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    Boca de Cena

    4.2 (45 reviews)
    PriceyPortuguese, Desserts, Seafood
    Closed 7:00 pm - 10:00 PM

    Boca de Cena Photos

    BOCA DE CENA ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Moderate noise
    Classy

    Recommended Reviews - Boca de Cena

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    Reviews With Photos

    That's Ricardo with his Dad!!!
    Jeff B.

    Prepare yourself: Ricardo has invited you to his home, and it's gonna be a wild time. You have to call to make a reservation - no walk-ins. He's a one man show: he greets you at the door, seats you (and might sit with you), cooks for you, and will invite you for a post-dinner liqueur (or 2...or 3), and may partake himself. He gets the ingredients fresh to start the day and will ask what you like then pretty much decide for you what he's going to make (trust him, he knows what he'a doing). The food is gourmet, I don't know how to describe it except that he makes the true flavors of every ingredient come out - you will like it. Ricardo's an awesome guy, don't be afraid of his crazy antics, he just wants you to laugh and have fun. If you can't take a few jokes or don't have an open mind, do Ricardo a favor and go somewhere else, because as soon as you step into his place, you're family. Mando-te um abraco grande, meu amigo Ricardo!!! Vemo-nos pronto!

    Starter salad
    S F.

    1 man army runs this fantastic restaurant. He times everything. The forkbeard in pastry entree was wow. The fried octopus was the best we had in town and we had octopus everyday at each restaurant. The pineapple pudding. If it is available, get it. It was something he whipped up and wasn't on the menu. Be prepared to be dining for 2 hours if you're having a starter, entree and dessert!

    Crispy octopus
    Stacey G.

    Amazing meal! We rolled in at 7:30 on a Wednesday in mid- September and the place was only 3 tables filled. We were greeted by the Host - who's also the waiter and chef - multi-tasked and multi-talented. Cannot day enough good things about the meal and the experience. We shared the shrimp and spinach pasty puff as an app and had the crispy octopus and the filet with port wine sauce for mains. All excellent, large portions and very very tasty. The chef/waiter works so hard and doesn't skip a beat on the details. Incredibly impressed, would highly recommend while in Ponta Delgado!

    COD with fresh veges
    Lauren M.

    The octopus was amazing! I had a taste of my friends meal. I should Have ordered it! I ordered the cod with fresh veges. It was very good. I am not the biggest cod fan, but this meal had some great flavor! The chef was our waiter and helped us with our order. The cheese appetizer was delicious it was cheese with an users and it was scrumptious! Great place!

    Octopus.. Amazing!
    Kelsey G.

    In a word, stop reading this and GO. If you need convincing, this was THE best meal I had in the Azores, Portugal, and possibly my whole life. Truly special. I had never tried octopus so when the server (who is an amazingly kind and adept human, serving the whole place by himself but totally making you feel like the only one) told me to try the famous tuna (which I can easily get at home) but then mentioned the octopus- I decided to go a little rogue. I'm so glad I did. It was impeccably cooked, crispy on the outside and soft inside.. I'm afraid to eat octopus anywhere else after such an incredibly special experience. The meal began with a well prepared and delicate salad of beets and greens which was complimentary and well appreciated after so many heavy Portugese meals of meat, bread and cheese. I concluded my dinner with a fantastic pumpkin, cardamom, cinnamon pudding which was a perfectly light way to end a beautiful meal. I tried to go back twice and was too late. I'll be back to the Azores just to relive that meal. TLDR; this place is incredible and you will dream of the food weeks after leaving.

    The best octopus I have ever had. Fork tender.
    Nikolai B.

    My husband and I ended up here after YELPing something near the waterfront in Ponta Delgada. After a week, we wanted something close by, but were sick of the usual papas fritas and steak dinner. Boca De Cena was so good, we came back the next day. First of all, the chef does all the prep and serving himself,which we respected IMMENSELY. We had delicious and affordable wine, a perfectly cooked calamari appetizer, and two delicious entrees. Hubby had a meat entree and I had the grilled octopus. It was the best octopus I have ever had - perfectly tender and full of flavor. We ended with a berry cheesecake that was so amazing we had it both times we were there: light and fluffy with a tangy berry flavor. Definitely a welcome respite from your typical Azorean meal. Best food we have had outside of our home state of Rhode Island!

    Nate L.

    Hands down the most talented human. One man both waits tables and chefs. His food is absolutely amazing and the service is untouchable. He is calm and collected while both serving and cooking in an extremely timely fashion. I am F-ing blown away

    Natasha T.

