Restaurants and Cafés

It is one of the most famous and prestigious restaurants in Alentejo, and subsequently Portuguese, cuisine. It dates from 1945 when Manuel Fialho started to serve appetisers to which he later added a few traditional dishes; in the early 1960s it became a casa de pasto or eating house; and in the mid 60s it was remodelled and extended and gained its current configuration and moved up a category to become a restaurant. It became the reference of the city and the region thanks to the quality of the food, which brought it fame and prizes. It went from father to children (the late Gabriel and Amor) and to grandchildren (Helena and Rui), thus preserving both the concept and the quality. In the first room there is a counter, the wine cellar, a dessert display case and the cold starters. The marble floor and brick ceilings, the décor with the prizes and different regional motifs, the leather chairs, the cloth tablecloths and the cosy environment await us in the other two rooms. 

Honouring the tradition of appetisers, the menu lists 37 starters – including all the Alentejo PDO cheeses -, some of which are placed on the table before the client sits down only to set the table and not to impose anything on anybody: chicken pies, sheep’s cheese, three or four little salads. There is also a long and exciting list of main dishes, such as: fish soup with riverside mint, Bulhão Pato style hake (obviously with clams and coriander), pork cheeks stewed in red wine, pigeon rice, hare with white beans and marinated partridge or partridge made in the style of Convento da Cartuxa. The desserts are made in the restaurant and include the usual conventual desserts, plus rice pudding and crème brulée, among others. A large selection of wines, mainly from the Alentejo!