Comporta travel guide for food lovers
As the weather is clearly asking for it, lately we’ve been focusing our travel guides for foodies on beach destinations near Lisbon. We have previously taken you to the unspoiled beaches of Arrábida Natural Park and, today, we’d like to invite you to what magazine Condé Nast Traveller has highlighted as Portugal’s best secret beach spot. We are talking about Comporta, a village in the Tróia Peninsula, popular not only for its beaches, but also because of its magnificent natural surroundings.
Kissing the Atlantic Ocean and just about one hour drive from Lisbon, Comporta has a very peculiar vibe of its own. Fancy hotels and beach clubs abound around here, but there are also super down-to-earth places to hang out at, including old school establishments focusing on traditional Portuguese food. This is Portugal’s largest rice growing area, so if on one hand you have a stunning coast that stretches for miles and miles, inland the landscape is dominated by verdant fields, which grow along the estuary of the Sado river.
This mix of traditional and contemporary, nestled in a fairy wild setting, has made adjectives such as “boho-chic” and “eco-chic” common when talking about Comporta. There’s no shortage of instagrammable beach bars and boutique accommodations for those who can afford it, but simply going to the beach is free and anyone can do it. In fact, many of us Lisbon locals choose to go here to spend the day, in detriment of beaches which are closer to Lisbon, such as Carcavelos or Costa da Caparica, which indeed tend to get busier because they are within easier reach from the capital. You should know though that Comporta is not a beach, but an area that encompasses several beach spots, such as Brejos, Carvalhal, Torre, Comporta beach proper and, perhaps the most popular of them all, Brejos (pictured here).
Once in the general area of Comporta, the entertainment possibilities are virtually endless, depending on your taste and budget. There are plenty of operators offering beach related activities such as surfing, boat rides and even horseback riding. If you have a car, we would highly encourage you to pop over to Carrasqueira, one of the villages around Comporta, which has such a unique setting: Cais Palafítico da Carrasqueira is just about 3 KM (1.8 miles) from Comporta itself and it consists of a fishing village entirely built on stilts, to resist the ever changing tides in the area. This place feels like out of a movie, even more so during dawn or as the sun goes down.
Besides the beach area, there is also the village of Comporta, not right by the ocean but close enough, and this is where some of our favorite places to eat when we go to Comporta are located. If you’d like to focus on Portuguese food, traditional or with a twist, chances are you’ll be happier in Comporta village. But if you care about having a cocktail or even a meal with a view out towards the ocean, then there are also good beach bars you can settle at for a little while. Including both these set-ups, these are the best places to go eat out in Comporta:
Best restaurants for Portuguese food in Comporta
Gomes – Casa de Vinhos e Petiscos
At Gomes, typical Portuguese petiscos co-exist beautifully with a careful selection of cocktails. What a delightful combo to top a day spent relaxing at Comporta! Gomes started as a well stocked grocery store and eventually they opened up an eatery where customers could lounge around tasting some of the lovely products they already had for sale at the store. We’re talking about cured meats, regional cheeses, preserves and, of course, great Portuguese wines too. Of course their menu eventually expanded to include more elaborate dishes, such as local favorites like seafood and rice based dishes. Gomes – Casa de Vinhos e Petiscos is one of the very best places to go to eat honest Portuguese comfort food in Comporta.
📍Largo Luis de Camões, 7580-642 Comporta
www.instagram.com/gomes.vinhos.petiscos
Cavalariça Comporta
The name cavalariça translates as stable, as this restaurant is housed in a former home for horses. Cavalariça’s menu is somewhere between traditional Portuguese and fine-dining, but we feel it’s very inviting and accessible for the general customer. Couple Bruno Caseiro and Filipa Gonçalves are responsible for inviting dishes that tend to highlight local products, while clearly showcasing international influences the chefs naturally embraced while working abroad. Think about unusual but mouthwatering combinations such as cuttlefish with peanuts, sweet chili and coriander, roast beef and anchovies salad, or a combination of leeks, pine nuts and cheese from nearby Alcácer. We love that the flavors feel rather Portuguese but simultaneously make us travel a little too.
📍Rua Do Secador 9, 7580-648 Comporta
Retiro do Pescador
Whenever you go to a beach destination in Portugal, if there is one dish you can count on, that is grilled fish. The species may vary according to the catch of the day, but the fish is usually prepared in a very simple manner, sprinkled with coarse salt and grilled over charcoal until the skin is crispy and the flesh remains succulent. To this, here in Portugal, we’d normally add very standar side dishes such as humble boiled potatoes (or, at the most, roasted), a little side salad, and a generous splash of good quality olive oil above it all. In Comporta, Retiro do Pescador is one of the best places to go to eat fresh fish. A place as straightforward as they come, as tasty and uncomplicated as we like it to be.
