If you don’t follow us on regular-old facebook, you probably aren’t aware that we fostered cats for about a month this summer. It’s not a thing that we do regularly, but a friend who does do it regularly needed help because of a schedule thing and since we like cats in general we figured “why not?” We took in a semi-feral (as in, feral but had been near humans enough not to be insane) mother and the three of her kittens that predators hadn’t got to yet, with hopes of finding them a permanent home or at least getting them grown enough to be spayed/neutered before making it into one of the many cat colonies in the area. Two of them, hereafter known as “the boys”, were taken in by friends of ours who live in a seaside town less than an hour away… and when those same friends needed to go away for a week we were the natural candidates to come house-sit for them. A week at the beach, with cats? Well fine if you insist. (And by the way, “ronrom” is the Portuguese onomatopoeia for “purr”, and “ronronar” is the verb “to purr”.)
Our friends have a lovely condo about a five minute walk from water (and probably fifteen minutes to the nice spots if you want to hang out) and their place catches lovely breezes pretty much all day. The design of their home takes full advantage; we don’t know the exact numbers but probably a third or more of their square-footage (or square-meterage here, I guess?) is outside on their huge patio. Think of a modern apartment’s open concept living and dining space, then knock out most of the walls. Because of the boys they actually turned the whole thing into an enormous catio, so the whole family can spend as much time as they want outside. These little once-feral dudes have no idea how well they scored in the humans department!
That said, other than playing with cats and enjoying the weather, it wasn’t really an adventure-filled trip. What we did do was eat well, especially seafood. During our cat-sit, we ate out at three restaurants, all very different, and all typical of what we’ve come to think of as Portuguese.
The first is Ondas Sobre O Mar (Waves Over The Sea), a beachside restaurant open all day specializing in, you guessed it, fish. A local institution, Ondas has been a part of the Perafita community Lots of locals here and from the size of it, it gets busy on weekends, perhaps at dinner time. We;d been here before, with friends, but never at a time we needed to make reservations. We started with pataniscas (shredded cod fritters) and bread with parsley flavored butter. Then we shared a whole fish, grilled Sea Bass (robalo), at the recommendation of the server and it was perfection. The fish was de-boned tableside (always fun) and came with rice and Rojões in the Minho style, and oven-roasted potatoes. The weather was fine, not too hot, and we enjoyed making up background stories for the various people — singles and in groups — walking the caminho on the boardwalk right next to the restaurant. An excellent start to the ‘sit.
1858 bbgourmet is an odd duck that friends recommended to us. A year ago, this century-old house on Rua de Cedofeita was in ruins. Today, it is part of the Oporto Serviced Apartments group and hides, on the first floor, the 1858 bbGourmet restaurant. Heading the kitchen is chef Elisabete Pinto, who produces interesting combinations that leave you satiated and excited to return. The group runs a hotel, serviced apartments, a gourmet grocery, home delivery, online grocery store, artisanal bakery, and several restaurants. Along with a well thought out a la carte menu, they offer two “tasting moments”, one of which (45eu) was what we had.
We started with Braised Salmon, Orange Sauce, Pickled Cucumber, a small portion, perfectly presented. The salmon was silky and vibrant with flavor accented by the pickly citrus additions. Next came the Salt Cod in the Oven, Chickpea, Spinach . The “Main” was an excellently prepared Beef Short Rib with an absolutely perfect Parmesan Risotto. Melt in the mouth tenderness, rich flavor, a true highlight. We finished with Guava and Cheese, which turned out to be white chocolate ice cream atop a guava sauce. Simple, rich, and a lovely end to the meal. A wine accompaniment was an additional 21eu and consisted of:
- Vicentino Rosé 2023, 100% pinot noir 100 grapes I’m not much of a rose drinker, but this was a lovely accompaniment to the salmon and cod.
- Passagem Reserva Red 2020, Douro, Quinta de la Rosa, blend. A rich fruity chocolate wine
Porto Tawny 10 Years. A classic for a reason and a nice way to finish a superb meal.
Portions were good, we never felt shorted and would recommend this for a bit of a special occasion meal anytime.
Open daily, Caqui Brunch Bar (caqui means persimmon) appealed to us as a place to have breakfast on our way back to Braga. Plus, they offered pancakes! The day was pouring rain, so parking was a breeze — being on the beach it would be a nightmare on sunny days or high season. Excellent hot drinks — latte for Lisa, hot chocolate for John — and the orange juice was freshly squeezed. They offer a seemingly complete variety of brunch options — egg dishes, toasts, bagels, tacos, pokes, and the enticing pancakes. Lisa had the savory pancakes (bacon, cheddar cheese) with a fried egg. John had a couple of simple pancakes with honey. We both agreed that while the flavor was fine, the texture was weird. Lisa was disappointed that her pancake was simple with the bacon and cheese and egg just layered on top. (It made for a gooey mess. She wasn’t a fan.) John thought his were fine, but not worth a repeat visit. As we were paying and leaving, we discovered that the pancakes had somehow been marked gluten-free. Which explains the odd texture.
