Food Tour of Porto with Manu

This morning we took a food tour. It was still very wet, so rain jackets and umbrellas were a must. We met our guide Manu and the others at the Paços do Concelho. There were seven of us on the tour, Brandon and Amanda from Toronto, Mikhel and Claudia from Dresden, and Lauren from Florida. Manu was a lovely young man who is passionate about Porto’s food, culture and history.

Our first stop was one of the oldest cafés in Porto, called Guarany, which pays homage to the indigenous people of Brazil, where they get their coffee from. Coffee is very important to the Portuguese, both as a great drink at breakfast, and also from a social perspective. They love to meet for coffee morning, noon and night. For breakfast, they have a preference for something light, such as thick toast with butter and some kind of pastry. So, at Guarany we had toast with butter, a croissant and a Pingo (similar to a piccolo or macchiato).

We then headed to our next tasting. Initially I was confused as we first entered a hardware store that specialises in handles and assorted objects for the home. However, at the rear of the store was a lovely cafe - bar including a gorgeous terrace which, unfortunately, was not suitable today. We had a wine and cheese tasting: - three cheeses (goat, sheep and cow), and a lovely glass of red from the Alentejo region.

We then headed to the Balhāo market, which translates to the big bubble. The large market was established in the 18th century, but had been in decline during the 20th century. It was renovated between 2019 and September 2022 and is now thriving. They have done a wonderful job of renovating the site. It is one of the cleanest and well set out markets I have ever been to.

There are a number of historical vendors who have been associated with this market for generations and we visited two of them. At Hugo Silva we tried Green wine, sardines in olive oil and cod. Everything was delicious but the sardines were a standout for me. We then moved to the other side of the market to the Mangalica stall to sample four meats, Jamon Iberico, Sal Picāo Ibeturo, Linguiça Porco Preto and a smoked Lomo. Next we headed to Manteigaria, located close to the market, for a pastel de nata that was still warm and absolutely bloody delicious. Next stop was Conga, a Porto institution. Here we had spicy pulled pork rolls, which paired very well with beer.

Our last stop was at a mixed food store, Casanatal, where we had white port with a stuffed fig. The fig wasn’t the only thing stuffed at this stage! The store was like an Aladdin cave - full of treasures you can eat and drink!

The tour was a fabulous way to see a bit of the city and also gain some insight into Portuguese food culture, and Manu was a very generous host, both with his time and with the knowledge he shared. The tour finished around the corner from our apartment so we didn’t have far to stagger!Läs mer