Lisbon User Guide

Avenida Dom João II Lote 1.15, Oriente Location HERE . It’s on the ground floor of Gare Oriente! It’s a hotpot restaurant. What that? After the FlixBus visit - and still open OK, you get a table, and in the middle of the table is an induction hob. After selecting the two or three flavours for your hotpot, they are brought out in a large metal bowl and placed into the induction hob. You order a selection of meat, fish, and veg, which you then cook as required in the flavoured broth, which may be (for instance) tomato, beef, or maybe spicy. The trick with the spicy broth is to leave the spicy bits when extracting the cooked food. Or what you eat will be even more spicy. As there is one pot, and seats around it for at least four people, it follows that it’s better value when it’s a group visit. Providing you can agree on the flavours of broth in your pot. Everything should be fresh, as you’re cooking from fresh ingredients, and cooking each portion, or indeed just a part of a portion, as ...

The month has begun with more of that very warm weather; the mercury in Lisbon hit 40 degrees Celsius on the 3rd. There will be more days with temperatures in the mid-30s. So keep on keeping hydrated. Torre de Belém No more of those two-hour waits for a year or so. In fact, no waits at all, because the Torre de Belém has closed for renovations. It’s a very old structure, and the daily assault by tourists has meant push coming to shove. The renovation work will probably take a whole year to complete - so don’t expect it to reopen until well into 2026. Tram 28 At last, folks! The 28 is back to its full route, all the way from Prazeres to Martim Moniz. Also, the 12 has been returned to turning at Camões, so if you’re in central Lisbon, and can’t get on a 28, the 12 might be worth a look. Craft Beer News BREW! Chiado has a tap takeover by Siren Craft Brew. AMO Brewery has a variation on their Coyote IPA. It’s still strong, and still worth sampling. No news yet on Desfile dos Classicos, the...

Avenida Almirante Gago Coutinho Location HERE . Just south of Rotunda do Relógio, which in turn is at the south end of the approach road to the Airport. This one is especially for sustainable transportation nerds, and indeed cycling nerds, and is included for one reason: over recent years, the authorities in Lisbon have appeared to give lip service to those walking and cycling - what the Mayor called “ soft transport ” when he opened this bridge. There had been a footbridge (with steps at both sides) at this location, with those not wanting to lug their cycles across it having to make to with a light-controlled crossing on the flat. There had also been politicians making noises about removing cycle lanes elsewhere in the city. The opening of this new bridge confirms that Lisbon is serious about walking and cycling - and segregating those modes from the city’s road traffic. There is step free access to both ends of the bridge, plus steps at the west side. A circle of seating appears at ...

Praça dos Restauradores 68 Location HERE . On the east side of Restauradores, corner of Travessa de Santo Antão. Another café majoring in Pastéis de Nata. And another location where it’s cooler and more agreeable to sit inside during the summer months as there is an air cooler to take the edge off the heat. As you sit there and consider the merits of their version of the pastry that first became a thing for the public back in 1837, what look like baking trays slowly move around the room on a ceiling track. Do they serve any purpose? Who knows, and, indeed, who cares? It’s one of those odd details that, once seen, cannot be unseen. But back to the main event. The coffee is good, the galão served in a handle glass. The Pastéis de Nata are good too, but not as good as those served at either Pastéis de Belém, or indeed Castro. Looks like the clientele is predominantly tourists. Not expensive, and they also offer a wide range of pastries and sandwiches. Metro Restauradores; Buses 709, 711, ...

Parada Alto de São João Location HERE . Open every day, but only from 0900 to 1700 (1800 in summer) hours. Also known as the “ eastern cemetery ”, and until 1998 sharing one distinction with Prazeres cemetery, that there was also a tram terminus outside the main gate. Route 17, formerly starting from Belém, but latterly cut back to Martim Moniz, was the last tram route in Lisbon to be abandoned. This former feature gets a mention because, if you’re staying in or near the old Downtown, you’ll find that there is no direct bus route. From Amoreiras, Alameda, Saldanha, Roma-Areeiro station you’re fine, but not the Downtown. Like Prazeres cemetery, this site opened in 1833, and for the same reason: to provide burial space for those who had succumbed to the cholera outbreak. There are small mausoleums ( Jazigos ) for more important families, individual graves for lesser mortals, and a long wall of remembrance for those cremated. Portugal’s first crematorium opened here in 1925, and after a l...

Praça São João Bosco 568 Location HERE . Open every day, but only from 0900 to 1700 (1800 in summer) hours. Ever wondered what was behind those gates opposite the Prazeres tram terminus? Indeed, ever wondered why so many tram and bus routes have their termini there? Here is one of Lisbon’s grandest, largest and most opulent cemeteries. The grand scale of the site is underscored by the offering of guided tours, using what looks like a stretched electric TukTuk. Because there is a lot of ground to cover if you want to see it all. Beyond the entrance gates is the cemetery’s chapel, itself larger than many outlying towns’ churches. Around and beyond that are row upon row of mausoleums, mostly the resting places of the city’s better-off families. Opened in 1833, in the wake of a devastating cholera epidemic, and passed into the care of Lisbon Council not many years after that, Prazeres cemetery was known as the “ western cemetery ” for many years, to distinguish it from the “ eastern cemete...