Eating Our Way Through.. Albufeira, Portugal!
So.. I fell in love in Portugal. And I don't mean with Rashad (soz babe)!
My gosh do the Portuguese know how to make an A-MA-ZING carbonara. And pizza. And other carb-filled foods. If you haven't eaten yet, I suggest you grab some food really quickly and make your way back here because if you aren't hungry yet, you will be soon ;)
Restaurant No. 1 – Aroma Di Mare
Aroma Di Mare is a “grill” style restaurant situated just at the top of a little hill near our home for the week in Albufeira - Estrada Vale Navio, to be precise. The views from inside the restaurants were lovely around sunset, you almost see the whole town from the windows. There was quite a selection on the menu such as grilled meats, pastas, pizzas, seafood and vegetarian dishes, so at least there was something for everyong. Being in a super huge group (of 31 people), we ensured that we arrived early as it was going to be a struggle to get everyone in and out of the restaurant in at least three hours!
I had a gorgeous spaghetti carbonara which just melted in the mouth. The sauce was so beautifully rich and creamy with tiny chunks of ham and a little garnish. I have never had better carbonara in my life! My only reservation was that it was very clear that when serving up my plate, some carbonara must have dropped onto the edges of the dish as there were a lot of wipe marks and semi-dried carbonara sauce. Obviously, this didn't effect my meal but for 100% from me, they would have had to touch up the presentation just a little.
The staff were lovely though and (bless them) were running back forth to try and cater to all of us quickly and suffciently.
8/10 for Aroma Di Mare
Delicious Carbonara
Views from the Restaurant
Snapchat - Rashad Enjoying his Cocktail
Aroma Di Mare!!
Aroma Di Mare!!
Snapchat - Me Enjoying my Vino!
Snapchat - Ding, Ding, Ding - Round 2 with the Cocktails
Restaurant No. 2 – Restaurant Cervijaria Granfinus
Restaurant Cervijaria Granfinus is a lovely little restaurant along the strip near Praia Da Oura. The restaurant is decorated with a old wooden style interior and has doors opening out on to the strip allowing indoor or outdoor dining. As well as lunch/dinner, the restaurant also serves alcoholic drinks and virgin cocktails and has free Wi-Fi ;)
My meal of choice was lasagne and boy was it yummy. Again, it must be something about the sauce because it was just so cheesy and creamy. The top was gently browned and it was served with a little olive in the middle (assumingly for garnish) which I gave to my mum as unfortunately, I don't like olives.
The presentation was very nice although the staff were a little snappy and forgot a lot of the drinks.
7/10 for Restaurant Cervijaria Granfinus
Cute Placemats
Amazing Lasagne
Sea Food Risotto
Menus, Menus, Menus
Restaurant No. 3 - Divini Gelato Pizza
If you are looking for an ice cream parlour along the strip with fantastic sea views then Divini Gelato Pizza is the pace for you. There's a great selection of ice creams and desserts availble for take-away or indoor/outdoor seating. I personally liked the strawberry and bubblegum ice creams which were sweet and actually tasted very fruity/tropical. Ice cream options include cup or cone, spoon or no spoon and sprinkles/toppings at extra cost. The staff were kind enough to let me use their Wi-Fi and toilets also during our flying visit.
7/10 for Divini Gelato Pizza
Super-sized Cone Anyone?
Sea-view Ice Cream Parlour
Bubblegum Ice Cream
Strawberry Ice Cream
Restaurant No. 4 - Borda D' Água
Now this place really knows how to feed a girl! I was so stuffed after this meal and wasn't even able to finish it. I ordered a ham and cheese pizza with a side of fries and also had a cheeky taste (or two) of Rashad's carbonara (which again was AMAZING – it must be a Portuguese thing...). The pizza was not too thick and not too thin and had just the right amount of cheese to make it stretch super nice when you bite into it. The fries were lightly salted and had a slight golden brown crunch to them. Now I'm not really a seafood fan but I must say that someone else at my table ordered some fried fish and minus the googly eyes, it looked and smelled fantastic.
Being right near the sea, the seafood as caught and served fresh daily. There were lovely views of the beach from where we sat outside and beautiful glowing lanterns above us for when the evening skies kicked in. I believe we had lunch here but I have been told that this restaurant serves breakfast ad dinner also.
A nice afternoon spot to chill, eat and soak up the sun. 8/10 for Borda D' Água.
Pizza & Chippies!
Pizza with that Melt in the Mouth Cheese... :P
Outdoor Seating Area
Carbonara
Fried Fish & Salad
Borda D'Água
Restaurant No. 5 - Grill O Assador
I'm not sure if it was the good food or the convenience of being the closest restaurant to our villa (literally at the top of the road) but Gill O Assador was our restaurant of choice on two occasions – our first day and our last night. Understandably, being a small restaurant, the staff were rushed off of their feet and probably horrified to come across a group of unannounced 310something people, starving and wanting almost immediate service. Naturally, their service was a little slow so on the last night, we ensured that we booked ahead and asked them to begin preparing and serving food as soon as each dish was ready.
On the first night I had a pizza with ham and cheese which was lovely. On the second night I had ribs (OMG yummmmm) and a side of cheesy garlic bread. It was nice to see some of the more traditional dishes being served so close to us such as the pizza in the pizza oven. Very authentic.
The staff were very friendly and helped us to hide two birthday cakes – one for my mum and one for my cousin and they brought them out just at the right time for us to start singing. A nice place for an evening or afternoon meal – just make sure you book in advance if there are more than five of you as service is not the quickest!
Also, you may want to bring a little handheld fan as there were a LOT of flies around our food and landing on our heads once the food was served :(
7/10 for Gill O Assador
Delicious Cheesy Garlic Bread
Succulent Rack of Ribs
Cheese and Ham Pizza
Table Settings
Cheeky Chops
Real Lamb Kebab..
Cheers!
I think it's safe to say there is a lot of good food out there in Albufeira. Almost all of the waiters and waitresses were super friendly (probably because they realised 31 people means 31 x more money), loads of the restaurants also offered free Wi-Fi once you have ordered and as we were travelling with babies, more effort was made to be quicker and more efficient with service in most places.
Until next time, Albufeira.
Are there any other lunch/dinner restaurants you would recommend in Albufeira? If so, I'd love to add them to my list for the next time I visit! Hit me up! xxx
