At
Bairrada Churrasquiera on College St, the space is divided in two and I accidentally went into the wrong, classier-looking one on the left. Turned out I wasn't the only one who did this, which might have been an omen.
I started off with the soup of the day, a cabbage soup that resembled a bland minestrone, thanks to stray pasta and beans. We shared a couple of plates of Queijo Português ("Portugeuse Cheese"), a bland white cheese that resembled fresh Mexican versions. I didn't notice the slight goat-cheese aftertaste that others did.
The highlight of the evening arrived next: Chouriço Assado, which lived up to its English name, "Flaming Sausage". A giant sausage was lit and swirled around in a ceramic pig, with no verbal equivalent to "Opa!" The sausage itself was nicely seasoned and would have made a decent main pared with sides.
We were disappointed by most of the mains. The grilled sardines (pictured on the left) were the best item I tasted, followed by my order of quail (right), even if I didn't detect the wine marinade until I tore into the last one. Still, the meat was moist, which is more than can be said for the dry house specialty BBQ chicken. Other dishes, such as suckling pig and calamari, were on the cold side. Pictures of all of the mains can be found
here.
Though none of us tested the dessert menu, we were amused by the use of "milk derivatives" as an ingredient. Points for honesty.
Overall, we weren't enthused by the food, but this was mitigated by the low prices - most entrees hovered around $10.
Another review over at Phoenikia.
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