Bomfim 1896 — Restaurant in Alijó

Disappointing experience. Tried to book a table for two online at 7.30 or 8pm Good Friday but no availability til 8.30pm - so we went and the restaurant barely had anyone there. When I asked them, we were told the chef likes to have 30 minute gaps between tables - but we were rushed through the whole evening as the kitchen closes at 9pm.

It’s a lot of money to pay to be rushed through your evening meal. However, it wasn’t just this - the food was tiny - don’t go if you’re hungry! Fortunately we had charcuterie and cheese with wine tasting earlier so we weren’t starving, which was a good job! Although saying that my husband had a snack when we got home!

My starter of scallops, whilst small - was amazing. Although lukewarm, it melted in my mouth. A little slice of heaven. However…

My husbands starter was a joke… the menu said ‘Prawn’ so we assumed it would be one large prawn. They asked if he was okay to remove the shells - but what they didn’t tell us was that the shells would be on tiny scraps of prawns - the type that by the time you finish peeling them - there is barely a tiny part to eat. So I shared with him my starter!

In our opinion these prawns shouldn’t have been on the menu. When we asked - we were told - they are from the Algarve - well we spend a lot of time in the Algarve and are on our way there now driving down as we are buying a house there and I rarely see tiny prawns like those in restaurants there.

The main course was very tasty but once again very tiny. The size of a starter in most restaurants! We had the catch of the day that was snapper in a shellfish sauce. Beautiful food.

We can of course appreciate what the chef is doing with the food, but as I say - if you’re hungry after a day of walking or wine tasting - be prepared.

At over €220 for two people it was a lot of money to spend on a rushed and unfulfilled evening meal. Also FYI - the minimum amount you can spend on a bottle of red wine is €70! At least double or more other restaurants - even most high end ones.

On a positive note, a beautiful place and lovely fire at one end. We were over served by efficient staff who (not their fault) rushed us through our evening.

Not a place we would return to...

We had dinner here recently. The view is truly amazing, and the food was very good. Unfortunately, the service didn’t quite match the level of the setting—not due to lack of intent, but because of a somewhat sloppy execution.

We arrived at 7, right when the restaurant opened, and since there weren’t many tables yet, we felt that every waiter’s attention was focused directly on us. Every five minutes, someone came to ask us something, which quickly became overwhelming. We started with cocktails, but before I was even halfway through mine, the sommelier came by to ask if we wanted wine since our appetizer was “almost ready.” We had only ordered about 10 minutes earlier, were still clearly enjoying our cocktails, and yet the food followed within just two minutes.

After the appetizers, I asked to keep the tempo slower. Still, the same pattern continued—while we were still drinking our first wine, we were asked if we wanted the second. When I did finish, my glass was cleared within seconds, leaving us feeling watched and uncomfortable. The staff were kind and well-intentioned, but the constant hovering felt suffocating.

Interestingly, once the restaurant filled up after about an hour, we could finally relax as the attention shifted away from us. It gave the impression that our meal was being rushed to make room before larger groups arrived, which was unpleasant—especially at this price point.

Overall, the food and location are wonderful, and the staff’s intentions are clearly good. But I believe more focus is needed on adapting to the customer’s pace rather than imposing the restaurant’s rhythm. Serving an appetizer “because the kitchen has time” or rushing drinks before guests are ready takes away from what could otherwise be a top-tier dining experience.

I share this not out of frustration, since we still had a nice evening, but because these are simple adjustments that would make guests feel much more...

Attended for evening meal for special occasion. Poor directions to restaurant if going after dark with pathway including steps not illuminated. Interior of restaurant is nice and modern with open kitchen but atmosphere rather cold. Service was poor, stoical, unwelcoming and lacked knowledge. The food quality is overall uninspiring and very poorly executed. From the starters, the Grilled Artichokes tasted like burnt cardboard, was totally inedible and returned. No apologies or alternative offered. The scallops were cold and had to be returned to be reheated. The beurre blanc sauce was bland. From the mains, the lamb was extremely fatty with practically no meat. One lamb chop came in the main plate and 2 chops came in a separate bowl as leftovers. The beef was a thin cut of meat, less than a centimetre thick and overcooked for medium rare. The grilled lettuce was again dry and practically burnt. The blobs of supposed sauce were completely tasteless. In fairness the Millefeuille was good as was the wine. Unfortunately, the food did not come close to that illustrated in the gallery. Despite informing the restaurant beforehand of the special occasion, there was no acknowledgement of this at all. The Manager was preoccupied by a table of drinkers and made no attempt to address our issues. He finally apologised for a disappointing evening and promised to ring me to make up but I heard nothing from him. Despite the great potential of this restaurant, in my opinion the owners, the Symington family in association with Chef Pedro Lemos, who has a high reputation as being one of the first chefs in Porto to achieve a Michelin star should be ashamed of the standards offered in this restaurant. Fortunately, there are several other high end restaurants within 10 minutes of Pinhao, just across the river where the service and quality of food far exceed this restaurant and which I would...