PORTUGAL DISPATCH // vol. 2
Algarve, Lagos and the Southern Shore : the beach! the views! the food!
This the second of a two-part travel series on Portugal —a detour from recipes to bring you the best of what I see when I’m out in the world. Because travel reporting is extremely time intensive, I’m offering the full posts to paid subscribers. You’ll find a good portion of this post is free, but if you want every last detail—all the meals and beaches from Sintra to Lisbon and south to Lagos—a paid subscription gets you in. Take advantage of this offer:
Hello!
It’s finally here, PORTUGAL Vol 2 —for the regulars who knew this was coming, and waited patiently without nagging—thank you! I hope you’ll find it worth the wait (if you missed it, read VOL 1, here). For those who are new here—this newsletter tends to be very food forward, but travel is a small but important part of what we talk about here, too, since travel is one of my great loves. So, getting right to it…
PORTUGAL DISPATCH VOL. 2 // THE ALGARVE
There’s only one way to say it: The Algarve took our breath away. When we first booked flights to Lisbon in April, having only 5 days to research and plan, I scoured the internet for the most beautiful beaches lists and found several of them clustered along the souther shore, or what’s known as the Algarve region.
Drivable from Lisbon (about 3 to 4 hours, depending how you drive) and warmer on any given day than the North, our hope was to hit a beach or two (wrapped in scarves) and have a few good meals after our long days braving Lisbons steep hills.
What we got, instead, were three 80-degree days, in full sun—at six jaw-droppingly beautiful beaches along the southern coast. In April. So imagine how sparkling (and hot, hot hot!) the Algarve must be anytime between now and September.
Before you hit a beach or check into a hotel (details, below)—my first vital piece of advice is this: stop at the first fruit stand you see on the side of the road selling oranges and satsumas or Mandarins, and buy them out. We got two giant orange mesh bags of each, which we tucked in our backpacks, piled in bowls at bedsides, and carried with us to the beach every day.
To me, citrus is the taste of the ALGARVE, sandwiched between plenty of seafood, green wine, beer…and gelato, of course.
It’s all here for you, below.
xx,
Sarah
WHERE TO EAT: LAGOS*
Beyond grazing through our giant bags of oranges (which we took with us exploring further east), most of our restaurant meals were concentrated in Lagos, where we stayed, so that’s our focus here.
CAMILO: Consistently rated as some of the best seafood in Lagos, we scored a lunch reservation here, and then missed it. All turned out pretty plum (see MAR, below), but if you can plan ahead and book this spot for lunch—you won’t be sorry.
THE GARDEN: Recommended to us by friends who have traveled to Lagos twice (with young children), I was charmed by the garden but initially put off by the too-international feeling menu (we aimed to eat mostly Portuguese and fresh fish during our short trip). But the $10 grilled fish plate and service were all so good on our first dinner there, we went back the next day for lunch. Virgin vacation cocktails, blankets for chilly nights, and cheerful servers hailing from South Africa to France, made for two lively, delicious meals at reasonable price.
CASA DO PREGO: This easy-going tapas spot got everything right: steak and eggs, prawns, and fresh tuna—all bathed in a garlic, mustard white-wine sauce that we lapped up with fresh bread, down to the very last drop. This was the only place we ordered off the kid’s menu—grilled steak or tuna with fried potatoes and corn. The kid’s portions were plenty for my seven-year-old, and my 11-year old (who can usually handle adult portions) was offered a seconds at no extra charge. Bonus points for value!
MAR: Based on photos of the food and decor, I would have never booked this spot—but, this was one of many happy accidents during our trip. We missed our reservation* at premiere Lagos lunch spot, Camilo, by 20 minutes, and had to scramble for a replacement on an unusually hot day. Situated high on a cliff, right above Praia da Batata (a tiny but breathtaking beach right in the heart of Lagos), this did the trick in spades. Remember you’re paying for the view—but the fish pate, seafood risotto, crisp house white and fresh squeezed orange juice on ice for the kids all made it worthwhile. This felt like a true vacation moment, complete with a lazy post-lunch dip, on the beach, below.
CREMA DI GELATO, Gelateria e Sorbetteria: We were repeat customers at this gelato stand in the center of town, with its vivid colors calling out among windy, tile-lined streets and old buildings. The coffee, fruit-flavors and chocolate all were top in class for flavor and texture. Expect lines in evenings and extra warm afternoons.
*NOTE: If you’re traveling to Lagos between April and August, make a reservation for lunch and dinner. Most places were booked weeks in advance. In April, we were able to get a few same-day reservations that saved us after a long day in the sun—but we’re told that’s unheard of during high season.
WHERE TO STAY: ALGARVE (LAGOS + FARO)
In my previous dispatch about our stay in Portugal (VOL 1), I talked about the numerous alluring private rentals in Portugal (namely, Air BnBs). For the same reasons we ultimately landed on a hotel booking in Lisbon (short visit, desire to have help with clean up), we did did the same in LAGOS. Gratis breakfast, family rooms (read: full sized beds for everyone) and unbeatable prices won us over.
I’m so glad we did.
Our Lagos hotel, The Carvi Beach Hotel, was right on the water, on a stunning and well-trafficked beach (Praia Dona Ana) that was a good fit for rolling out of bed and straight into the water. This isn’t fancy, but clean and spacious. The breakfast—(photo above)—is served on the rooftop, and included plenty of meats, cheeses, luscious fruits and sweet Portuguese rolls. We’d feast well on fruits and yogurt, then each fill one roll with turkey and cheese, wrapped in a napkin for the beach, which held us over until late day lunches or early dinner.
Still, I am bookmarking these three charming and affordable Air B n B’s, in or around Faro (further east from Lagos) for a future week-long stay in the Algarve:
CHIC, WATERFRONT BUDENS, FARO APT
See, also these high-end Air B n B’s, written up in Conde Nast Traveler and Wander-Lush, which include some Algarve stays:
BEST BEACHES: ALGARVE + SOUTHERN PORTUGAL
Portuguese beaches are drop-dead gorgeous—all year round. We got super lucky with three 80-degree beach days in April, and were able to not only use the beaches all day, but swim in the bracingly cold Gulf of Cadiz (south of Portugal), too.