Sampling Portuguese Food

The next day, we headed to Praia Fest again, but this time, we went for lunch.  We took a walk up to the town square.  They had a little stage set up here, and I am thinking it is for local, traditional music.

This was also the first time I saw the church decorated and looking fancy.  The lower door on this church puts the year this was built in the 1600's.  I think the rest was finished later on.

On the way back to the marina, we walked by the beach.  They have an obstacle course set up.  Look who sponsored this form of physical activity...the ice cream company Ola (similar to Good Humor, and called other brands in other countries).

Not to far from the shore we spotted some people having fun in little sailboats.

Here you can see the food pavilion from another angle.  It is nice that it is right on the water.

On this day, we decided to eat at O Palhinhas Gold from the Ribatejo region of Portugal.  This region is smack in the middle of Portugal.

There was bread to start.  This is very traditional.

We had some black olives too.

Since it was lunch time, Ryan decided to order the cheeseburger.

I ordered the cod, which was cornbread crusted, and served with greens and potatoes.  It did taste good, but it was only warm, not hot.

After lunch, we could not stay away from O Forno, our favorite sweets shop.  These are Dona Amelias, which are the traditional sweet of the island.  They were made on the island for the former queen when she came to visit, and these were her favorite.

But the food sampling does not end there.  We went back the next day for dinner.  Well, we got there at 5:20 and found the restaurants were on break and opened again at 6 pm.  Instead, we killed time by taking a stroll around.  We looked at some snack vendors along the roads.

Then we entered the "fast food" tent or snack food area.  These were little booths, set up how you would see them at a US carnival or fair, and they offered traditional treats.

This area had a lot of tables set up.  many of these places were little bars, so I imiagine at night this area is filled with people enjoying beer.

Finally 6 o'clock rolled around and it was time to get some dinner.  We had wanted to try this place because a server there spoke very good English and was very helpful when we asked questions the day before.  They had an English menu and a photo display of their dishes.  This is called Torres, from the Minho region, which is in the very north part of Portugal on the coastline.

Olives to start.  Often, the olives are served with colive oil and garlic.

Here they also served a cornbread, which is not like the yellow corn bread we are used to in the states, it is more white, and it is very dense.

Since it was dinner time, we went for the full European experience and enjoyed some wine.

Ryan gave the veal a try. It was served with cabbage and potatoes. He really liked.

I had the cod.  It was baked with a cream cheese like sauce on top.  I also really liked the crispy mashed potatoes.

After this meal, we decided to try thei regional dessert instead of going to O Forno.  Ryan ordered something similar to flan.

I had a sweet, fried bread soaked in a light cinnamon sauce.  Both desserts were really good and I am glad we tried them.

QUESTIONS:  Have you ever had Portuguese food?  What is your favorite ethnic food dish?