Before I begin, the food here is phenomenal. The menu wine list and cocktails are second to none. But it would appear that the line out the door and the post Bourdain hysteria has gotten into their heads. We were so excited for our 8:00 reservation that my wife and I have been scouting out the menu for months and knew exactly what we're going to order, right down to the dessert. The problem is, we were not not given the opportunity to even order dessert as the check was slapped down on the table without so much as "how was everything? Can we get you anything else?" We can take a hint, we tipped out and left. Lisbon is filled with outstanding restaurants. Our dreams of sampling their amazing port selection were dashed, but given the disappointing service we were able to find another establishment just up the street that welcomed us with open arms and very warm greetings. Bottom-line. Excellent food. Awesome cocktails and wine list. Very poor service. read more

Well, this is a "bistro" restaurant owned by a famous Portuguese chef. Supposed to be great. Our experience was not. We waited about 20 minutes to even order drinks. Another 20 or 30 for the appetizers to arrive and finally well over an hour from arrival for the main course. On the plus side, the apps and dessert were excellent. However the main courses were indifferent at best. Vegetables and orange couscous was ok. Scallops were tasteless, possibly even from frozen, and the overall effect was bland. Also we were seated in a corner where the lighting was particularly harsh. Just as an aside my companion informed me there was no toilet paper in the bathroom. I don't know what's going on here but neither the service not the kitchen are performing the way a great restaurant, or bistro, should be. Very disappointing. read more

Tip: This restaurant does NOT take walk-ins, even if there are empty tables. I came here on a rainy day, but because I didn't have a reservation, they didn't seat us. I made a reservation for the next day and came back then. We ordered: Appetizers - Tuna Burrito, Fried Green Beans, Scallop and Avocado Entree - Foie Gras Burger, Scallops The Tuna Burrito was delicious! It's a raw tuna and "kimchi" burrito, but the kimchi sauce they used was extremely different from the kimchi you get back home. Fried Green Beans were freshly fried and the green beans were yummy. It's a very odd/overly-priced dish to order at such a restaurant, but this is definitely a must order. I was kind of disappointed by the Scallop and Avocado. It was good, but essentially just tasted like guacamole. The avocado overpowered the scallops, which was disappointing. Note: the scallops are raw. The Foie Gras Burger was pretty good. I was disappointed at how little foie gras is actually in the burger. The patty was very juicy, but the reason I ordered this was for the foie gras, which I could barely taste! The seared scallops were AMAZING! Definitely my favorite dish of the night. It was seared perfectly and the balsamic used on the vegetables was also delicious. Something to note is that service is VERY slow. It may be a European thing, but our food took a very long time to come out. read more

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We'd been hoping to try one of the alvillez places while in Lisbon and picked this place over minibar. We had an 8pm reservation on a Thursday and were seated promptly. The tables against the wall seemed a little close together, as we felt like uninvited guests in the conversation at the table on either side of us. The service was okay. We were presented with menus but weren't the only table to have to ask for the cocktail menu- at a place seemingly well known (at least online) for elaborate cocktails. The bread service had us off to a great start. Three different breads were served in the basket, along with a truffle butter, a tomato saffron cream, and olives. The cocktails were both outstanding- well composed with cool presentation and garnishes. We ordered the tuna tartare and tempura green beans as appetizers. The tuna tartare was beautifully plated and delicious. The green beans were good as well, served with a tartar sauce. For mains, I had the pork and M had two appetizers- a beet ceviche and scallop carpaccio. I thought the pork was delicious but disjointed. It was served on the plate with nothing but breadcrumbs, with a side dish of black beans. All the components were delicious, but it seemed like a sauce was missing. Scallop and beet flavors were good but not standouts, and both portions were small even for starters with what seemed like a disproportionately heavy serving of avocado cream. For dessert we figured we needed to try the "life changing hazelnut" and it was a far cry from that. When it was served we were instructed to make sure our spoon went all the way to the bottom so we got all the components.....yada yada. There seemed to only be two components, of similar flavor and textures, but different temperatures. Calling attention to the layers only made that more obvious. Overall this place is a great meal. Definitely a good option for middle to top of the range with good food and good drinks. Our expectations were very high and the busy staff affected this review. read more

