Restaurante Portal da Serra

One nice touch: iron chains hang above the tables, ending in hooks – on which skewers full of meat fresh from the grill can be hung. In the background there’s Portuguese music – often fado, which fits perfectly with the overall serene ambience.

This is definitely a place where, in good company, you run the serious risk of letting time run away with you…

The menu, Portuguese in inspiration, has dishes from the mountains, as well as all sorts of Monchique sausages. Delicacies like hare in white beans, wild boar and venison are served – and during the week there are always two dishes of the day, ready for the asking.

Salt-cod with vegetables, and breaded asparagus with pork ribs on Mondays, sea-snail bean-stew and house-style chicken livers, on Tuesdays, fish with pasta, and country-style chicken stew with rice, on Thursdays, Octopus “Lagareiro” style and tripe with white beans on Fridays – while on Saturdays there’s the traditional favourite: “cozido à Portuguesa”, a stew with various meats and vegetables, and on Sunday there’s Kid (goat) and roasted leg of pork in the oven. Be warned though, the portions are generous!

We began with sautéed mushrooms (€4.50) and a roasted “linguiça” sausage (€12).

The kitchen is open to the dining room so you can see the team as they work. As a main course we chose the pork fillets (€12.90), accompanied by a homemade sauce, slightly “picante” and absolutely delicious. The garnish chosen was breaded asparagus and mixed salad (2.50).

There’s a varied wine list – and a jug of house wine costs between €5 and €3.50. In the back, there’s a new dining room, just opened, for private parties or events.

It can take up to a hundred people – but the pride of the new management is the traditional Algarvian orchard, which will soon be the place where newly-weds can take those wedding photos… while the party goes on around them.

The service is young and efficient, and another cherry-on-the-cake is the wonderful playground outside, perfect for families with children.

Specialities: dishes of the day, traditional Portuguese cooking, wedding and baptism parties; Hours: Lunches and dinners, closed Wednesdays; Bank cards: credit cards & Multibanco; Bill: €29.50 for 2; Owner: Flagrantideia, Lda.; NIB 509 125 395.