From my experience,
One of the things I love about Lisbon is how much of the city can be discovered through food. After spending so much time there, I have slowly built my own little collection of places I keep going back to. Some are restaurants I love for a particular dish, some are cafés where I enjoy spending a slow morning, and others are simply places where I like being with friends, having a drink and watching Lisbon go by.
This is not meant to be a definitive list of the best restaurants in Lisbon. It is much more personal than that. These are simply some of my favourite places, the ones that have become part of my own experience of the city.
Places to eat
For Portuguese food, one of my favourites is Lisboa Tu e Eu, a small and unpretentious place in Alfama that feels like the kind of restaurant you discover while wandering around the old city. Taberna Londrina is another favourite, particularly when I want something casual and satisfying. Across the river, Restaurante Farol de Cacilhas and Ponto Final are two places I particularly associate with the other side of the Tagus. Ponto Final is especially memorable because of its setting right on the river, where the view becomes almost as much a part of the meal as the food itself.
Then there is A Merendeira, a very different kind of experience. It is casual, inexpensive and particularly good when you want something simple and Portuguese, especially later in the evening. And whenever I am walking through Baixa and want a pastel de nata, Fábrica da Nata on Rua Augusta is one of my usual stops.
Lisbon also happens to be a great city when I am craving food from somewhere else. For ramen, I have two favourites: Ramen Chef Rossio and Ramen Shifu Baixa. For Indian food, Swaagat The Taste of India is one of my go-to places. Trattoria Donatella takes me in a completely different direction with Italian food, while Pizzaiollo Sé is another favourite when I am in the mood for pizza. RUMI Lisboa is another place I enjoy for its Middle Eastern and Mediterranean-inspired food.
For something lighter, Honest Greens is one of those reliable places I can always return to. And then there is Time Out Market, which is a different experience altogether. It is busy, lively and full of choices, making it particularly fun when you are with a group of people who all want something different.
Places for drinks and chill hangout
When it comes to going out for a drink, I have a few favourites that are more about the atmosphere and the experience than simply what is in the glass.
TOPO Martim Moniz and Java Rooftop probably ones of the most obvious choices on my list. The rooftops give you completely different perspectives of Lisbon, and are particularly nice around sunset, when the city starts changing colour.
The Spot Lisboa is another place I associate with evenings out. Located in Bairro Alto, it has a more lively and social atmosphere and is the kind of place that works well when you want to meet friends and let the evening unfold.
Cafés and breakfast
Most of my favourite Lisbon moments have nothing to do with dinner or nightlife. They are the slower ones: sitting at a café in the morning, having a coffee, eating something good and watching the city gradually wake up.
Dear Breakfast is one of my favourite places for exactly that. With several locations around Lisbon, it has become one of those places I associate with a proper slow breakfast or brunch. Copenhagen Coffee Lab is another favourite, especially when I want good coffee, pastries and a quieter start to the day and it is an ideal space for studying / working. Their Baixa café is particularly nice because of its location in the middle of the historic centre and its outdoor seating.
COMOBÅ is another place I like for coffee and a more relaxed moment. Monka Café is also on my list, particularly for those moments when I simply want to sit somewhere and take my time. And across the river, Sabores do Tejo is one of my favourite places for a coffee or something sweet in Almada.
What I like about these places is that they represent different sides of the Lisbon experience. Some are traditional, some international, some lively and some quiet. Some are places I go specifically for the food, while others are places where the food is almost secondary to the atmosphere, the people I am with or the memories I associate with them.
I think that is what makes a personal list of restaurants and cafés more interesting than a ranking. The best place is not necessarily the one with the highest rating or the most famous dish. Sometimes it is simply the place where you had a great evening, discovered something new, spent a morning alone, or sat with someone you cared about while Lisbon was moving around you.
For me, these places are little pieces of the city. And when I think about Lisbon, I do not only remember its streets, viewpoints and buildings. I remember meals, coffees, conversations, sunsets and tables by the river. In many ways, this is how I came to know the city: one meal, one coffee and one drink at a time.