Very delicious food but unfortunately the service left a lot to be desired. We had a reservation at 7PM which is probably their first seating - out waiter proceeded to pace around the table for a good 10 min even after we mentioned we were not ready to order yet. No smile, no nothing and after rushing us to order he basically never served the table again (never filled our empty wine glasses, never brought us our dishes, never asked how our meal was going). The glass of champagne my mother ordered was basically flat from an almost empty bottle (another table next to us ordered a glass of red and the waiter poured from an almost empty bottle- needless to say they added to the glass from another bottle but whats the point of tasting if you taste the 10% old wine and the remaining 90% is from a new bottle you didnt taste...) The floor manager came by but was also inattentive - noticed our empty glasses- did not do anything. We mentioned the subpar service and he tried to give us a free dessert... that's not the point! I'm glad he tried to rectify the situation but it's really not an acceptable level of service for a €€€ restaurant. (Waiter did not apologize or anything) Anyways really unfortunate because the dishes were all good (albeit lacking creativity) but you should save your money and go to any other restaurant about the same price range in lisboa and not only enjoy good food but respectable service. It may be owned by a 2 star michelin star chef but i'd be surprised if this restaurant got even michelin bib gourmand given the level of service. Really hope they turn it around or that the chef gets a chance to shine at another restaurant of better service.... read more

The scallops starter was super delicate and lightly refreshing with the avocado mousse - definitely the favorite. We also got the homemade preserved tuna - this was okay and a bit on the salty and gamey side. We both got the cod with exploding olives! So yummy. Also saw the table next to us get the fried scallops which looked delicious. Finished with the hazelnut. read more

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I read the other reviews and I have to say it lived up to the hype. Took my family and we all agreed that it was our favorite meal from our visit. Simple but warm and updated setting, good service and reasonable prices to go with the outstanding food...what else do you need? My wife had the meatballs with green curry, my kids had the burger and pork, and I had the steak. We hadn't done dessert at any other restaurant, instead opting to pick up custard tarts on our way home, but we decided to try dessert here and weren't disappointed (chocolate cake and hazelnut thingy). Either make a reservation or go on the early side. They also accept credit cards unlike a number of other restaurants we've come across. read more

Would def recommend the mushroom risotto and the partridge pies. The risotto is one of the best I've had. The Scallop avocado appears to be a popular app but I found it to be just about mediocre. The ambience is great with room to accommodate bigger groups. One thing to note is that in most Portuguese restaurants, they charge for Courvert, which is essentially bread or small plate of olives. If you don't want to be charged for those items best is to decline when they bring them over. read more

Cantinho do Avillez - Portuguese Near Me - Lisbon, 11

We really enjoyed this dinner. We had the scallop starter and the lamb and pork as main dishes to split. The menu had a variety of options and we chose meat because it was a good change from all the risotto and seafood we've been eating. This place came recommended from friends who couldn't get in during the busy season. December makes it easier to walk in at 9:00 on a Friday night but we took the only table left. I would suggest getting a reservation in advance. read more

This is a very delicious and popular restaurant located in Lisbon, Portugal. This is one of the restaurants of the chef, Jose Avillez. During the summer and Popular tourism months, you definitely need a reservation here because it fills up very quickly and it's very hard to get a table if you just walk in. The prices here are a little bit high, but the food is delicious and the service is great and worth it. We ordered the tuna tartare, which was so delicious and well flavored in balance. We also ordered the eggs, which were good as well but not as good as a tuna tartare, and we also shared an entrée, a delicious meatball dish in an herbal sauce. I think three things are enough for two people to share. read more

