suggestions
Pedras e Pêssegos
finely made and looking furniture
Visit the mirabilia chamber of nordic furniture if you’re looking for something special. It’s no space for decoration but scenography. At this 1500 m2 storage you may find good interior design pieces, to buy or rent and make up your space of wonder.
tel. +351 91 590 77 23 / Rua do Almada, 558
ATELIER GUILHOTINA
printmaking studio
It’s a place dedicated to several printing techniques. You may know its owner. Sometimes she waits tables at Miss’Opo bar. Ana Torrie founded this print studio devoted to produce her own work. Also, she loves to mingle and invites other artists interested in these technologies to develop graphic work together. If that’s your case, drop by at Casa da Imagem where Guilhotina’s headquarters are. Guilhotina is now crowdfunding for an itinerant print-studio in a van so there’s no excuse not to be in touch with a blue plate (more about it on the back of this sheet).
permanent print studio & itinerant print studio
Mini Bonga
original from Bruno Borges
On the bank of the Bonga river, in the confines of deep Africa, an ageless seamstress lived and worked. People say that from her hands came the most beautiful and noble garments which dressed little princes of every realm. Her story is as old as the history of the world itself, and we know so little about it. It’s told she was the mother of a prince and the child was taken from her because the seamstress was rabble. In hopes of seeing her child once again, she never stopped sewing baby clothes since. And so she went on for months and years, years and months and months and years. Those garments became notorious and from everywhere kings and emperors sent her messengers requesting clothes for their heirs. One day, when the time to rest arrived to the seamstress, she passed her craft secrets to a Moor prince who tattooed on his chest the molds used by the old sorceress. The Moor prince kept them secret until he moved to Porto and espoused a Visigoth princess from Fine Arts. Missing Africa and fed up with the pink and blue tyranny, the now renowned Moor king asked his queen to sew the garments of their first child. The queen used the plans on her husband’s chest and the fabrics she gathered during her travels, to pick up the tradition of the old seamstress who lived in the margins of the Bonga river.
A Barraquinha
sunday food
If you have a car, you have to drive direction to Lavra, Matosinhos. Find how with maps apps. The 104 bus drives you to Angeiras, near the market. A coastline site means happiness for sea flavour’s lovers. If it is mainly taken by fishermen, you rejoice. And there it was, an already closed restaurant opened us the door to join a party, which meant people drinking and eating at lunch still inside dancing and laughing. Please, don’t resist to sapateira recheada in an ending afternoon, even if your comforting saturday night’s sparkling water is gazing at you.
Travessa das Angeiras, 13 // Lavra – Matosinhos phone +351 918 430 990
REI DOS GALOS DE AMARANTE
restaurant
Miss’Opo chose this place to serve birthday dinner. We had squid and bean stew, chicken “na púcara” and roasted veal. It’s familiar so: nearby, good food, good wine, nice owners, soft bill.
Rua das Taipas, 121/ +351 222 057 297
CASA FERREIRA
restaurant
A great place to go if you’re intending to eat Portuguese food, the typical kind, for cheap prices. Casa Ferreira’s staff is surprisingly friendly and they are not very used to feed tourists although they speak English and will treat you with warmth as if you were new family.
Rua do Almada, 615
+351 22 200 3117
SOLAR MOINHO DE VENTO
restaurant
Traditional cooking like this is hard to find. Not every restaurant claiming to cook the best typical dishes is honest. The “Windmill” will provide generous amounts of food on your table, truly tasty and affordable, although it is not the cheapest you can find.
The space could be described as vintage for the local look of restaurants in Portugal. You’ll not have the vintage branding of new restaurants. This one is really old. Best to book before you go there. And, not Portuguese enough but surprisingly, there is an Oreo mousse for dessert.
site Rua Sá Noronha , No81 , 4050-527 Porto
+351 222 051 158 +351 914 021 897
Jardim das Virtudes
garden with a view
Sited behind the Court of Law, Garden of Virtues is a wonderful place to meet other living souls that may be your temporary neighbours or slowly owners of a piece of yours.
It’s opened by day and accessible by night if you know how to cross its walls. Free of charges, you have sat landscapes right across the river. Try to figure out Port wine names in neon lights.
Behind Palácio da Justiça, Miragaia
GROCERY S.O.S SHOP
Sometimes, holidays shut down normal street commerce. Go to this estearn-all-in-one store to rescue your need at that time. Don’t expect it to have little and neither to have much of things that you’ll be looking for, from food to batteries and Portugal branded souvenirs.
Praça Guilherme Gomes Fernandes
PONTUAL
late hour snack
If you have no diet restrictions such as being a vegetarian is not that difficult to find somewhere to grab a bite until midnight. Then, Cinderela becomes a a vampire and Pontual will be there for you. It’s not far away nor low fat. If hungry is the best cook, you will be more than satisfried.
Rua do Almada, 350
PASSOS MANUEL
bar
(don’t own the photo)
When people ask where to go out for a drink, the first place coming to my mind is Passos Manuel. Of course, as a local I go there to meet friends and acquaintances but, depending on agenda, I go there for a concert, a presentation, a debate or a movie in the only movie theater surviving downtown.
You may expect a beautiful bar embedded in Coliseu’ building, white lodges with a glass window giving to a small blue velvet teather, two cosy dancefloors and quite resisting bathroom hygiene, not to mention David who may actually prepare a good cocktail and smile simultaneously, or it’s assiduous owner, Senhor Guimarães, mythical character in various ways to many of us local downtowners and no novice to music, night and life. He made Passos Manuel a place to support first acts of several art forms, specially related to music.
I spend and dance nights over there for the last ten years. It’s unusual to find tourists at Passos Manuel although you surelly will bump into foreigners, most of them. This tip comes from the heart. If you’re willing to act local, peek this pick.
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CAFÉ AU LAIT
bar
In our little Ibiza streets, crowded with bars, locals and tourists, Café au Lait is the bar where I most frequently go when heading with friends to Galerias Paris. Space is beautiful, not very big, and has a good lightining level which won’t hurt your eyes and where you may listen to less commercial music on account of a their dj’s and concerts selection.
Rua Galeria de Paris, 46
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KATE
skateshop
Rita and Nuno have run this store for 8 years. It’s the only one downtown to care for and welcome a growing team of skaters. Not only can you purchase clothes and materials related to skateboarding, you can also buy some independent editions and objects produced by local artists. Its walls and window lettering were made by friends from Arara silkscreen printing shop. More: if you’re in the mood for a tattoo, you get one in it’s basement in this awarded store since last year Kate won the prize for best skateshop in the country.
Seg-Sáb/Mon-Sat 10h30-13h30 + 14h30-19h30
Rua de Santo Ildefonso
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TRAÇA
restaurant
(don’t own the photo)
Advising a place I never went based on the assumption Paula wouldn’t deceive my palate, neither yours. Despite never having a meal at Traça,
I sent a reasonable number of guests there and everyone came back happy. If you’re wondering about a nice refurbished space downtown and nearby, terrace included, give a chance to Paula’s tip.
Seg-Sex/Mon-Fri 12h-15h Sáb/Sat 11h30-14h
Seg-Qui/Mon-Thu 19h-23h30 Sex-Sáb/Fri-Sat 19h30-2h
+351 222 081 065
