4 Best Restaurants in São Miguel, The Azores

Bar Caloura

$ Fodor's choice
It’s more than worth a trip 20 km (12 miles) east of Ponta Delgada to dine at this popular open-air seafood restaurant with lovely water views; since the place doesn’t take reservations, bring your swimsuit for a dip in the adjacent pool while you wait. The friendly staff will grill up your choice of the fresh local fish on display---perhaps tuna, stingray, or barracuda---but you can’t go wrong with baked mussels in a buttery garlic sauce or just-caught limpet, plus (a rarity for the islands) a well-stocked salad bar.

Terra Nostra Garden Restaurant

$$$$ Fodor's choice

It seems like everyone at this old-school restaurant tucked into the Terra Nostra Garden Hotel is here to partake of the signature dish: cozido nas Caldeiras das Furnas, stew cooked underground in the hot springs, available in both meat and vegetarian versions. Those with less hearty appetites can opt for a fine selection of fresh fish or Azorean beef; after lunch, your receipt earns you free admission to the lovely adjoining Terra Nostra Gardens.

Bar Praia de Áqua d’Alto

$
There’s nothing fancy about this beach bar where you sit on plastic chairs under umbrellas, but the views over Áqua d’Alto beach more than make up for the basic decor. The extensive menu appeals to all tastes, with choices from local seafood like sardines, cod, and limpets to chicken and pork sandwiches, all of it accompanied by beer or affordable glasses of wine from the islands.

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Quinta dos Sabores

$$$$
This charmingly rustic family-run eatery serves an ever-changing menu using produce straight from their gardens, along with other organic ingredients from the surrounding area. The friendly staff serves a fixed menu (cash only) with a tempting selection of homemade dips to start, along with salads, soups, fish, meat, and desserts, plus a reasonably priced selection of wines made by family members on the mainland.