Lisbon has great food and we were excited to come eat here after reading many reviews on the restaurant. We really wanted to love the place, however, we were so sorely disappointed. The prices were expensive compared to other nice restaurants in Lisbon (~20 euros per entree). For the price, both the service and the food were underwhelming, making it our least favorite meal in Portugal. We came for lunch on Monday and the host was nice in seating us - no wait. It took a while for the servers to take our order, but things in Portugal take a bit longer so not a problem. We had a heavy late breakfast so decided to go light on lunch. We ordered 2 starters and a main dish to share. We had the fish soup, professor eggs and the cod. The waiter poured the fish soup, but what was supposed to be a beautiful presentation with pieces of fried fish in the middle of the bowl was ended by the waiter pouring fish chunks that had settled at the bottom of the container, splattering the soup all over the place. For a place of this price, we expected the waiter to be able to pour soup correctly! The other dishes were nicely presented, but we're nothing special and underwhelming. Furthermore one of the bathroom was flooded with soaked toilet paper floating on the floor. All in all, it was not an expensive restaurant with a nice view but mediocre food nor the other way around, but it was mediocre and unacceptable in both ambience and food. I would not recommend coming here - there are lots of other great places in Lisbon. read more

Nice food n the price here for the dish n wine are all reasonable. Really recommend to give a try read more

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This place is a must. From the start the bread and spread is amazing the tuna tartare and oven roasted cheese with ham is amazing. I had an amazing pork steak while others had the steak sandwich, giant shrimp and octopus all were amazing with so much flavor leaving you wanting more. The deserts we had them all consistent with everything else amazing. The service was great. If your in town don't pass up on this , you will not regret it. read more

The black pork was the best dish we have had in Lisbon. We ordered it without the fries and they substituted salad, a good idea since the porco will set you up for a heart attack though you will die happy. the chocolate dessert with strawberry ice cream was also great though the ice cream was the more outstanding part of it. The chocolate cake at Landreau and the chocolate dessert at 1300 Taberna, both in Factory LX were better than the one at Cantinho do Avilez. We have had 3 great meals in Lisbon, this one, and one at 1300 Taberna and another at Quermesse. I use 5 stars only for the Michelin star level restaurants so 4 stars is a very appreciative review for me. read more

Delicious Portuguese food, elevated above the casual but not fussy or haute cuisine. This is kind of like the Portuguese version of Rich Table in SF. Wonderful friendly service, took kids ages 14 and 11 and they loved it. Highlights were the baked Portuguese cheese, the giant shrimps, and the mushroom risotto. read more

My girlfriend and I went based upon the late Anthony Bourdain feature of this restaurant. (Btw not one of the staff even knew of him) It was our first visit to Lisbon and we were excited to visit on her birthday. Our tour of Lisbon ran over and we desperately tried to move our reservation back to 8pm from 7- simple request right? Well no live person answered the phone before 7pm just a revolving voice message with no option to change anything before our reservation including on the website- please fix this! When we did finally get through - we were told; we have many reservations - not sure we can accommodate! We risked it and were seated right away however we thought we could order apps and drinks then decide on the meal - waitress said we have a big group back there so you are best to order everything now ! So we did - The sausage app was a small pan of bread crumb with not any noticeable sausage and the pork chop was served as a single piece of meat on an empty plate - with a side order of potato chips ! My girl had shrimp the size of a Euro and rice bowl was so small. We are all for small portions yet we thought it was a joke! Look closely at the food pics on the site ! They look enormous- they are not ! Bread was good , wine selection overpriced and service left to be desired . We left hungry We won't be back ... caveat emptor ! read more

An interesting restaurant that forms part of the Avillez restaurant empire which includes a 2 Michelin starred restaurant. The food is rooted in the traditional Portuguese restaurant but with some modern twists. The wine list is comprehensive, the service friendly and attentive and the ambient in the restaurant relaxed but on the classy side - with an interesting twist of a "normal" kitchen as you would find it in most people's homes at the back of the restaurant where some of the dishes are being prepared. Worth a visit, but my preference would be to stick with some of the more traditional restaurants at a lower cost and perhaps a more original experience. read more

