22 Best Restaurants in Lisbon, Portugal

Dating from 1905, Lisbon’s most famous café maintains its dazzling art deco interior, though you'll probably prefer to take a quick peek and then settle in at one of the handful of tables outside to watch the lively street scenes unfold. The coffee no longer comes exclusively from the former colony that gave the place its name, but it still serves some of the best in town, alongside tasty cakes, pastries, and artfully-presented fish and seafood dishes.

Once a staff canteen serving hearty Portuguese dishes to factory workers, Cantina LX has incorporated elements of its original 1870s incarnation into today’s industrial-chic space. Adventurous eaters enjoy the grilled rabbit, lamb, and octopus dishes, but there are always vegetarian options too.

A beloved local institution, Cantinho do Aziz is one of the best places in Lisbon to try African cuisine. The interior is cozy and welcoming, but in the summer you'll want to take a seat at one of the tables on the cobblestones outside. The menu at the low-key, relaxed spot features fragrant and spicy dishes like bakra (spicy lamb ribs) or prawns cooked with okra and coconut milk. There's always at least one vegan dish, and the homemade hot sauce will have you reaching for an ice cold beer or glass of wine. 

Originally a social club for the people hailing from the region of Alentejo, this hidden restaurant is found on the upper floor of a Moorish-style building from the 1800s. There's a formal dining room serving classic northern Portuguese dishes like carne de porco à alentejana (pork with clams), and a relaxed terrace specializing in petiscos and very affordable jugs of house wine.

This is a retro-chic spot for tea and cakes or cocktails and petiscos (small plates). The kitsch collectibles and bottle-filled cabinets make the space feel like being at someone's grandparents' house, and the board games and comic books add to the wholesome charm. Take a seat on the terrace in summer, or cozy up in the comfy interior when it's chilly outside.

This bakery specializes in pastéis de nata: delicious, warm custard pastries sprinkled with cinnamon and powdered sugar. Although these sweet treats are ubiquitous in Portugal, the version here (made from a secret recipe since 1837) is the most celebrated. They're so good that lines snake out of the door of this traditional blue-and-white-tiled establishment.

In business for nearly a century, "The House of the Little Birds" is a lunchtime favorite for workers in the nearby office complex, and at night it draws mainly locals from the neighborhood in search of a home-cooked meal. Come for the house specialties, which include the famous naco na pedra (steak cooked on a hot stone), vitela barrosã (tender veal from the north), and açorda de gambas (shrimp and bread stew).

A tourist attraction in its own right, this tiny bar facing beautiful Rossio is the best place in the Baixa to sample Lisbon's famous ginja (cherry liqueur). Open since 1840, when the Galician Francisco Espinheira became the first purveyor of the spirit in Lisbon, the bar serves the sweet drink with or without cherries (opt for the version with fruit if you want to convince yourself you're getting some vitamins).

Imaginative small plates are the main attraction at this trendy seafood-focused spot, which also has nice vegan options. The ceviche is hugely popular, and with good reason. There's even a fish-free version made with tofu.

Take a seat beneath twisting grape vines for drinks and snacks at one of the most inviting terraces in Alfama. The menu is strong on fresh ingredients and healthier versions of fast-food favorites, prepared with care. There are vegetarian and gluten-free versions of many of the most popular items on the menu, including hemp fried chicken (the veggie version is made with cauliflower) and a signature Big Antù burger. 

In an alley between Praça dos Restauradores and Rua das Portas de Santo Antão, this eatery known locally as Rei dos Frangos (King of Chickens) specializes in spit-roasted chicken served with a home-made peri-peri sauce that locals swear is the best in the city. One chicken easily serves two hungry diners, but leave room for the famously crispy fries.

The "little corner of peace" is as cozy and welcoming as its name suggests. The wood-paneled restaurant specializes in foods from the former Portuguese colony of Goa—otherwise surprisingly hard to find in Lisbon—resulting in uniquely Portuguese-Indian dishes. The friendly English-speaking staff can guide you through the menu.

This place hasn’t changed a bit over the years, from the beams across the ceiling to the harnesses and wagon wheels that serve as decor. It's a favorite among locals, who come here to enjoy friendly service and a hearty taste of food from the Alentejo region among the bustle of the Bairro Alto.

Offering a little respite from the rowdy nightlife of "Pink Street," this cute café-bar doubles as a bookstore, and it's not unusual to see local poets reading from their work. The bright primary colors and painted ceiling give it the look of a cozy kids' corner, but the coffees and mixed drinks are strictly for grown-ups.

On a street lined with tourist traps, O Churrasco is the local favorite and deservedly so. The paneled dining room serves top-notch peri peri chicken, sizzling steaks, and perfectly grilled fish.

Delicious meat-free dishes (think mango-and-tofu curry, seitan steak, and spinach-filled Tibetan momo dumplings) ensure that there's always a line for a table in this restaurant's extremely colorful dining room or on the pleasant patio. It’s part of a Buddhist center where a small shop stocks books, incense, homeopathic medicines, and other products, and yoga and meditation classes take place upstairs.

Although the name translates as "Bread Bread Cheese Cheese," this bustling place serves much more than these two staples. Expect lines out the door as hungry sightseers and locals line up to take their pick from a huge variety of sandwiches, salads, falafel, and wraps.

The food at this wood-paneled restaurant around the corner from the Feira da Ladra flea market is expertly prepared and comes in portions big enough for two or three people to share. The brothers who run the place are from the northern Beiras region, and many of the dishes are meat-focused examples of its culinary traditions, but there are plenty of seafood options as well.

For light meals and cocktails against a jaw-droppingly beautiful backdrop, Portas do Sol (meaning "doors of the sun") is the place. Don't expect award-winning cuisine, but you could do far worse than a couscous or caprese salad washed down with a tangy caipirinha or freshly squeezed juice.

For some of the best ice cream and sorbets in town, drop into this branch of a family-run chain founded in 1949. New flavors are introduced regularly, but all stick to the tradition of using only fresh fruits and all-natural ingredients.

Huge stone arches and a beautiful mural made of azulejo tiles grace this charming restaurant, which offers upscale cuisine at very reasonable prices. Light Portuguese dishes are prepared with love and beautifully presented, and the cocktail list is impressive, too.

An unpretentious traditional tasca (tavern) hidden among Bairro Alto’s many noisy cocktail bars and tourist traps, Tasca do Manel serves hearty portions of excellent Portuguese food at fair prices. The fish soup and duck rice are house specialties, as are the homemade wine and the potent bagaço (Portuguese grappa) that usually rounds off a meal here.