Travel Tips
The Latest Restaurants in the Fine Dining Scene that You Should Try in 2022
29.12.2021
Portugal is a beautiful country with a lot to unveil and learn but besides this, it also offers outstanding food and delicious wine. Not not only offers a fantastic number of places that excel in these areas, in the recent awarding is a record of 33 Michelin Stars to restaurants around the country shows that its quality is on the up too. Here are some of the most recent Portuguese restaurants in the fine dining scene that you cannot miss this year 2022, and understand why some have won a Michelin star.
Al Sud, Algarve
Al Sud is a recent concept, located at the Palmares Ocean Living & Golf hotel, in Lagos, Algarve. The Chef, Louis Anjos, joined the restaurant and made clear the possibility of earning his second Michelin star. The ingredients used in the restaurant menu are mostly from the region. Fish and seafood are highlighted.
Some of the products arrived every day directly from the auction in Sagres. Among the dishes, you can try are tuna with oysters from the Ria de Alvor, caviar with apple, pork noodles with stew broth, sea bass with rice from Sado, and mussels or prawns with bacon.
Açafrão, Covilhã
The new restaurant is a project that pays tribute to the explorer Pêro da Covilhã, to the famous Pastel de Sauce, and all the gastronomy of the foothills of the Estrela mountain range, but which refers above all to the inspiring spice route from the Discoveries period. There is no certainty as to the day, but it must have been in December 1488 that Pêro da Covilhã arrived in Calicut, India, and realized the route of spices. To mark the date, it was on Wednesday, December 15, that, in the native land of the discoverer, the Açafrão restaurant was born.
Cura, Lisbon
Chef Pedro Pena Bastos took just over a year to bring a new Michelin star to Lisbon. He opened Cura, at the Ritz hotel, in September 2020. Before taking over the Cura kitchen, the chef visited Herdade do Esporão, a restaurant that also won a star this year. He takes on the new distinction for Lisbon with recognition and promises to continue the work done over the past few months.
At the Cura restaurant, there are three tasting menus. Sado oysters, toasted butter with herbs, sherry with seaweed, lamb, pineapple from the Azores, and Alentejo pork tusk are some of the products used in the kitchen.
Esporão, Reguengos de Monsaraz, Alentejo
The project was in the crosshairs of inspectors since chef Pedro Pena Bastos there showed some creativity. Chef Carlos Teixeira is currently responsible for the Esporão kitchen. Here, Alentejo and Portuguese products are highlighted, always with a touch of creativity in the techniques used. There are currently two tasting menus available, discover how to enjoy them here.
In addition to the Michelin star, the Michelin Guide Spain and Portugal 2022 awarded the Herdade do Esporão restaurant a Michelin Verde star, a recognition given to restaurants with sustainable practices. The Michelin Verde star highlights the restaurant's work with local suppliers, its zero-waste practices, and the elimination of plastic and other non-recyclable materials.
Vila Foz, Porto
On the seafront, in a 19th-century mansion, Vila Foz is a luxury hotel, with restaurants run by chef Arnaldo Azevedo. One of them, the namesake Vila Foz, has just received the first Michelin star and presents with freshness and flavor the fish and seafood of the Portuguese coast. The decor is extravagant where refinement meets comfort! This restaurant promises to be an amazing adventure of textures and flavors, stimuli, and sensations.