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Solid 3.5 The chef is doing well for himself. I'm not sure if he is also the restauranteur, but there's quite a few names under this belt now in terms of restaurants. Creating a mini empire. And rightfully so - the ingredients in Portugal are to die for and any chef would be in Mecca here. I was impressed by the food. It's was all high quality. Where this place falls a little short for me personally, is, i really don't see the inventive and creative fusion of modern and old. There's just not enough 'surprises'. I felt as if the chef wasn't bold enough. Some of his reinterpretations are really just copies of dishes that exist already globally. But is this place worth a visit on your Lisbon trip? For sure. If you bring your kids, they'll also be nice enough to bring in a pizza from their pizzeria next door (which ofcourse they also own) read more

I saw this place on Anthony Bourdain's Lisbon episode of "no reservations", so i had to go when we got to Lisbon. We had no reservations, which is tricky even on a weeknight. But as we were early (opening time) they welcomed us anyway. And it was all we hoped it would be. For starters i had the Farinheira "sausage" with bread and coriander crust, which did not look like a sausage at all, but sort of a mush in a small dish. It tasted very good nonetheless. For main course i had Alentejano black pork, french fries, coriander and garlic "farofa" (manioc flour) with black beans, which was succulent and tasty. For dessert i had to have chocolate, so got the chocolate cake with strawberry ice cream, which was as expected, a cake oozing chocolate, though the ice cream did not do much for me. But i am not an ice cream eater. read more

I don't really know what say, and believe you me it is a special situation when something like this occurs..., let me just say, we had a reservation in the supposedly very nice restaurant for 7:30 pm and we were done with our dinner at 8 pm, I never spend 80$ faster in my life, ok I did, but not on dinner. Service was nice if you are late for a plane. Ok, ice in my first drink didn't have time to melt, and there was no time to order the second one. On another hand the prices for food is not expensive at all. The partridge pies were acceptable but the lack of shot led me to believe they died of boredom or embarrassment. I guess the food was ok for the price. Stay away unless you are late for a plane! read more

If you fancy yourself a foodie and a gourmand, then this temple of great cuisine is an absolute must in Lisboa! Situation on a narrow street close to the tram in chic Chiado, this place is almost always full for lunch and dinner. The dining room is simple in that minimalist chic way with wooden chairs and tables, big windows and silver-tinged fixtures in an airy ecru-painted dining room. But no matter. It is the food that is absolutely scrumptious at this place! Late lunch and I dined alone. The place was packed but I got a table nonetheless! I had the "Nisa" cheese baked with shredded ham atop it drizzled with rosemary honey! And their signature burger that goes by the name -- Prego a Convento de Alcantara! Really the best burger I ever had in Europe! It was steak burger on toasted foccacia bread topped with (get this!) a thick slab of foie gras! This was 2 years ago on a balmy October day in Lisbon, and the memory of that late lunch remains with me vividly. So, if you happen to be in Lisbon and you like great food, it would be criminal to miss this convivial outpost of Jose Avilez! Ir e ter um grande momento! read more

Cantinho do Avillez - Baked "Nisa" cheese topped with shredded ham and drizzled with rosemary honey - Portuguese Near Me - Lisbon, 11

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Walked in without a reservation and sat down within 15 minutes! Great atmosphere - small little spot with tables squeezed in without feeling too cramped. Food was excellent - we loved everything we got. Green curry meatballs, pork neck, 21st century eggs and oven roasted cheese. The cheesecake dessert is a must try - AMAZING! read more

This restaurant Cake highly recommended by our tuk tuk driver Manuel & also by our hotel bartender. We were happy to have gotten a late reservation to celebrate my birthday and certainly were not disappointed. Everything was perfectly seasoned and flavorful. For starters we had the tuna tartare which was by far one of the best I've ever had. I just needed more breadsticks to eat with it! We also had a scallop over avocado paste starter - while this was very good, the flavor of the avocado dominated the dish. We loved it nonetheless. My husband had the prawns in a Thai sauce and I had the fried scallops with sweet potatoes. Both dishes were very good! While we didn't think we'd have space for dessert, after ordering a different dessert each to try, the waiters surprised me with a beautiful piece of chocolate cake (rich, savory not overly sweet) with a candle. My cake and the hazelnut3 dessert the hubby ordered were both life changing! Not only do we highly recommend this restaurant but if we had more time, we'd visit the other restaurants by this chef to see if they all have the same level of service and quality of food! read more

