The 5 Best Michelin Star Restaurants in Porto 

Foodies from all around the world are drawn to Porto and its Michelin-starred restaurants to experience the very best of Portuguese cuisine. For US travelers Portugal offers a touch of the exotic, as Portuguese fine dining tends to be under-represented in North America.

Porto is a world city that celebrates Portugal’s multicultural past, while also embracing the modern cuisine of Europe. With so many options to choose from, the best restaurants like Vila Foz, Elemento, and others on this list deserve to be a part of your next Porto food tour.

 

Euskalduna Studio

Photo credit: May May

Euskalduna Studio is the flagship restaurant of Michelin star Chef Vasco Coelho Santos. Where he uses the Japanese open kitchen concept of Izakaya to give his diners the opportunity to watch the magic happen.

You sit at a counter, just like you would at an Izakaya-style restaurant in Tokyo. Except, the chef and highly trained staff prepare the meal using high-end local produce and distinctly Portuguese flavors.

The menu at Euskalduna Studio is constantly changing with what’s fresh in season, as well as what inspires Chef Santos. I think the best choice is to go with the curated degustation menu.

It’s typically 10 carefully curated small plates that are served with cleverly planned pauses to let your senses appreciate each dish. Several of the dishes come with Portuguese wine pairing recommendations, that I think are spot-on.

Chef Santos also likes to work in two surprise courses in the degustation menu. The night I was there, this included a vegetarian plate highlighting local root vegetables. I appreciated just how well the recommended Quinta do Crasto Reserva Vinhas Velhas paired with the earthy flavors of the pan-roasted root vegetables. 

Euskalduna Studio (€€€€) – Rua de Santo Ildefonso, nº404 4000-466 Porto, Portugal – Open Tuesday to Thursday from 7:30 to 11:00 PM. Friday and Saturday lunch is served from 1 to 3 PM with dinner from 7:30 to 11 PM. Closed Saturday and Sunday.

 

Vila Foz

Photo credit: Vila Foz

The Vila Foz Restaurant in Porto resides within the restored 19th-century mansion for the Vila Foz Hotel & Spa, which overlooks the rocky beaches of Praia do Homem do Leme. The dining room shows off the elegant features of 19th-century Portugal with gilding, intricate moldings, and large mirrors.

All this elegance provides Chef Arnaldo Azevedo with the perfect backdrop for his gourmet offerings. The menu celebrates Portugal’s abundant seafood heritage, while still changing with the season. The chef expresses this through two different tasting menus he calls Novo Mundo and Maresia.

Maresia loosely translates as “To sense the smell of the sea.” It’s the tasting menu that stays true to classical Portuguese seafood dishes. While it’s constantly in flux with what the Atlantic has to offer, the Maresia tasting menu always stays true to Portuguese coastal cuisine, while elevating it with the refined touches you expect from a Michelin-starred restaurant.

The Novo Mundo tasting menu is where Chef Azevedo gives himself creative license to experiment with global fusion flavors and non-traditional ingredients. While still keeping the dishes true to Portuguese culinary traditions. It’s a great opportunity for you to experience a variety of flavors beyond the local seafood.

When I dined at the restaurant, the star of the Maresia was a special take on the Portuguese classic Arroz de Marisco. It featured fresh-caught prawns, clams, and mussels, over a bed of rice with a rich, tomato broth with roasted garlic, onions, and peppers. I found it to be a little bit like a Portuguese-inspired seafood paella but with a creamier sauce. I appreciated how the parsley garnish added aroma just as much as it added color.

Vila Foz (€€€€) – Avenida De Montevideu 236, Porto, 4150-516, Portugal – Open Tuesday to Saturday from 7:30 PM to 10:30 PM. Closed on Sunday and Monday.

 

Elemento

Photo credit: Elemento

At Elemento, Chef Ricardo Dias Ferreir uses wood-fired cooking to elevate Portuguese fine dining, much like what Etxebarri does for Basque cuisine. From the moment you step through the door, you get the sense that the open flames and the aroma of the smoke aren’t just part of the cooking method. They’re almost treated like ingredients.

It’s within reasonable walking distance of Clérigos Tower and the Livraria Lello. Yet even if you’re not already in the area, the nearby São Bento Railway Station, makes it easy to get to from just about anywhere in the city. 

