Where to eat in Coimbra

Restaurants, cafés and street food in Coimbra, Portugal that locals actually go to — plus the local names for the chains you already know.

• Taberna Casa Costa — Tasca, Celas (1). Order the Chanfana. The go-to for faculty dinners — regional cooking with no styling. Closed Saturdays.
• Pastelaria Briosa — Pastelaria, Baixa (1). Order the Pastéis de Santa Clara. Since 1955 at the foot of the bridge; the arrufada is one of Portugal's seven wonders of confectionery.
• Terraço da Alta — Modern Portuguese, Alta & Universidade (3). Order the Grilled octopus. The best panorama you can eat on in Coimbra — book it, do not chance it.
• Cordel Maneirista — Modern Portuguese, Santa Clara (3). Order the Sea bass in sparkling Bairrada wine. Left-bank cooking looking back at the historic centre, strong on Bairrada pairings.
• Arcadas — Fine dining, Santa Clara (4). Order the Tasting menu. The city's destination restaurant, inside the Quinta das Lágrimas palace, with herbs from the chef's garden.
• Zé Manel dos Ossos — Tasca, Baixa (1). Order the Ossos — pork bones in peppery broth. Six tables, no reservations, walls papered in customers' scribbled notes.
• João dos Leitões — Bairrada roast, Baixa (1). Order the Leitão assado à Bairrada. Family-run since the 1970s with a wood-fired oven, and it sells out at lunch.
• A Cozinha da Maria — Traditional Portuguese, Baixa (2). Order the Chanfana. Tiny, cash-only, no bookings — and the chanfana still arrives in its terracotta pot.
• Fangas Maior — Petiscos, Baixa (2). Order the Tábua de enchidos nacionais. A grocer turned wine bar; the four-course chef's tasting makes it the value pick.
• Solar do Bacalhau — Bacalhau, Baixa (2). Order the Wood-oven bacalhau. A Michelin Bib Gourmand, a wood-fired oven and the cod list locals treat as the benchmark.
• Trovador — Traditional + fado, Alta & Universidade (2). Order the Chanfana. Open since 1987 facing the Sé Velha; the fado is the draw but the chanfana holds up.

Back to Coimbra