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The drinks were well prepared by a friendly bar tender. The ambience is romantic and cozy. The food delicious. Convenient located with a nice and well trained staff. Highly recommend! read more

We enjoyed the evening but the food and service were not spectacular. We enjoyed the Bairro do avillez location moreso and thought the food was better there. I had the scallops and my husband had the cod. We started with the cheese with honey, and the fish soup. Each dish was fine but nothing to rave about, unfortunately. read more

Food was great , service so so , very slow , I noticed a prejudice action towards one of the guests at the restaurant, she happened to be a single lady having dinner and was totally ignored , her food was very late and her server a female young lady totally ignoring her till the end , it's very sad to see Portuguesas showing such reaction towards other race , so sad to see this in this beautiful country , hope the owner read my comments and do something about this . read more

Went to this place semi-remembering that it's one of the spots owned by Lisbon's celebrity chef, Jose Avillez. Got a table easily at 10pm. Gotta say, I don't get the hype. Sadly, nothing here really stood out to me as exciting or above average. To start, we had the tuna confit (meh...) and the 21st century eggs, which were lukewarm and kinda just "ok". I ordered the scallops and my husband got the cod. Neither of us loved our meals. It was pretty forgettable tbh. Even their fries are bland! We left without getting dessert and wouldn't recommend this place to anyone. read more

Our meal here was absolutely delicious. If you've ever been to Union Square Cafe in NYC - a very similar vibe. Great food, delicious drinks (a good wine selection and fun cocktails), and really excellent service. The staff knows their food and wine and we're not overly coddling of us knowing we were tourists. The tuna tartare was one of the best I've had and the giant shrimp were unbelievable! The desserts were also very well done. Pricey specials, but worth it. Would definitely come back again! read more

I think their prices have gone up and their service has gone down. I had recommended that friends go here and they said it was their least favorite meal on their trip. read more

This is one of a group of restaurants by Jose Avillez. He is a master chef and his restaurants vary from 3 Michelin Stars to bistros. All are superb. My favorite dishes are the octopus and the cherry gazpacho. I have been to his restaurants a few times during each of three triips and I cannot wait to go back. If you really enjoy gourmet food visit Belcanto in Lisboa...fab! I even bought a cookbook and the next time I visited, the waiter remembered me and it was a year later. Great service and superb food. read more

We ate at this restaurant in both Lisbon and Porto, primarily because it has numerous vegetarian options and also meat for my husband. The better of the two vegetarian entrees I tried was the mushroom risotto, which was very good. The cocktails were also good. We also tried the light jarred cheesecake and the hazelnut desserts; the desserts were excellent and in my opinion the highlights of both meals. We left both dinners satisfied, but I would say that I found the food a bit over-hyped -- the chef has another restaurant with two Michelin stars. If these restaurants were in our home of Brooklyn, I think they would be popular neighborhood spots, but I'm not sure they would not be destinations in the way they seem to be here. That said, they were still good choices and I would especially recommend them for parties with vegetarians, who do have to work a bit harder finding good options in Spain and Portugal. read more

I can't believe I'm saying this but I think Portugal is becoming my favorite European country for food. If you love seafood as much as I do, you might agree. I had the hotel concierge make a same-day reservation and we got one for 7pm. I ordered the scallop with avocado cream appetizer and didn't expect it to be so small! Definitely only for one person. My mom and I shared it not knowing would be so tiny. Then my mom and I shared the steak sandwich (added foie gras for an extra 3 euros-worth it!) and the black pork (AMAZING). We were still hungry so we went back to the starters menu and ordered a tuna tartare which was really good. Of course, we ended with the raspberry cheesecake in a jar. The added basil was a really nice touch. Everything was delicious and the service was great. Our total came out to only 66 euros (we only ordered sparkling water, no alcohol). Very cute ambiance and perfect for a romantic date night. read more

