Restaurants/ Crime? Lisbon
 

We are hoping that we can get a list of reasonably priced, local restaurants for our Lisbon trip. Our friends just returned and mentioned that the touristy restaurants / hotels were very pricey. We will be staying near Rossio Square/ St. George's Castle, where the tourist tram # 28 originates.
A number of the tour books talk about street crime, especially after dark. If we forget the camera and try to blend into the area, is it really dangerous going out at night?
Thank you!

S G

Here's a link to a recent thread for restaurants in Lisbon.

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...-lisbon.cfm?16

As in any big city, you must be aware of your surroundings. I never felt unsafe while walking around the main tourist areas of Lisbon late at night.
Once, an attempt was made to pick pocket my husband on Tram 28 but that was in broad daylight. And we are very careful where we put our money.

There are expensive restaurants in Lisbon and budget choices. The most expensive dinner we had there was a seafood stew that came in a huge pot and was absolutely delicious. With wine, bread and butter, water and the stew which was huge and filled with all kinds of fish and seafood the bill for four was E100. I don't really consider that expensive. Adega Sao Roque.
Bonjardim serves delicious chicken, even though foodies pooh pooh it, and it is very inexpensive.
Stop do Barrio cost four of us E42 with salad, potatoes, two entrees and eight bottles of beer. We only had two entrees for the four of us because the portions were so large we wouldn't have been able to finish them.
The price of a meal can get pricey if you accept all of the appetizers offered to you when you arrive. Just politely decline them if you do not want them. For if you taste, it will cost you. Many restaurants offer the plate of the day and it usually is around E8-10.
Pick up a Rough Guide or Rick Steves and broaden your restaurant information.
I hope you enjoy Lisbon.

We found Lisbon to be extremely reasonably priced, among the least expensive in all of Western Europe. Just stroll around and look at menus and pick places that look good to you. I really don't see the need to spend time picking restaurants in advance.

All tour books mention crime in all cities. Any city is going to have crime if you go to sketchy areas. And any city with tourist attractions is going to have a few pick pockets. Just use common travel sense (tons of threads on that subject here, search on "money belt" and you'll get more than you want to read.) We felt extremely safe in Lisbon and were out till 11 or 12 most nights.

There are several "super threads" here on Lisbon with hundreds of posts. http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...c-portugal.cfm

I know it will sound crazy, but since we are older travelers, we are probably easy marks for pick pockets. We just spent 3 weeks in Spain and Portugal with no problems at all. That being said, I'm not particularly concerned with "looking like a tourist" since no matter what one wears, something gives one away as not being Portugese. Besides, no one knows me and no one will ever see me again. My main concern was not to get my pocket picked, so I could have a good time and enjoy Portugal and Spain. I used a light weight REI travel purse that I could bandoleer over my chest. Inside there were several zipper pockets. I kept a credit card in one..only one card on me at a time.....kept small cash easily available, and larger amounts of cash in a deeper zipper pocket. What I did was to use a med. safety pin to pin closed the zipper tabs. The pin was hidden by pining from behind or under flaps. This gave me a bit more security that I would not be an easy mark. When we were on the road, I had my most important belongings like our tickets and passports, plus money and credit cards, in a light weight travel vest... a safari type vest that was both comfortable and kept my hands free. Once again, I used small safety pins, that could not be seen, to pin closed both zipper tabs and velcro pockets. I saw lots of tourists, both American and European wearing cargo pants/capri's. So my safari vest fit right in, and I felt more secure about my safety. Those of you who are younger don't realize that older travelers are more at risk for petty crime. What ever we can do to minimize the exposure is worth it, IMO.

Hi Mrs. Go

See my trip report below which includes some very good and cheap restaurants, a meeting with Lobo and friends and a pickpocket story.

Pickpockets are very busy on the trams, buses and trains in Lisbon. They are not aggressive, just very, very, clever.

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...p-report-1.cfm

We just got back from Portugal, my trip report is on this forum. I'm not sure where you are staying, since St Georges castle is in the Alfama, and nowhere near Rossio Square. The 28 tram's closest stop by Rossio is at Martim Moniz, a few blocks away. As for places to eat, there are so many, and even the more touristy and upscale places are pretty inexpensive as compared to places like Paris. We dined one night at Leao d' Ouro, a very nice place a few steps from Rossio square, and it was about $70 for two with wine and a great fado show (wednesdays). We also ate lunch at Bojardim which was fun - simple and inexpensive. There are lots of places downtown on Correerios and San Antaos. Also many mom and pop type places in the Alfama that we found to be cheap and fun also. As for dangers - we never had any problems anywhere, but then again we were out and about mostly in the daytime thru 9:00 or so. The 28 tram was fine, mostly packed with tourists with cameras and backpacks hanging off them. I did feel the Martim Moniz area was possibly a little 'sketchier' than most of the downtown, but there were still plenty of people out and about. You'll love Lisbon.

FYI----www.Travelsmith.com makes some wonderful travel pants with a zipper pocket within the front slash pocket. Also from LL Bean. I just saw them at LLBean on sale from $69 to around $40. Men's QR45360-pleated and QR45359 plain front. Women's QR48248-plain and QR48247-pleated.

