Pastéis de Belém (Lisbon, PORTUGAL) ★★★★☆

Our search for the perfect pastel de nata has brought us to the Belém quarter of Lisbon this evening. Pastéis de Belém which was rumored to have the best pastel de nata in the city, was the name of the bakery shop we were after.



We heard stories about the Pastéis de Belém secret recipe originally designed by two Catholic nuns in the Mosteiro dos Jeronimos. This wonderful pastry was first served only in monasteries and it was until 1837 when it was finally available for the general public.

 
 
Apart from pastel de nata, there are other house specialties including the Kings' cake, Queens' Cake, English Cake etc.
 


The cafe takes a free seating approach. Simply grab your favorite pastries at the counter, then sit down and enjoy!



We were told by the counter staff to sprinkle our custard tarts with cinnamon powder and were glad we did. The flavors of cinnamon worked very well with the custard.

Having sampled quite a number of pastel de nata over our 3-day stay in Lisbon, the custard tarts here were the best we've had hands down. I especially enjoyed the crust which was very crispy and flaky while the custard was creamy but yet not too sweet in taste. The balance was perfect!



After enjoying some of the best pastries in town, we walked around the corner to visit the Mosteiro dos Jeronimos at night and what a historic building it was. This was a little far from where we stayed but it was totally worth the effort!

Food Rating: 7/10

Price: $

Address: Rua Belém 84-92, 1300-085 Lisbon, Portugal

Closest Metro Station: N/A
Tel: +351 2136 37423
Website: www.pasteisdebelem.pt

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Restaurant Eleven (Lisbon, PORTUGAL) ★★★☆☆

Restaurant Eleven was our final dining destination in Lisbon before we head back to Rome. The restaurant was set high on the hills of Parque Eduardo VII, next to the Amália Rodrigues Gardens. It is one of the three Michelin starred restaurants in the city having re-gained its one-star status after losing it in 2011. 

After exiting the São Sebastião subway station, we found ourselves climbing the slopes at Parque da Casa Ventura Terra before finally arriving at our destination - Restaurant Eleven. 



From the dining room, we got a perfect view of the neighboring Eduardo VII Park and the city of Lisbon all at a glance.



Born in Germany, Chef-partner Joachim Koerper started his career working for some of the world's most renowned restaurants such as L’Ambroisie, Hostelerie du Cerf and Moulin de Mougins but it was the cuisine and ingredients of Southern Europe that he fell in love with which made him one of the masters of Mediterranean cuisine today. 

Chef Koerper made a name for himself following the opening of his own restaurant, Girasol, in the seaside town of Moraira. In just nine months, he was awarded his first Michelin star and three years later his second. 

What a pleasant surprise to see Chef Koerper on hand!



Not only is Chef Koerper's cuisine full of Mediterranean flavors, even his dining room has added a little Mediterranean touch as well.




Bread was a good start to our lunch but I was too focused with taking photos and ended up forgetting about snapping a photo of our bread!



Chef Koerper's cuisine focuses a great deal on using natural, fresh and seasonal products and that philosophy was immediately put on display with our amuse bouche.

A beetroot purée with green apple and crumbs, sautéed shrimp, crispy mushroom risotto ball with oatmeal and a cup of creamy porcini soup rounded out an excellent amuse bouche.



Our first starter was a combination of tuna salad, tuna tartare, seared scallop and smoked oysters served with a complicated mango vinaigrette and oyster lemon foam.



While we were still warming up our palates, a green cabbage soup soon followed. Checking closely, we realized there's a lobster tail and foie gras on the bottom of the soup.

Comparing to the previous dish which was refreshing and light, the green cabbage soup was surprisingly flavorful and in my opinion perhaps way too flavorful that even the taste of foie gras took a backseat. I didn't enjoy this dish at all. 




Then it was our fish course, a nicely executed sea bass with ravioli and shellfish sauce. I thought they tried to do a little too much with the ravioli by preparing it with curry meat.



Moments later, my main course arrived in the form of a roasted Alentejo black pork with black truffle and eggplant pudding. Unlike the famous pork dish coming from the Alentejo region of Portugal, it didn't have any clams in it.

