Where to go for this year’s festive celebrations

These are just the places for a festive feast and drinks to follow. From posh to cosy, colourful to clandestine — we’ve got you covered.

SULT

Italian food made by a Brazilian chef in a restaurant in Portugal with a Danish name…confused? Well, there is reason behind the apparent multicultural madness: Brazilian Nelson Soares, who opened Sult in Cascais in 2019, has a thing for Nordic minimalism and a passion for Italian cuisine. Inspired by a visit to Mangia in Copenhagen, he decided to name his restaurant after the Danish term for hunger, ‘sult’.

Even if the menu aims to re-interpret Italian cuisine, there is something very comforting and cosy about everything here, from the food to the interiors and the warm welcome you get from Soares. Think velvety upholstered chairs, dark fitted ceilings, Vista Alegre white tablecloths and a fire burning outside on the terrasse. Add a partly open kitchen and the option of sitting at the chef’s table and you have Sult: “I want you to leave the restaurant better than when you came. I want this to be a place where you restore your soul. I don’t offer food, I offer an experience,” Soares shares.

The restaurant is a sister of the original Sult Botafogo in Rio de Janeiro, winner of several awards, such as the Bib Gourmand. The kitchen in Cascais uses local products and aims to have a maximum of five base ingredients in each dish, in line with the Italian cooking philosophy of only using a few simple, quality ingredients.

The renowned Italian sommelier Julieta Carrizzo, winner of numerous awards in Brazil, will provide you with the best wines from the card, on which there is a focus on small Portuguese producers and loads of bubblies to choose from. Indulge in the homemade pasta, truffles, risotto, fresh fish and meat dishes followed by pillow-soft pistachio tiramisu — mama mia! Look no further than Sult for a cosy and relaxed, yet elegant Christmas meal, that will satisfy your ‘sult’ in no time.

sultcascais.pt

LE BLEU

Le Bleu might be the talk of the town, but you should stop talking and start tasting! Opened this year in one of the most beautiful art deco buildings in Lisbon’s Campo de Ourique district, Le Bleu is the latest brainchild of serial entrepreneur and star chef Kiko Martins. If you are looking for something posh and light for a Christmas get-together, this is the place to be. Modern bistro meets fancy fantasy aquarium is one way to describe the interior of this recent fish restaurant, but here, under the sea, you need to open not just your eyes, but all your senses, as not everything is as it might seem…

Kiko Martins has turned his new restaurant into a creative wonderland of childhood memories, innovative cooking techniques and new takes on local classics all wrapped up in an ode to the Atlantic: “I wanted to try something completely new and original using fish and seafood. I want to keep proving myself, and this time I didn’t want to use a country as a crutch. I wanted to get back in the kitchen and have fun, and that shines through on the menu,” Martins shares and explains how it is easier to create something if you set some limitations for yourself.

The result is playful dishes like the lily nigiri, that rides in on a “marshmallow” instead of rice, a reinvented version of the tuna sandwich that most Portuguese people have not-so-fond memories of bringing to the beach as a child. And what about a surprising version of the pastel de nata or the bacalhau à brás? You may want to wash that down with a ‘Bianconi’ or a ‘Fluffy Mary’ with oyster foam from the bartender — the creativity certainly also stretches to the cocktails.

Martins did not want to play it safe this time, but he was wise to not do so, as the tastes and textures are wonderfully spicy, crunchy, creamy and strong. As Martins says: “I like to create things from scratch, and I will stop the day I have nothing more to show.”

lebleu.pt

MONKEY MASH & RED FROG

For those pre or after-dinner drinks it’s time to wander beyond your usual watering hole. Let award-winning Monkey Mash shelter you from the cold for a while with its tropical interiors and sustainable angle on lab drinks.

This will definitely get the party going and the juices flowing — literally! The focus is on refreshing, fruity and tropical drinks in a cool and laid-back atmosphere. Emphasis is on spirits made from sugar cane and agave, mixed with local ingredients like yuzu from Alentejo.

But there are also Japanese whiskies, Asian gins, as well as pisco and sake to choose from.

But be careful with the Japanese-inspired snacks and finger foods, they are nothing less than delicious and will definitely spoil your dinner if you are on your way to one of those!

And what would Christmas be without a little magic and secrets that unveil themselves? If you don’t know it’s there you will easily walk past the secret entrance to speakeasy Red Frog.

This is the “big brother” of Monkey Mash and the only Portuguese bar to ever make it onto The World’s 50 Best Bars list. Like the former, Red Frog plays with the reinvention of classics and there is even a distillery for different inventive flavours in the back.

Inspired by the secretive concept of speakeasies—clandestine bars that emerged in the United States during the Prohibition era of the 1920s —this iconic bar offers seasonal signature cocktails crafted by Paulo Gomes and a team of bartender-alchemists. Red Frog mixes international and Portuguese ingredients, resulting in an array of fresh, vibrant, and highly photogenic cocktails.

It is necessary to book a table in advance at this sophisticated bar where you will also find a snack menu and one of the best liquor collections in the country. Be ready to bring your a-game in terms of attire, turn off your phone and embark on a journey into the fascinating world of mixology.

redfrog.pt / monkeymash.pt

Karina Janø has been working in journalism, photography, and communication since earning her master's degree in Visual Culture and Cultural Journalism in 2012. Now a full-time freelancer, she writes and photographs for some of the biggest publications in Denmark and for some in the UK and Portugal. Topics of interest are mainly food, culture, and travel.  https://www.instagram.com/words_and_visuals_/

Karina Janø