    This was the best meal we had during our trip to the Azores (Pico, Faial & Sao Miguel). We went for NYE dinner. Amazing food, tons of wine as suggested by the one man show Ricardo the owner (he is chef, host and waiter) and does an amazing job! If we ever come back we will go back there again - he even gave us a bottle of champagne for NYE! All for60€/pp. Pricer than other places, but well worth it.

    Boca de Cena, as taken from https://goo.gl/maps/gPHmGKavA1F2
    Luke C.

    This is an easy one. The meal, communication, and service was exceptional. We called 2 days beforehand to make a reservation. When they recognized our English, they asked if we wanted at table at 7 (when they open), which is probably the norm. Our experience was elegant but approachable, the wine was perfectly paired (i.e., all the wines on their wine list are fantastic and complementary), and the food was so special. The octopus--as every reviewer on here has said--was perfect. I've never had octopus cooked this well; it had none of that typical octopus "chew," and had the consistency of a properly cooked chicken breast. I splurged and got the filet mignon, which was cooked and prepared beautifully. One little less-than was the starter salad: I found it to be a nice palate cleanser, but my partner thought it was a little bland. It's a freebie, so I'm not sweating it. The dessert we got was the chocolate mousse which was just so good. The chef had prepared it so it had a nice, tight bubbled structure on the surface which was a great contrast to the ultra-luxe mousse. It wasn't just "pudding skin;" it was something else entirely. Lastly, this place isn't hard to find, but Google Maps doesn't know where it is. It is directly across the plaza from the Teatro Micaelense. Price was very reasonable; it's not Azores-level cheap, but in a big city, it would be steal given the top-notch meal.

    Chocolate cake with berries

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    Boca de Cena Reviews in Other Languages

    Review Highlights - Boca de Cena

    Ricardo was delightful and the food (the forkbread was worth us going back a second night!) was amazing.

    Mentioned in 7 reviews

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    Restaurante O Corisco

    Restaurante O Corisco

    4.7(6 reviews)
    0.4 km

    This was a great find in close to the square where most tourists are. Although it's off to the…read morestreet so not that many people dined here. One thing to note is that their operating hours are not M-F. I've added a picture of their time so just make sure you if you want to eat here, that it's within their hours of operation. Their sangria was very good and not too strong. I ordered the grilled squid with garlic sauce. I posted a picture of it. They gave me alot of squid and even took out the cartilage to make it easier to consume. The taste was good and not too fishy. The food was great and not that expensive either. So glad we decided to come here.

    Unfortunately for O Corisco, we had learned that in order to avoid getting gluttonously full, best…read moreto get several small plates to share rather than entrées. Thus I cannot attest to their full plates. But I can with their smaller ones, and each one is a winner. Every meal in the Azores will be preceded with bread and cheese. O Corisco's was the best we had. Most places do the typical mushy and bland queso fresco that gets old quickly. Here they provided us a plate of hard cheeses and tons of bread, which were so good we didn't leave a crumb on the plate. Their Caldo Verde soup with diced linguica is pretty darn good, as is their small place of fried linguica and mushrooms. The highlight here though is their little lounge area near the big-screen television. It's not just a restaurant, but also a place to chill. Beer is cheap too. What is not to like?

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    Restaurante O Corisco
    Restaurante O Corisco
    Restaurante O Corisco

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    Jardim do Petisco

    Jardim do Petisco

    5.0(2 reviews)
    1.0 km
    €€

    My husband & I came here 4 times during the week we spent on Sao Miguel. Wonderful friendly…read moreservice, a wide variety of food & local faire. Most places offer steak & seafood, but this place had a few more items on the menu than others. There are even indicators on the menu of items made with local ingredients. Photos of food (not stock photos, actual photos of what you receive). Outdoor patio seating. Highly recommended!

    last night out in Ponta Delgada! it was another chilly night. and rainy. boo…read more.. we had walked by this place a few times. it's set among a row of other eateries by the waterfront, and is part of a shopping plaza. the previous few nights, the patio was full of people so we figured it must be pretty good. the meal started with the requisite bread basket. like most of the waterfront eateries, there are numerous fish options. but also plenty of meat and even some pasta dishes. our fish dishes were expertly cooked, and the portions are huge. if we weren't leaving the next day, we would have gotten a doggy bag it was so good. a big plus were the vegetables. i think this might have been the only place during our week long stay where we were served steamed vegetables...a little broccoli, a few carrots....service was very friendly and the language barrier was minimal. and to top it off, also one of the few places we ate during our week long stay that did NOT allow smoking inside! double the stars! but there is a street side patio, very lovely i'm sure on a warmer, less rainy day.

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    Jardim do Petisco
    Jardim do Petisco
    Jardim do Petisco

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    Boca de Cena - portuguese - Updated July 2026

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