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I had the best dining experience here in Lisbon. It's a beautiful and cozy restaurant with a wonderful service. I made a reservation on the same day. Even though we arrived at the restaurant about 20 minutes earlier than the reservation time, they had no problems and had us seated at the table. I started the dinner with the prettiest cocktail with tequila and port wine. We had the tuna tartar for the appetizer. I had the grilled octopus for the main and my boyfriend had the steak. I especially enjoyed the tuna tartar - that was such a beautiful dish. I enjoyed the octopus which I found it interesting since it came with sweet potatoes. The sweetness of the potato was a nice touch and went very well with the octopus. My boyfriend also enjoyed his steak, it was a perfect medium rare like he ordered. He was informed that he can change the side - in case you don't want the chips. We also pared glasses of wine with the dishes as our waitress recommended. She was sweet and very helpful. We had the hazelnut ice cream and the chocolate cake for desserts. I loved the hazelnut ice cream. It's a "life changing" dessert. We finished the dinner with a glass of port wine and left very satisfied. I'd recommend anyone traveling in Lisbon to have a dining experience here. It's excellent and I'm sure you will have a wonderful time. read more

Incredible restaurant. Went on our last night - perfect way to end a trip to Lisbon. Service can be a bit slow, but the food more than makes up for it! We had the fish stew (they perfectly split this into 2 portions for us), the fried green beans, the cod with exploding olives, the giant red shrimp, the raspberry cheesecake for dessert, and wine. All delicious! The "best sellers" section of the menu is a great guide and all of the dishes there were phenomenal. read more

Cantinho do Avillez - Cod with exploding olives in the front and giant red shrimp in the back - Portuguese Near Me - Lisbon, 11

Excellent service and very extensive wine list. The codfish was prepared well, it was fresh, flaky and tasty. I have to say that the olives infused with olive oil were the best part of this dish! For appetizer we had a baked cheese with honey on it which was very good. read more

The best food we had the entire trip in Portugal. The service was excellent, the ambiance was soothing but also very hip, and the food was delicious. I had the scallops and my fiance had the octopus. I would recommend a hundred times over, and wish I lived in Lisbon so I could come here all the time!!! read more

Didn't know we had to make a reservation but we lucked out by showing up at 7pm and got two seats at the bar for dinner. We also couldn't get a table at belcanto as most of the other reviewers here. I ordered the fish soup. Scallops and the eggs with bread crumbs. Fish soup was ok, compared to the fish soup I had in Iceland it was a little dry as it seems the fish might be over cooked a little too much per my tasting. The scallops were perfect as I love scallops and avocado and this is the perfect dish for me. The 21st century eggs with bread crumbs, and meat were a little salty and super runny so if you have a thing against eating semi raw eggs. Don't order it but I loved every bite, it was a bit oversalted from the massive amounts of breadcrumbs they placed, but nothing drinking two glasses of water couldn't fix. The decor and ambience is very quaint and maybe fits a max of 40 ppl in the whole place. It also looks like they close for siesta between 3-5pm daily. For the main I ordered the roasted octopus, been craving some octopus all day. read more

My experience with the food is okay, nothing particularly interesting. What I dislike is the super lame people who work the front. Their pretentious attitude, spirit, language and facial expressions make this my first and last visit to any José Avillez establishment. Seriously, I am definitely not cool enough to hang. read more

My favorite restaurant in Lisbon. Despite what the other reviewer said below, I've been seated without reservations toward the end of the night, and you can also order at the (admittedly small) bar. Always great and engaging services, the bartenders and hosts I've met there are very nice, and the food is above and beyond. The appetizers and the steak sandwiches are the best (just get the traditional), the "Nisa" cheese is one of the best appetizers I've ever had - a baked sheep/cow/goat cheese combination with honey and bacon. The black pork dish, as others have mentioned, is also excellent, but you should probably save it for dessert - when the server suggested strawberry ice cream and chocolate cake for dessert I was skeptical, but what we got was amazing gelato and a very dark, almost ganache chocolate cake with red peppercorn in it. Amazing service, great ambiance. read more

A Manhattan-quality tapas joint in an intimate Lisbon cafe setting with eager service and customers who linger over each next bottle for hours. Thanks for staying open in August! read more