6 Best Restaurants in Alfama, Lisbon

The terrace at the chic Memmo Alfama Hotel has some of the neighborhood's best views, with tables and chairs arranged around a small infinity pool overlooking the city and the river. The menu centers around tapas-style small plates—the selection of Portuguese cheeses and meats, served with a basket of fresh-baked bread, is a good place to start.

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. 

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.

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.

This updated version of the traditional Portuguese tasca (tavern) is an informal space where everyone seems to start off with a gin and tonic—there are 80 gins on the list. That said, food is hardly an afterthought as the kitchen turns out all sorts of delicious plates like black rice with cuttlefish or braised tuna that are the perfect size to share.