Portugalia Tasca — Restaurant in Amsterdam

Came here to celebrate a dear friend's recovery from cancer, a moment that should have been pure joy. Instead, we encountered a troubling display of cultural bias that left us questioning everything this establishment claims to represent.

I've been here multiple times before and the food is genuinely excellent, which makes this experience all the more disappointing. Portuguese restaurants are naturally lively spaces where conversation flows as freely as the wine. We were speaking at normal volumes for the setting when a British table began aggressively telling us to "shut up." When I politely explained we weren't being loud and that this was a special celebration, they became even more hostile.

Here's where it gets truly disappointing: the waiter approached our table, not theirs, and immediately threatened to kick us out. No mediation, no attempt to understand the situation, no recognition that other tables were significantly louder. The bias was unmistakable, and frankly, the selective targeting felt uncomfortable in ways that went beyond just poor service.

What stings most is the cultural betrayal. As someone with many Portuguese and Brazilian friends, I know that animated dinner conversation isn't just normal, it's essential to the experience. For a Portuguese establishment to police its own culture to appease customers who fundamentally don't understand what they've walked into is disappointing.

The food may be authentic, but the hospitality certainly isn't. True Portuguese restaurants celebrate the human voice, family moments, and life's victories. This place has apparently forgotten those values in favor of customers who want sanitized "ethnic" experiences without the actual culture.

We left feeling discriminated against in a space that should have understood us completely. Our celebration was cut short, our joy diminished, and our faith in this establishment destroyed.

Management would be wise to address these serious service inconsistencies before they impact the restaurant's standing in the community. Word travels quickly in dining circles, and incidents like this tend to be remembered.

Until management learns to protect their cultural identity rather than apologize for it, I cannot recommend this place to anyone seeking an authentic Portuguese experience.

Save your celebrations for restaurants that actually...

I've been a customer here for 4 years, I'd say I come every other month, especially when friends come over. The food is amazing, even for the high standards set by Portuguese food. At this point I know most (if not all) of the waiters.

I came here on Wednesday with 7 other friends though, and this time around we saw a waiter being terribly rude to an Indian couple that tried to get his attention because they weren't getting service (it was busy, but this was unwarranted, they even wanted to leave).

After we ordered we started to see people giving us the side eye, and we didn't bother. We're Brazilian, but we never felt uneasy in this restaurant before. My wife decided to be playful with one of the waiters about a dessert, to which she got a tough reply. There were a few instances of these micro-aggressions.

When we were leaving, we were asked where we were from because there was a Brazilian working there. I knew the guy that asked so I asked if he had family in Brazil (I remembered from the previous visits). He said he didn't, and then he corrected himself to say his mother was Brazilian from a beautiful city in the northeast. When my friend asked if he'd ever been to visit, he said he wouldn't go to Brazil. When we asked why, he said "Why would I go there? To be robbed?" All while having a rude tone all the way through. I don't really understand what we did wrong to deserve this treatment, if that's ever excusable.

So, yeah, we didn't bother, we just left. But that's the last we'll see of Portugalia, unfortunately. Xenophobia is a crime, and you should be very ashamed of yourselves. To make this all even more ironic is that my wife is actually Portuguese.

In summary, don't come. Even if the food is good, it's not worth the service. Maybe you'll be fine if you're not a...

I have mixed feelings about this place, because this is an Amsterdam classic. The place is authentic, beautiful decor, and excellent service. But the food…..oh dear. We ordered the caldo verde and it was bland, as if they just added more water to it. The only flavor came from the linguiza which came separately and wasn’t really that great. Then we ordered the bacalhau grelhado, which is a traditional dish that’s supposed to be the crown jewel of this place, and we were so disappointed 😔. The fish was dry (very), the chickpeas were not sufficiently cooked, and the potatoes also were not well cooked. The whole thing lacked cohesion and moisture. I know cod is hard to keep moist, but there wasn’t even a sauce, or olive oil, or anything to compensate for that. Eating that fish was a dismaying experience, and we didn’t say anything because all the waiters were so nice and because we’ve been there before and liked it fine. Still, it makes me sad that such a great place pays so little attention to...