Lisbon: four recommended restaurants (part one: Ibo)

View from first floor of Ibo

There are certainly a number of of recommendable restaurants in Lisbon with plenty of places offering good value with simple grilled fish as the best option. Here are four favourites we have been to recently – split into several posts.

Ibo, Cais do Sodre

Ibo, a mix of Portuguese and Mozambique cooking, is easily the most sophisticated of these four restaurants. Not surprisingly it is also the most expensive. We went on Saturday evening when it is certainly best to reserve, especially if you want a first floor table by the window that looks across the Tagus. The service is friendly and efficient with a good wine list and glasses to match at not outrageous prices.

Highlights of the meal? The crab and mango salad (15€), chosen by one of our party, and the chacuti de cabrito (curried kid – 20€).

Crab and mango salad

2010 Crasto (branco) Douro

The 2010 white from Crasto had attractive weight allied with freshness and minerality. It's a blend of Gouveio, Roupeiro and Rabigato. For our choice of red we stayed with the Douro, selecting the 2007 Quinta do Côa. This was a slightly less successful choice as it was decidedly Porty in style and while initially attractive it became somewhat cloying and soupy as we went deeper into the bottle. It's a blend of Touriga Nacional, Tinta Roriz and Touriga Franca.

2007 Quinta do Côa, Reserva, Douro

The damage for 4? Around 210€ for four starters, four mains, two desserts, coffees and a tea, two bottles of wine and water.