also a ton of food. Would def recommendation this spot.

After striking out meal after meal since we'd been in Lisbon, we were so happy to find this place!…read moreThis was exactly the kind of restaurant we were looking for. We came in around 2000 on a weekday and it wasn't too busy. We ordered wine which was delicious and some starters. We had some fritters that were so delicious and were fried patties of vegetables. We also got the pears with goat cheese which were also so delicious. For dinner I got the chicken with almonds in philo dough. Wow, this was delicious! The chicken was tasty, it was shredded chicken with vegetables like squash and mushrooms cooked in a philo dough. Yum! It came with a small arugula salad that was a nice addition to the dish. I also sampled the monkfish that was at our table, it was also very tasty. We opted for dessert. We got the chocolate cake. It takes about 10 minutes to make but it was so delicious! It was a molten chocolate cake with hot chocolate sauce inside with strawberries on the plate, so amazing! Service was good. We were sitting in a corner so it was kind of hard to get their attention sometimes. The prices are right. Most everything was under 15€. I highly recommend this place!

We arrived around 2:00 p.m. on a Thursday and we did not have to wait till along to be seated. This…read morerestaurant was recommended by our tour guide for an authentic local Portuguese cuisine. It's a small casual restaurant and you'll be seated side by side with other customers with the small tables pushed next to each other. Because of this, it gets very loud. They were sold out of the pork chops so we opted for their popular spare ribs and the sea bass. They both were grilled and tasted good. The entrees were pretty big portions so they were filling. We both couldn't finish our dishes. The spare ribs comes with of your choosing, either beans or french fries. The french fries were perfect, crispy and not oily. The sea bass was a whole medium-sized fish with bones in and lightly breaded. It came with boiled potatoes and salad. Salad was large pieces of romaine lettuce, shredded carrots, tomato slices, sliced onion. They served the salad with bottles of extra virgin olive oil and white vinegar to use as a salad dressing. We ended the meal with creme brulee. It was more liquidy compared to the typical creme brulee found in the U.S. The top center was way too charred and it wasn't as caramelized as it should be, otherwise, the flavor was decent. We also had a glass of their green white house wines, which was okay. My partner enjoyed it. They have free Wi-Fi and it was convenient that they framed the password on the wall. There are also little black chair hooks on the wall for you to hang your jackets and purses. The small bathroom is for both men and women and has toilets for both genders. For the life of me I could not figure out how to lock the bathroom door, but maybe you'll have better luck. And heads up, as part of the Portugal culture, be prepared to spend about 2 hours for your meal. CASH ONLY!

Delicious food! Came here for the ribs (get the large portion!) but personally I like the pork…read moreskewers much much more - there's bacon, pork, sausage well seasoned in black pepper and so delicious. Not to mention, their fries are really yummy too. Long waits, cash only

Good food at a local restaurant. Service was good, and the ambience was quite nice. They did have…read moremenus in English, which was lucky for us!

Tascas are a great way to experience a chill humble and well priced lunch. Located by one of the…read moretrain stations, this place was perfect. Their outside menu is only in Portuguese but as you sit down, the friendly staff that speaks a bit of English will provide an English menu. Everything we got was fresh, well portioned and we'll seasoned. Did I mention the price?? It's very reasonable. Quality: 5/5 stars Service: 5/5 stars Value: 5/5 stars

This was our first meal in Lisbon, and I have to say that it was a success. We had no clue of where…read morewe were going to have lunch and pretty much randomly dropped by Tascardoso. Everything from start to finish was absolutely wonderful. For my meal, I went with Açorda de Camarão, which is a bread porridge with shrimp. I jokingly referred to this dish as "Portuguese shrimp and grits". ;) The blend of flavors and seasonings was absolutely amazing. While eating the dish, I told my partner that I could eat this dish everyday and even twice on Sunday. In fact, the next day when were having having some trouble deciding on a place to have dinner, I was like let's go back to the place that has "Portuguese shrimp and grits". ;) If you are hungry, this is the place for you because the portions were huge for the price. After eating my Açorda de Camarão for lunch, I wasn't hungry again until well into the late evening - even after walking around Lisbon for most of the day. Another delicious part of our lunch - the grilled octopus. In my opinion, the octopus was perfectly grilled and seasoned with a chewy, but not too chewy, texture. I thought the prices were reasonable, especially considering the restaurant is located in a very touristy part of town. The restaurant has a nice outdoor dining area where you can enjoy your delicious food and wine while enjoying the hustle and bustle of Lisbon. I thought service was fine. Although our waiter was not the friendlies of characters, he wasn't flat out rude. When I visit Lisbon again, this restaurant (in particular the Açorda de Camarão) will definately be on my "must do" list.