📍Avenida dos Pescadores, 7580-613 Comporta
www.facebook.com/p/Restaurante-retiro-do-pescador-100057603941153
São João
Curiously enough, restaurant São João is owned by a foreigner, but it serves some of the most typical Portuguese food you can find in Comporta. In fact, the Portuguese spirit is even felt when it comes to portion sizes, which are very generous. We love the type of food you can get at São João, mainly focusing on straightforward but utterly fresh grilled fish, served with saucy rice dishes flavored with seafood or fresh herbs. Taking into consideration how much food you get and its brilliant quality, we must state that São João is indeed great value for money.
📍Rua 24 de Junho 2, 7580-628 Comporta
www.instagram.com/restaurantesaojoao
ALMO Comporta
Neighbors with Gomes above, ALMO is another of our favorite spots in Comporta, for lunch, dinner or even breakfast. Their set-up is cozy and extremely charming, and the food served at ALMO sure matches this atmosphere. Their main focus are sustainable ingredients, which are in season and locally sourced as much as possible – this, right here, guarantees a level of flavor and quality not always found elsewhere. The level of care applies not only to the food but also the beverages, as ALMO has a great selection of Portuguese low intervention wines. Go here to enjoy your meal as an experience, not just to eat quickly and carry on with your day. ALMO has what it takes to please the senses, if you’ll allow it and come with the right mindset for it.
📍Rua do Comércio 1, 7580-642 Comporta
Comporta Flavours
Comporta Flavours is part restaurant, part rooftop and part art gallery. This establishment now occupies the space where former restaurant O Folha used to be, right at the heart of Comporta’s village. Their main focus food wise goes towards fresh fish and seafood, something many of Comporta’s visitors come looking forward to indulging in. Like it happens in many Portuguese restaurants dedicated to fresh fish, the catch of the day is displayed on a refrigerated counter by the entrance, so that you can browse and eventually select what tickles your fancy. If you prefer to try something other than grilled fish during your visit, we’d recommend the pataniscas de berbigão, fritters made with cockles and an egg-based batter, or the choco frito de coentrada, which features deep-fried cuttlefish strips with a tangy coriander sauce.
📍Rua 24 de Junho 1 r/c Esq, 7580-628 Comporta
www.facebook.com/Comportaflavours
Dona Bia
Dona Bia has built its reputation thanks to their lovely rice-based dishes with a lot of local soul. In good Portuguese fashion, these dishes don’t usually consist of a meal on their own, but are a part of a more consistent meal with animal protein, such as fried or grilled fish. These rice sides are usually flavored with tomato (arroz de tomate), beans (arroz de feijão), clams (arroz de amêijoas) or coriander (arroz de coentros) and consist of brothy rice which we normally refer to as arroz malandrinho. To have a rice dish as your main meal, opt for an arroz de marisco, that is a tomato and fresh herbs infused rice with assorted seafood. Dona Bia tends to be packed with locals and tourists so you may need to wait to get a table. But this just goes towards confirming that Dona Bia is, simply put, one of the very best restaurants in Comporta.
📍Estr. Nacional 261, 7580-681 Comporta
www.instagram.com/dona_bia.comporta
Cervejaria da Comporta
We love the lines you can read on the wall when you enter Cervejaria da Comporta: “the best social network is a table full of friends”. Seriously, is there a greater definition of quality time with those you love than spending time around the table sharing stories, laughter, great food and drinks? Cervejaria da Comporta is a no-frills place – no boho-chic vibes here, just a pure old-school Portuguese feeling which normally translates into simple decor and plates chock-full of good stuff. We’re talking about wildly caught fish and assorted seafood by the kilo, but also mighty fine meats such as their Alentejo sourced t-bone or ribs.
📍Rua Dom Afonso Henriques 3, 7580-648 Comporta
www.instagram.com/cervejaria_da_comporta
Tasca da Comporta
Don’t let the word tasca fool you in this context. Even though tascas usually refer to traditional no-frills establishments, this one is a fancy tasca, as it’s a part of the fairly posh Sublime Comporta resort. But just like you’d expect when you go to an old school tasca, Tasca da Comporta does indeed serve very good food and typical petiscos, yet with a sophisticated touch. If some of their appetizers are straightforwardly Portuguese, others mix the local soul with elements from around the world: think salt cod with hummus, fresh tuna with ginger and pink pepper, and so much more. Tasca da Comporta is a sister business of Sublime Comporta Beach Club, which we explore further below.
📍EN 261-1, Muda, CCI 3954, 7570-337 Grândola
www.sublimecomporta.pt/restaurant-tasca-da-comporta
Pica Peixe
Even if you have already had your main meal elsewhere in Comporta, Pica Peixe is still a fine place to go for a mid afternoon snack, or simply for some pre-dinner appetizers with some beers. As one of the owners is of Goan and Mozambican descent, hot samosas are always on the menu. Lovers of well spiced food will be happy to know Pica Peixe’s crab curry has quite a reputation, which has been goin strong for over a decade, since the establishment first opened. If you’d like to stick with something decidedly more Portuguese, we recommend a platter of caracóis, one of our quintessential summer snacks of braised snails with herbs, or a hit-the-spot suckling pig sandwich (sandes de leitão).