Like many of the dishes before this one, I thought the seasoning was a little too much. 



Slightly more successful was the other main course, Challands duck with caramelized cherovia, chestnuts and poppy spaetzlis served on a lemon and ginger sauce.



We were so full by now and therefore were quite relieved that they didn't bring us their cheese trolley. Instead it was a trio of cheese the chef has already prepared for us, some from France and others locally made in Portugal. 

But what I enjoyed most on this plate was the special apricot sauce. That was awesome to go with the cheese.



Onto dessert we go, it was an analogy of mousse as our server explained. Orange, chocolate, mango and a flavor made with a Brazilian fruit (whose name I forgot). 



A simple petite four before we head towards the doorway.

After lunch, we took a slow walk along Eduardo VII Park towards the Old Town.

Thank you, Lisbon. It's been a lovely three days. We will definitely come back some other time.




Food Rating: 6.5/10

Price: $$$

Address: Rua Marquês de Fronteira, 1070-051 Lisboa, Portugal

Closest Metro Station: Parque / São Sebastião
Tel: +351 2 1386 2211
Website: www.restauranteleven.com/eleven/?lang=en

 

100 Maneiras (Lisbon, PORTUGAL) ★★★☆☆

The moment after I booked my ticket to Lisbon, I began my rampage on the internet searching for interesting restaurants to visit on this trip and 100 Maneiras in the Barrio Alto district immediately caught my eyes. 

In the striving food scene of Lisbon, 100 Maneiras represented a new wave of contemporary gastronomic restaurants that combine diversity with creativity and flair.

Bosnian owner-chef Ljubomir Stanisic was one of the first to introduce a "no-choice" tasting menu in Lisbon. In his daily 9-course degustation menu (52 euros), he promises local flavors fresh from the Mercado da Ribeira. But from what I've read from different bloggers, I am expecting more than just an innovative cuisine. I am expecting a little bit of molecular gastronomy techniques injected into some of his dishes as well.



Chef Stanisic described his cuisine as futuristic yet reto. Perhaps that's the reason why he named his restaurant "100 Maneiras" (100 ways in Portuguese). I certainly hoped they have one hundred ways to impress me with their cuisine.

Like Sicily, Italy where we visited a few days ago, Lisbon is also known to start dinner relatively late. Most restaurants do not open for dinner until 7:30pm to 8:00pm. We tried to arrive 10-15 minutes before our 8pm booking, only to find that the staff was still getting the place ready.

 

Our first starter of the night, Codfish clothesline, drew inspiration from the way typical Lisbonites dry their clothes (out on the window?)! 

Slices of dried codfish pegged onto a clothesline were served with a homemade coriander and red pepper dip.

It tasted very much like cracker bread but with a special codfish flavor. Very unique.



Next up was Soil & Sea, a beautifully presented seafood medley consisting of steamed scallops, octopus and clams serving with cinnamon, onion purée on a bed of corn bread powder. A coriander foam put the finishing touches on this wonderfully refreshing starter.



Our third course, playfully named Playbunnie, was a marinated rabbit terrine with garden vegetables and black pudding powder. Dashes of mushroom and pesto sauce helped out the decoration of the dish.

I thought the texture of the rabbit meat reminded me a little of tuna. What I liked most about this dish was the seasoning which was strong and flavorful.



I have never shied away from any foie gras in my life but this foie-gras bon bon was a tad too sweet even for me who's known for having a real sweet tooth! I wish the chili sauce, ginger, lemon thyme and dehydrated olives powder could do more in supporting the frozen foie gras.




Our fish course was a steamed mere with wild red rice in a very intense bouillon duck broth. This dish reminded me a lot of a similar fish dish we had at Jean Georges a few months back.

The duck broth was way too overpowering for me.




A little palate cleanser of Eucalyptus powder, grapefruit meringue, syrup and rosemary foam, chestnut ice-cream with hood flavors was served before our meat course.



Our server said the presentation of our meat course was inspired by the game "tic tac toe". The suckling pig in crepinette with mushrooms purée and lemon gnoccis scored far more points with its presentation than it tasted. Again the seasoning was too dominant while the texture was a little too dry for my liking.