We were recommended this restaurant by our hotel concierge and it certainly didn't disappoint. Upon…read morearriving, we were greeted and led down to the basement where we say a lot of locals enjoying a meal. Note that there isn't an English menu available but the food was great. Like most restaurants in Portugal you start with bread, cheese, and olives. The cheese was very smooth and the olives tasted fresh. I opted for the chicken plate and it wasn't too heavy but was jam packed with flavor. Service was pretty solid here despite the language barrier and I definitely would recommend Tascardoso to those who are nearby the area for an authentic Portuguese meal!

Principe do Calhariz came heavily recommended to us by our airbnb host and various locals during…read moreour trip to Portugal, so we decided to check it out. Located in the energetic young neighborhood of Bairro Alto, the restaurant itself has an unassuming exterior with a modest inside: there's about a dozen tables close together (so you might get to know your neighbors!). Our group of five popped in right at opening (noon) on a Sunday, and we were seated immediately. Our server was friendly and spoke perfect English, promptly presenting us with an extensive menu in English. The menu itself advertises a wide variety of traditional Portuguese fare, and our server was more than happy to make recommendations for the five of us, who knew little to nothing about Portuguese cuisine. From roasted meats to fish to soups to vegetables, there's really something for everyone to try! Just a side note: there's bread on all the tables when you enter, but it isn't free - if you touch it, you pay for it, and you often have no clue how long it's been sitting out. Save room for other things! Our server first recommended the Bacalhau Special (around €18), which was a mix of half-grilled, half-fried cod served with sauteed onions and fried potatoes. This is a classic dish of Portugal, and it's easy to see why - the grilled cod was succulent and cooked perfectly, soaking up the richly-flavored oil at the bottom of the dish. The fried cod had a lovely crispy exterior as well, although it was a bit too rich for us when combined with the oil. The fried potatoes were unique in that it was a boiled potato-texture on the inside, but the breaded exterior was crispy and delicious. The addition of fresh parsley and olives atop also lent a nice freshness! Other recommendations included the Gambas a Guilho (€10.5), similar to the Spanish dish of Gambas al Ajillo. I thought this was fine - it only came with seven or eight medium-sized shrimp, and I prefer the Gambas I've had in Spain. We also tried their Escalopes de Vitela Grelhados C/ Alinho (€9.5). These were "small steaks of veal", which were tender and flavorful thinly cut slices of veal, but wasn't a show-stopper dish. We actually quite enjoyed the half-portion of Frango Assado (€8.5), which is Portuguese grilled chicken - it's flavorful and juicy, with plenty of meat on the bone. Lastly, if you're feeling adventurous, you can try their Morcela Assada (€7.5), which is a traditional Portuguese blood sausage. This is a deep black color, with a very iron-rich taste. It's certainly not for everyone, but kind of reminded us of soondae, which is a milder Korean blood sausage. All dishes were served with complimentary fries and rice, which helped to balance out the rich oiliness of the food. However, we did wish that there was some sort of side salad/vegetables that weren't coated in oil! Overall, this is a great, affordable place to sample traditional Portuguese food, and there was a good mix of tourists and locals inside - service is friendly if not very fast, and it's a good experience...I can recommend this restaurant for sure!

An unpretentious eatery in Barrio Alto not too far from Praca Luis Camoes as well as the Elevador…read moreda Bica. Dining area was very lively with many patrons (both locals and visitors alike). Menu had a vast variety of house wines, all reasonably priced. The food choices were just as plentiful, mostly old-school typical Portuguese fare (bacalhau, pulvo, grilled meats and shellfish). Tables had breads and snacks (not complimentary, but also every reasonable 0.5-2 euros). If one didn't touch the starter food or if it was handed over to waitstaff no charges would be incurred. I ordered the frango dinner (half order of piri piri style grilled chicken). It came with a heaping order of white rice and French fries. My companion got the steak, and it took up more room than the plate (topped with a fried egg over easy). His meal also came with the same 2 sides as mine (both entrees were hefty portions). Both meats were well-cooked and juicy, with a good smoky flavor from the grill. Rounding out the meal was a glass of locally sourced vinho verde, which went very well with the chicken. Prices were very reasonable and service was very friendly and warm. Needless to say, we left full and happy.

This restaurant is located on the hill above the touristy area where there are a lot of other good…read morerestaurants period. It doesn't look like much from the outside, definitely has a local feel, not polished looking however, the food was good and relatively inexpensive. I had a large seafood stew, a glass of pleasant wine and dessert and a bottle of water for €26. All were good. The owner is personable and takes care of all the guests. This is recommended for a good value but probably not the place you want to go if you or your partner are looking for a place that looks polished.

I heard a lot about this place. My portugese friends go there all the time…read more The owners are very nice and food just extraordinary! I had one of the best Bacalau in Portugal, my friends tried tuna, broad beans with sausage and great desserts! will definitely go again!