Last month, I was lucky to be a bit of a travel photographer and spent some time in Lisbon with my family. After booking a place via Airbnb.com, I basically did no research on what we should do and see in Lisbon, but I did search through a couple of travel forums to find the best restaurants in Lisbon. Traveling for me is almost always about eating delicious local food. I tried to figure out ahead of time whether or not the restaurants on my list were kid friendly, but, in all honesty, I wasn’t worried about it. While my children would gladly only eat pizza, noodles and hot dogs if left to their own devices, they’re both adventurous eaters as far as kids go so I knew we’d be ok wherever we ate. We ended up going to dinner on the early side – usually 6pm, because the kids were exhausted from our day’s adventures – and ordered a variety of things to try and to share.
Tease, Rua Nova da Piedade 15
This is a fun and casual little coffee shop with delicious baked goods, waffles and coffee (at least, that’s what my husband told me since I don’t drink coffee). We also got some fresh lemonade, which was perfect for the summer weather in Lisbon. Another perk was the free Wifi.
Mercado de Campo de Ourique, Rua Coelho da Rocha
There’s another market in Lisbon with the same concept, but we chose to eat here for lunch one day as it’s just a bit off the beaten path. There are lots of little shops within the market area so we walked around to check them all out and then decided what to try and where. Our favorite was a salmon wrap from one of the shops and a gazpacho. We really liked walking around and looking at everything that was being offered. And the atmosphere was fun for lunch.
Cantinho do Avillez, Rua Dos Duques de Braganca 7
We absolutely loved the entire experience here from start to finish! The food was excellent and inventive, the service was terrific. The chef has built a name for himself in Portugal, and his food is modern, sophisticated Portuguese cooking. We walked in without reservations and with our 4- and 6-year-old in tow, and the staff was very welcoming of our family. Our favorite dishes were a mushroom risotto and the deep fried green beans. I wouldn’t hesitate to go back! It’s also the perfect place for couples for date nights or to relax with friends as it feels trendy and upscale.
Dona Quiteria, Travessa Sao Jose 1
This restaurant seems to be a local favorite and rightly so! We went during “normal” dinner hours and were the only foreigners there the entire time. Everything we ordered was delicious, and the staff was extremely nice (the waitress translated the whole menu for us). While the restaurant is tiny and does not seem like it would cater to young children, our children loved the food as much as we did. A favorite of ours was the seafood rice dish (we were warned that it’s spicy and may not be suitable for the kids, but it was not even a hint spicy and the kids ate as much as we did) and also the hard-boiled eggs that were stuffed with herbs and then lightly fried. We would go back in a heartbeat, preferably snagging an outdoor table as it was just a bit warm inside.
Taberna da Rua das Flores, Rua das Flores 103
This is a tiny little place so we planned on an early dinner to be sure that we got a table. They fill up each night by 8pm. Everything we ordered and sampled was wonderful. Our favorite tapas were the mackerel and the clams. My 4-year-old, oddly enough, couldn’t get enough of the seaweed salad with dried shrimp. And not only did we love the food, the total of the bill was surprisingly low, considering the quality of the food and the level of service we received.
