Le Chat

Stumbling across Le Chat on my first day in Lisbon was an undoubted highlight of my recent holiday. Perched cliff-side by the Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga and found via both a 10 minute stroll from my hotel and at the top of a take-my-word-for-it very steep climb of stairs, this place is an angular dream of white, glass & chrome modernity.

With a gorgeous & vast open air terrace as well as tables undercover, this is the perfect place for a date, a family catch-up or a girls lunch, all of which I witnessed in passionate, effusive, Portuguese style on my visits. Note the use of the word ‘visits’ plural; this place was so lovely, we went first for lunch and then later, when exploration of the surrounding area failed to turn up anything that looked as nice, back for dinner.

Homemade focaccia & water-bread with oil, vinegar & olives is the perfect thing to nibble on as the first cold beer goes down and serving them in hipster-approved kilner jars is a nice touch. Portions are generous and prices are decent; it’s not the cheapest place around – if you live in London you know the cost a great view adds on to any food or drink – but it certainly won’t give you cause for alarm and the quality of the dishes is very good. Chubby pink prawns came with slices of slick chorizo, a goats’ cheese & walnut salad was tangy & earthy and codfish & chickpeas were light, fresh & topped prettily with pickled pink onions.

As with many places in Lisbon, the wine was cheaper than the coffee – no wonder I felt so at home there – and the servings are liberal. Don’t leave without spooning your way in and out of a divinely grown-up chocolate mousse topped with adorably retro popping candy and washed down with Moscatel. As you’d expect, fresh fish makes up a lot of the menu but you’ll also find meat, sandwiches & vegetarian options on offer.

Service is good – excellent in a quiet lunch-hour and slightly more brusque but still sincere at dinner – and you’re never rushed from your table which, if you follow my lead, will be sun-drenched when you arrive and star-lit when you leave. If you’re staying in the heart of Lisbon, this place is a bit out of the way for you but if you’re after somewhere a bit more chilled and a bit less touristy than some of the central restaurants, I can’t recommend it enough.