📍Avenida 18 de Dezembro 21A, 7570-779 Carvalhal
www.facebook.com/p/Pica-peixe-100054372887173
Food Circle
Food Circle is Sublime Comporta’s outdoor organic restaurant, nestled within this striking resort. The food served here is quite different from everything we have explored above. For a set price currently fixed at €220, including wine pairing, a small group of people get together to enjoy vegetable forward cuisine, with ingredients picked on that very same day, at the resort’s very own vegetable garden. More than a meal, we are talking about an experience, as you dine under the stars, in a verdant setting which is meant to help you (re)connect with the natural environment. Embracing this mood, ancestral methods of cooking such as those involving fire are also preferred. When you dine at Food Circle you get to see the chefs prepare everything right in front of you and, as the dining area is communal, this could also be a good opportunity to make new friends while eating out in Comporta.
📍EN 261-1 Muda, CCI 3954, 7570-337 Grândola
www.sublimecomporta.pt/restaurant-food-circle
Glória
If there is one type of food we Portuguese love to eat during the summer, besides grilled fish and mariscadas, that is BBQ. We’re talking about the simple dishes prepared at restaurants known as churrasqueiras or churrascarias, and which include several cuts of meats such as beef and pork and, above it all, grilled chicken. Biting into a succulent leg of peri-peri chicken at the end of a day at the beach, when your lips are still salty and trying to swim against the current has made you mighty hungry, is one of those quintessential summer experiences we Portuguese natives are usually quite familiar with. For churrasco style dishes in Comporta, keep it simple, go to Glória, also known as Ti Glória.
📍Brejos da Carregueira de Baixo, 7580 Comporta
Best beach bars in Comporta
Sublime Comporta Beach Club
If you’re searching for the boho-chic feel that you might have read Comporta has, you can go straight to Sublime Comporta Beach Club and you won’t be disappointed. The entire Sublime resort is almost like a movie set – this could be Bali and you wouldn’t almost notice the difference! Their concept is all about inspiring their guests to embrace slow-living. Of course those overnighting here may be able to achieve that more easily, but even if you just come here to spend the day or a couple of hours, chances are you’ll be able to relax in the shade, while sampling some delicious food and drinks too. Sublime Comporta Beach Club’s menu is a mix of local and international, featuring the fish and seafood dishes one would expect at a beach destination, but also including crowd-pleasing snacks such as guacamole, beef tartar or fish tataki.
📍Praia Do Carvalhal Grândola, 7570-782 Carvalhal
https://sublimecomportabeachclub.com
Sal
Also known as O Sal da Comporta, this restaurant used to be in Pego beach but it recently moved to Carvalhal, where former restaurant O Dinis used to be. The move hasn’t affected what’s on offer menu wise: it’s all about the bounty of the ocean, but with a refined gourmet touch. You may start with some fresh oysters or octopus carpaccio, and move on to more substantial dishes such as XXL tiger prawns with coriander rice, john dory filets with cockles rice, black rice with cuttlefish ink and aioli or, if you can afford to pay more than one hundred euros for a serving, their scarlet prawns spaghetti with lobster. If something meaty tickles your fancy the most, ask for the grilled picanha or a simple but juicy burger prepared with Alentejano PDO beef.
📍Alameda da Praia do Carvalhal, 7570-782 Grândola
Comporta Café
As their own slogan goes, Comporta Café is “a real balcony over the Atlantic”. This is one of those places whose location could hardly get any better. But this hasn’t thankfully translated into not caring about what they serve. Honestly, with a place this picture perfect, chances are they’d serve some average food and beverages, and their place would still be in demand. Luckily for us, when we visit Comporta Café, not only can we refresh ourselves with some delicious cocktails, the food menu is pretty enticing too. They serve excellent grilled fish and rice dishes, typical from around Comporta, and all of this tastes even better when the end of the day weather invites you to sit on the balcony, watch the sun go down, and chill down as the DJ plays some tunes.
📍Praia da Comporta, 7580-621 Grândola
Ilha do Arroz
Opened back in 2002, Ilha do Arroz pays tribute to the rice culture that is strong around Comporta. Even though it arise located right by the beach, we could say this establishment is more a restaurant than a beach club, even though you could easily just come here for a drink if that’s what you are in the mood for – and this is something that Ilha do Arroz actually encourages particularly around sunset time, when they have live DJs pumping up the vibes. If you only do that though, you’d be missing out on some seriously good food. Ilha do Arroz is a sister business of Museu do Arroz in Comporta – even though this is one of the oldest establishments in the village, having opened its doors more than 20 years ago, it is currently (hopefully temporarily) closed.
📍Praia da Comporta, 7580-613 Comporta
www.facebook.com/Ilhadoarrozcomporta
Don’t you just feel like going and finding out for yourself if Comporta is indeed such a great beach and food destination? If you make it there, please share your photos with us via Instagram, tagging @tasteoflisboa #tasteoflisboa
Feed your curiosity on Portuguese food culture:
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Arrábida travel guide for food lovers
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