I've worn these on many trips with my credit card & cash safe at hand. BTW, I also use kleroux's pin idea. I doubt if anyone could get in a hidden zipped pocket with a pin also attached.

Bookmarking

Te only time I felt uncomfortable in Lisbon was at an ATM, where a number of non-users were hanging around.

But no problem. Where we live on the East Coast, we are used to people being near us at ATM's. I have noticed a different "social distance" in some parts of the US.

For cafeteria lunch with a view try the terrace on the 9th floor of the department store Pollux. Good food and cheap.

We found everything in Lisbon a very good value, much less expensive than other coutries in Europe.

I went to Lisbon for the first time this past weekend. I got jumped by a bunch of black guys Saturday night, right after Marchas de Lisboa, in a busy nightlife area - Bairro Alto. It was brutal. They took my phone and gold chain from my mom, cut my head open and tried to take my wallet but I bit them. It was a night from hell. Could've been worse if they had knives or maybe they did. They didn't stop until I was covered in blood, there were police a block away and didn't do ANYTHING. After I got several stitches in the hospital I went to the Police Tourist Office to press charges. The agent tried to omit the fact that police officers were there and didn't help me. Their police seem completely corrupt!
Believe it or not but I had a feeling something like that was going to happen. The city is very crime-ridden. I didn't see cops patrolling the streets anywhere, no security at museums and cathedrals, strangers trying to sell you drugs on EVERY corner...

It may sound like a surprise to you but I did go to the tourist police after I had my stitches done that night. The woman took longer to write a one page report than the doctor who did the surgery! In the mean time, she made sure she mentioned she had been there since 4 pm -- I guess it's not very nice to see someone covered in blood at 4 am just when you thought you were going home. Or maybe she was unhappy to miss Heroes (that's what the TV was on, muted for as long as I was there).

One thing I must say is that she omitted the fact about police failing to help me, although I heard her say "negligiao" or something that sounded like negligence to the other woman there, several times. At the end, I wanted to see the report and asked where it said police were a block away. She then reluctantly added that in, asking me if I was sure I wanted that in there. Was she trying to cover it up? I'm no expert on Lisbon but it certainly sounds like it!

So now I have all the papers and the file numbers and I'm waiting for a response who was there and why they failed to do their job. My hopes are not so high.

On another note, there wasn't even water available there. The water cooler was broken and taped with duct tape.

It's true that there is crime everywhere, the question is how it's addressed.

Thanks for posting.

"According to Eurostat [76], the overall crime rate and in particular robberies are on the rise in Portugal. Some areas on the outskirts of Lisbon are becoming more dangerous, but it is unlikely the average tourist will visit these areas. The most common crime against tourists is pickpocketing and theft from rental cars or on public transport. The metro carriages can become crowded and opportune for pickpockets but simple precautions are enough to maintain your safety while travelling on them. There are some episodes of violent crimes (i.e. robberies) and some drug related crimes in places such as Bairro Alto and Santos, especially at night. Chances are you'll be approached at least a few times by certain types offering 'hash' or 'chocolate', especially in the downtown area on and around Rua Augusta. If you are of fair complexion or obviously a tourist you are more likely to be approached. Many of the people selling hash, cocaine, or marijuana are actually not offering that at all but rather a mixture of herbs they try to pass off to you as a drug. Oregano, or different types of tea can look similar to marijuana and a mixture of ginger and other ingredients are used to make an ºuvaº or an egg of what appears to be hashish. Cocaine is also occasionally offered by these people, but it is almost certain you will be buying a bag of baking soda if you choose to purchase. Don't let this completely discourage you but just remember that the cops in Lisbon largely do not care about the non-violent drug trade and trafficking. If possible go in a group, be patient, take your time and examine the product well, and you should be alright. Remember its OK to walk away from someone trying to sell you a false or bad product. It's also encouraged to be wary of the Intendente-Martim Moniz area. Intendente is a well known area for prostitution, and even though it has changed in the past couple of years (there's always police nearby, whereas before you couldn't say the same), it's still a problematic area. Martim Moniz is also notorious, at night the area occupied by shifty crowds that more often that not will cause some trouble. During the day Martim-Moniz is quite a safe and pleasant area.
Criminals in Lisbon are very quick and witty and think of scams about how to get money from you (i.e. they canºt exchange their money and will pay you back in a few hours). Just remember that Lisbon is a big city and is very different from the rest of Portugal. Young tourists should be especially advised as they will likely be approached by many people especially near the Chiado Plaza. A firm 'no thank-you' or "não, obrigado", if you're a male; "não, obrigada", if you're female should be enough to deter them. Also be careful with bank machines in the city center. Groups of gypsies or adolescents occasionally stay close to the multibanco and wait until you have entered your pin. They then force you away from the machine and withdraw the maximum amount from the machine (€200 maximum per withdrawal; however, two withdrawals of €200 per day per bank card are allowed). Try to withdraw money earlier in the day and try to avoid some of the train stations late at night, especially Cais do Sodre station."

Avvesome, your post has already been closed by Fodors and you came here with the same thing that I am sure it is a lie.
You never posted in Fodors before! What is your problem?
Lisbon is as safe as any city in Europe !!

Tere, you sound desperate. Please save yourself the embarrassment and don't comment on events you haven't witnessed. THANKS.