Porto, Portugal
Page 7
Continued from page 6
ABOVE: Porto's riverfront restaurants in the early
evening.
Restaurants in Porto
Northern Portugal's cuisine is hearty, filling, and surprisingly
varied. Porto has its own specialties, most notably tripas á moda do Porto, or Porto-style tripe.
(Porto residents are known among their countrymen as tripeiros, or
"tripe eaters," so don't eat anything unlabeled if natural sausage casings make
you queasy.)
 Fish
is also an important part of the Porto diet, and bacalhau--salt cod--is
served in countless forms. (The bolinhos de bacalhau or cod cakes in the
inset photo are just one example.) You'll see bacalhau in local markets,
where it resembles large slabs of cardboard. The dried cod is rehydrated in
water for a day or so, then rinsed to remove the salt before cooking. (If your cod is too salty, don't be afraid to send it back.)
 A few tips on restaurant dining in Porto:
-
Dinner normally isn't served
until 7 or 8 p.m., so don't dine on a Scandinavian schedule unless you want
to eat alone. If you intend to pay by credit or debit card, make sure the
restaurant accepts plastic.
-
The ementa turística
(tourist menu) is a good all-inclusive deal when offered, although your
choices will be limited.
-
The waiter may set plates of appetizers on the table at the
beginning of the meal. If you don't want them, decline them politely; you'll
pay for whatever you eat. (This isn't a scam--it's Portuguese tradition.)
-
Don't ask for tap water, unless you want to be taken for a
foreign skinflint. The locals order bottled water; so should you if you
have a craving for água.
-
Order
dessert, or--better yet--try Portugal's mouthwatering pastries in a café or
tearoom.
-
If the bill doesn't indicate a
service charge, tip at least 10 percent.
Next page:
Shopping
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