Sunday 6th October 2024
An
early start today to find a laundry to wash days of clothes. This was
successful and on return to the hotel to lay it all around the room like a
Chinese laundry, we noticed that the breakfast buffet was offering Champagne
for breakfast – along with an array of other delightful morsels. A quick sip
then off to find the 11.00 am Gourmet Walking Food Tour of Lisbon.
Almost
four hours later, Carlos had us back near our hotel, after an informative and
tasty tour of the back streets. Very few tourists about in the areas we were
taken.
First
off was a stop at a local snack bar for some flame grilled chorizo and a
bifana. This is a tasty, slow cooked pork in a soft bun. Our group of six
Americans and us three Aussies enjoyed this with beers and wine.
Second
was a small family run café in the old red light district. Here we had chicken
and beef samosas and more beer and wine. As Portugal once had Mozambique and
Goa as colonies, the samosas were a reflection of the immigrants from those
places with their cuisine.
Around
the corner in the same district, was a little Fado café where we had pickled
octopus in a tomato and onion salsa and the highly regarded but pretty average,
dish of a patty of reconstituted, dried salted cod, batons of potato, onion and
a binding egg. This was sitting on a tomato, cucumber and lettuce salad garnish.
This time, with a local Lisbon red wine. Both overrated in our view.
Next
door was Pata Gastrobar. This modern bar is run by a Frenchman and it shows. A
choice of an Algarve red or an Albarino (Avarinho here in Portugal) with a
sample plate of jamon, two cheeses and diced peach with salt and pepper dressing.
So good.
Lastly,
back in the main drag, we finished with a Pasteis de Belem, the famous custard
tart. All in all, a good tour of interesting neighbourhoods and traditional
food. Carlos deserves his five stars.
Drinks and pizza slices at a riverside restaurant, a couple of nightcaps in our bar and that’s Sunday.
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