The menu changes with the season and the fresh produce that’s available locally. Chef Ferreir periodically makes changes to the tasting menu for holidays and special occasions, so you’re never quite sure what you’re going to get.

While Elemento does technically have an à la carte menu, I think it’s better to give yourself over to the 8-moment tasting menu. You’re putting yourself in the hands of a master chef and the wisdom of their in-house sommelier.

My favorite moment from my last time at Elemento was the grilled Atlantic octopus. Normally Atlantic octopus is a bit tougher than its Mediterranean cousin. Yet this one was perfectly tender, while still holding up to the intense heat of the wood fire grill. It had just the right amount of sear to give the octopus a smoky aroma, without overpowering the subtle natural flavor.

Elemento (€€€) – Rua do Almada 51, Porto, 4050-036, Portugal – Open every Tuesday to Saturday from 7:00 PM to 11:00 PM. Closed every Sunday and Monday.

 

Casa de Chá da Boa Nova

Casa de Chá da Boa Nova, sits dramatically on the coastline in Leça da Palmeira with breathtaking views of the Atlantic Ocean. This provides Head Chef Rui Paula with ample inspiration to create some of Portugal’s best seafood.  

The restaurant was originally designed by Portuguese architect Álvaro Siza Vieira, giving it an elegant yet tranquil ambiance with panoramic ocean views. The interior is festooned with natural stone from the area, and wood elements, with large windows that let you look out over the vast coastal environment.

The menu combines local ingredients, and fresh seafood to reflect traditional Portuguese dishes, while simultaneously embracing innovation. This includes creative versions of tuna tartar with seaweed, lobster in Atlantic foam, and grilled seabass with locally sourced shellfish.

I particularly enjoyed Chef Paula’s carabinero, scarlet shrimp which was grilled to showcase the natural sweetness of fresh shellfish. It’s a special type of deep-water prawn that’s abundant in the Atlantic waters off the coast of Portugal. It’s a shellfish experience that’s hard to come by anywhere else in the world.   

Casa de Chá da Boa Nova (€€€€) – Avenida da Liberdade, Leça da Palmeira, 4450-718 Matosinhos, Porto, Portugal – Open Tuesday to Saturday for lunch from 12:30 to 3:00 PM, with dinner service from 7:30 to11:00 PM. Closed Sunday and Monday.

 

The Yeatman

Photo credit: Yeatman

The Yeatman Hotel and Restaurant in Vila Nova de Gaia has proudly earned two Michelin stars under head Chef Ricardo Costa. This success is thanks in part to his masterful pairings of creative appetizers and entrees with some of the best Portuguese wines and aperitif cocktails.

The interior ambiance exudes a refined aesthetic, with soft lighting, plush seating, and tasteful décor that is perfectly fitting for the grandeur of a hotel and restaurant like the Yeatman. It makes full use of the large windows to allow natural light to pour into the dining room during the day. Then at night, these same windows allow the lights of the city to create a romantic ambiance that’s serene and inviting. 

The menu at Yeatman changes with the season and the local produce that’s available. Chef Costa takes the best of what he finds and uses it to create that day’s specials.

The chef’s tasting menu offers a multi-course experience designed to take you on a journey through various regions of Portugal. It often features classic seafood dishes like scarlet shrimp or small plates highlighting local Iberian pork and veal.

They also offer a variety of wine-tasting menus that pair small plates with some of the best vintages on the Yeatman Hotel’s extensive wine list. This includes high-end Portuguese wines from the Douro River Valley and Dao region. All of the wine pairings are overseen by the in-house master sommelier Elisabete Fernandes

The last time I dined at Yeatman, I enjoyed a curated cheese course featuring local cheese. I really appreciated how the pungent Roquefort blue cheese paired with recommended port wine from one of the local wine cellars.

The Yeatman (€€€€) Rua do Choupelo, Vila Nova de Gaia, 4400-088, Portugal – Open on Tuesday to Saturday from 6:30 PM to 10:00 PM.

 

Conclusion

This is just a small sampling of my favorite Michelin-starred restaurants in Porto. If you search through sources like the Bib Gourmand Michelin Guide, you’ll find there are far too many to feature in one article. You’d be forgiven for feeling blown away by them all.

Not to fear, at Eating Europe we have our finger on the pulse of Porto’s find-dining scene. Whether you’re looking for a vegetarian menu, a small plates experience, or a tasting menu with wine pairings, we can create the perfect Porto food tour to suit your tastes.