5 Best Restaurants in Lisbon, Portugal

Reviews Updated by

Lucy Bryson

Lisbon's dining scene has evolved dramatically in recent years to include any number of high-end dining opportunities, but amid the international fare, Michelin-starred restaurants, and molecular gastronomy, the city's simplest and most traditional restaurants still do a roaring trade. Meals generally include three courses, a drink, and coffee. Many restaurants have an ementa turistica (tourist menu), a set-price meal, most often served at lunchtime. Note that you'll be charged a couple of euros if you eat any of the couvert items—typically appetizers such as bread and butter, olives, and the like—that are brought to your table without being ordered.

Lisbon's restaurants usually serve lunch from noon or 12:30 until 3 and dinner from 7:30 until 11; many establishments are closed Sunday or Monday. Inexpensive restaurants typically don't accept reservations. In the traditional cervejarias (beer-hall restaurants), which frequently have huge dining rooms, you'll probably have to wait for a table, but usually not more than 10 minutes. In the Bairro Alto, many of the reasonably priced tascas (taverns) are on the small side: if you can't grab a table, you're probably better off moving on to the next place. Throughout Lisbon, dress for meals is usually casual, but exceptions are noted below.

arkhe

$$$$ | Amoreiras Fodor's Choice

When arkhe opened in 2019, it was one of the first fine-dining vegetarian restaurants in town. With Brazilian and Portuguese roots, Chef João Ricardo Alves has classic Italian and French training, but it was when he lived in Asia that he got a taste for plant-based cuisine. This multicultural background has undoubtedly infiltrated the menu, with dishes featuring the likes of dashi sauce and homemade ravioli. Guests can pick and choose from three to five options or give carte blanche to the chef.

O Gambuzino

One of the most fun vegetarian restaurants in town, O Gambuzino lists its ever-changing daily specials on a chalkboard menu but always highlights fresh vegetables and other products from a place called the Fruta Feia ("Ugly Fruit") co-op. You get the sustainability angle, but the pleasure is also there, with a menu full of global influences. Sample dishes include kimchi rice balls, gazpacho served in crunchy puri wheat puffs, and lettuce tacos filled with giant mushrooms that were locally grown in recycled coffee grounds.

Os Tibetanos

$ | Avenida da Liberdade

Delicious vegan dishes (think mango-and-tofu curry or seitan steak) ensure that there's always a line for a table in this restaurant's extremely colorful dining room or on the pleasant patio next to the botanical gardens. It’s part of a Buddhist center where a small shop stocks books, incense, homeopathic medicines, and other products, and yoga and meditation classes take place upstairs.

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Psi

$ | Avenidas Novas

Blessed by the Dalai Lama on one of his visits to Lisbon, this is one of the city’s oldest vegetarian restaurants. It’s now mostly vegan but has maintained its Asian-inspired menus.

Xéxéxé

A haven for vegetarians and vegans amid a sea of fish restaurants, Xéxéxé is a cozy bistro serving delicious meals as well as house-baked pies and pastries. With creative use of seasonal ingredients, there are several choices of set meals each day. Space is limited, so book a table in advance.

Lisbon

Lisbon

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