Our pre-dessert was a red wine lollipop. The frozen red wine was quite refreshing while getting us ready for our dessert. And you gotta like the "fish" that held up the lollipops!



Finally, we were down to our last dish - a fake cheese cake and "Pastel de nata". Yes another pastel de nata! We had about 5-6 today already!

On the left was a de-contructed pastel de nata with crispy pastry, nuts and Maria wafer ice-cream. I had trouble relating the taste to pastel de nata. More successful was the fake cheese cake on the right with layering flavors of dried raspberry, cream and caramel.




By this time it was already close to 11pm and we were so full. Luckily there's no petite four so just the bill for us before we hit the road again.



This was a very unique dining experience. I was slightly disappointed with the drop-off starting from the third dish. I would definitely use the word "unpredictable" to describe this meal but would be reluctant to say that I thoroughly enjoyed it from a culinary standpoint.




Food Rating: 5.9/10

Price: $$

Address: Rua do Teixeira, 35, Bairro Alto 1200-459 Lisbon, Portugal

Closest Metro Station: N/A
Tel: +351 9103-0757
Website: www.restaurante100maneiras.com

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Eric Kayser (Lisbon, PORTUGAL) ★★★☆☆

French pastry master Eric Kayser added the famous Portuguese pastry, Pastel de nata to his arsenal in Lisbon. Wow, I certainly didn't expect that!



It was one of those winter days here in Lisbon. Heavy rain fell steadily all afternoon while we were visiting the Castle of Sao Jorge. Luckily, the sun slowly came out around late afternoon. That allowed us to head out to the Chiado district for a little more siteseeing.




Éric Kayser has always been very good in adapting to the local tastes and flavors. So I guess we shouldn't be surprised to see a basket of pastel de nata here. Too bad we already had quite a number of those during breakfast and afternoon tea.



I didn't recall seeing this black currant tart back in Hong Kong. Pistachio and black currant are quite an interesting combination. That's what we will bring back to our hotel.






Food Rating: 5.5/10

Price: $$$

Address: Rua do Carmo 70, Lisbon, Portugal

Closest Metro Station: Baixa / Chiado
Tel: +351 2119 24024
Website: www.maison-kayser.com



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Confeitaria Nacional (Lisbon, PORTUGAL) ★★★★☆

Confeitaria Nacional is the oldest confectionary in the city of Lisbon. Founded in 1829 by Balthazar Roiz Castanheiro, it used to be the Portuguese royalty's official bakery, responsible for supplying the family's choice of sweets and pastries. Over the years, it has won its share of awards through different international competitions.



The interior of Confeitaria Nacional remained largely the same since it opened its door nearly two centuries ago. Ground floor serves as a bustling cafe and pastry shop offering a wide range of pastries, sweets and cookies. There's a more formal tea room located upstairs on the first floor.

We decided to go upstairs to visit the tea room and what a treat it was. The setting reminded us a little of the famous tea salons in Paris (Angelina of Paris immediately came to mind). No wonder it has long been one of the most popular cafes with the locals.




We had about an hour to spare so we decided to grab a drink and sit by the window overlooking the Rossio Square.




We started our afternoon tea session the same way we would at a Parisian tea salon with a nice cup of hot chocolate. That was silky smooth.



Less impressive was the chocolate milkshake which didn't have the normal creamy texture one would expect from a milkshake.



The much anticipated pastel de nata finally arrived and they were very good. Crispy crust combining with very creamy fillings had us craving for more. But it would have been perfect if the custard cream was a little less sweet. 



Another must-do here is the house specialty "Bolo Rei" (Kings' cake), which is a fruit cake first introduced by Confeitaria Nacional back in the 19th century. It was once a dessert served to the royalty but as time evolved, it's now customarily associated with Christmas celebration here in Portugal.

Food Rating: 5/10

Price: $$

Address: Praca da Figueira, 18B, Lisbon, Portugal

Closest Metro Station: Rossio
Tel: +351 213243000
Website: http://www.confeitarianacional.com/home.html

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