Restaurante Prazeres — Restaurant in Albufeira

I came across this beautiful, truly-family-run restaurant while searching for grilled sardines in Albufeira. Not knowing it was out of season, I was naively looking for this dish having seen it advertised on menus around the town.

I was greeted with a huge smile and a friendly disposition by a lady who, I later learned, is the wife of the owner and head chef, Prazeres (also the name of the restaurant).

It’s worth pointing out that I couldn’t see sardines on the menu, however when I asked about them I was told they would be able to provide this dish. Excellent.

Normally the sardines are served as a portion of 6, but because it was out of season and they were low on stock, they told me they could only serve four, and to compensate they would reduce to cost of the dish from €14 to €10. This was absolutely fine and I was very grateful that they could accommodate my needs.

The lady who served me, proudly introduced her son, her daughter and her husband. This was such a lovely gesture and because of the kindness they showed I’ll be returning to this restaurant again.

The food was excellent. I think sometimes the need for complex culinary experiences is unnecessary and, actually, when you allow great, fresh ingredients, cooked simply, to shine, it will far outweigh the experiences of any ‘complicated’ dish.

Give me fresh fish and vegetables anytime! Delicioso!

After chatting to the daughter (I’m sorry I didn’t get your name!) of the restaurant, I learned that March is the season where sardines are in reproductive state. Consequently, I will not be looking for sardines until after May so as to conserve and protect them as a species. This experience of eating traditional Portuguese food has left me both wanting more but has also been a learning experience for me. Now, when seeking fish dishes, I will take into consideration the lifespan and reproductive cycle of any species of fish before placing my order.

I am very grateful for this passed on knowledge, and for the care and hospitality that was shown to me by this kind and generous family 🧡

Please do not hesitate in visiting Prazeres :) you will not be disappointed.

Obrigado por cuidar...

In a previous year we visited this restaurant when an older man appeared to be the proprietor and we pledged to return as his food was outstanding.

This visit the place looks to have been modernized a little with more tables outside and younger and very efficient friendly servers.

Unfortunately it seems the food has been commercialised also, the Octopus Lagaeiro €17 was average and missed the delicious lashings of olive oil and garlic of the previous visit.

The Seafood Paella for two €31 was not a big portion with the protein selection very sparse the contents and look of which were what would be expected from a bag of frozen non-premium brand supermarket seafood. The rice was nicely cooked but lacking any authentically burnt offerings at the bottom.

However what saved the day was the absolutely outstanding house piri piri sauce, the absolute best and hottest chilli sauce in Portugal maybe the world! If you are a lover of spice do visit just for this, it's worth it to blow...

This could be a gem........ But it let's itself down BIG time in one crucial way.

I ordered the seafood rice and one 1/2 bottle of house red and one 1/2 bottle of house white wine.

The wine was fine.

The seafood rice was an abomination. We chose it over the paella as paella is Spanish and seafood rice is supposed to be Portuguese.

This version had hardly any fish but plenty of surimi which is commonly known as crab sticks.

Crab sticks are 32% salt and the rest is the meat from the fish that is stuck to the bones once it's been filleted. It's basically the stuff you would throw away once you've eaten a fish. It's sludge and then mixed into a paste and then formed into shape. It's not good.

Proper seafood rice shouldnt contain surimi or be anywhere near it. If they are doing this to their local delicacy then I can only guess what they are doing to other dishes.

I suggest you avoid this place until they use proper...