Portugal

Irmãos. All the major hotels have at least one deluxe or first-class restaurant. There’s a
wide selection catering to a range of budgets.
Praia da Rocha
Bamboo Garden CHINESE Bamboo Garden, which has a classic Asian
decor, serves some of the best Chinese food on the coast. The large menu includes everything
from squid chop suey to prawns with hot sauce. After deciding on a soup or an
appetizer (try the spring roll), guests can select from various categories, including
chicken, beef, squid, and prawns. You might, for example, try fried duck with soybean
sauce or chicken with almonds from the Algarve. Peking duck is the chef’s specialty. This
air-conditioned spot is a safe haven for reliable food when you’ve overdosed on Portuguese
codfish.
Edificio Lamego, Loja 1, Av. Tomás Cabreira. & 28/248-30-83. Reservations recommended. Main
courses 8€–18€. DC, MC, V. Daily 12:30–3pm and 6–11:30pm.
Restaurante Titanic INTERNATIONAL Complete with gilt and crystal,
the 100-seat air-conditioned Titanic is the most elegant restaurant in town. Its open
kitchen serves the best food in Praia da Rocha, including shellfish and flambé dishes.
Despite the name, it’s not on—or in, thank goodness—the water, but in a modern residential
complex. You can dine very well here on such appealing dishes as the fish of the
day, pork filet with mushrooms, prawns a la plancha (grilled on a plank of wood), Chinese
fondue, or excellent sole Algarve. Service is among the best in town.
In the Edifício Colúmbia, Rua Eng. Francisco Bivar. & 28/242-23-71. www.titanic.com.pt. Reservations
recommended, especially in summer. Main courses 12€–32€. AE, DC, MC, V. Daily 7pm–midnight. Closed
Nov 27–Dec 27.
Safari AFRICAN/PORTUGUESE Safari is a Portuguese-run restaurant
with a “taste of Africa” in its cuisine; the former Portuguese colony of Angola inspired
many of its savory specialties. The name also suggests a faux-African tourist trap, but this
place isn’t. Safari offers good value and is known for its commendable fresh fish and
seafood. Many guests in neighboring hotels escape their board requirements just to
sample the good home-cooked meals. On summer weekends you might hear live Brazilian
or African music. The fare includes steak, curries, and shrimp, and such dishes as
swordfish steak in pepper sauce, charcoal-grilled fresh fish, and bacalhau a Safari (fried
codfish with olive oil, garlic, and peppers, served with homemade potato chips). It’s
customary to begin with a bowl of savory fish soup. The building stands on a cliff overlooking
the beach and has a glass-enclosed terrace.
Rua António Feu. & 28/242-35-40. Reservations recommended. Main courses 8€–20€; fixed-price
menus 15€–18€. AE, DC, MC, V. Daily noon–midnight. Closed Dec.
Praia dos Três Irmãos
Restaurante Búzio INTERNATIONAL Restaurante Búzio stands at the end of
a road encircling a resort development dotted with private condos and exotic shrubbery.
In summer, so many cars line the narrow road that you’ll probably need to park near the
resort’s entrance and then walk downhill to the restaurant.
Dinner is served in a room whose blue curtains reflect the shimmering ocean at the
bottom of the cliffs. Your meal might include excellent fish soup, refreshing gazpacho, or
carré de borrego Serra de Estrela (gratinée of roast rack of lamb with garlic, butter, and
mustard). Other good choices are Italian pasta dishes, boiled or grilled fish of the day,
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PORTIMAO