Vitória Mar — Restaurant in Caminha

Came here for evening meal due to excellent rating. We were received really well and had a lovely table overlooking the beach. We were immediately presented with a set of cold dishes from which we could choose as a starter. It felt that we were being ‘pushed’ to have a starter which was available and to take what was on the tray ( that may have been left over from lunch) and we weren’t told whether they were free or we had to pay for them. A waiter then came with an English menu and helped us order - Fish and local wine - very good! The wine was lovely and the main course came. The Seabass was lovely, but the Cod in the vegetable and potatoe ‘pot’ was very rubbery and seemed either old or overdone. The total cost for the whole meal was 50-55€ for 2 of us which is very good value, however I would have preferred to have quality food/cooking. Overall, not quite the #1 restaurant experience I expected and so that is why I have...

Today, we went with a reservation for three people to the Vitória Mar restaurant located in Âncora, Viana do Castelo.

The proper table from which we sat was ready and sanitized.

The white wine-based sangria was a little strong on the issue of alcohol.

The starters being the beginning of the tasting of the meal, should contain a variety of flavors. The clams and the melon with ham were as expected, fresh.

The main course chosen was monkfish rice with prawns.

Small forgetfulness of changing cutlery, nothing serious, it was solved quickly.

The proper main course was very tasty, very well refined as the law dictates.

Dessert we ordered only a passion fruit mousse and it was divine.

We were offered a bottle of Magos sparkling wine, due to celebrating my mother's birthday celebration.

From the positive service and the exemplary gastronomy, I advise the visit and...

I was really disappointed. The staff were friendly, but they didn’t speak English well, so it was hard to ask questions about the menu. We ordered soup and seafood rice. The soup was okay, but the seafood rice was like tomato soup with overcooked rice and seafood - very flat and tasteless. The prices are high. I’ve had much better and cheaper seafood in Portugal. They also charged us for water and bread that we didn’t order—they just brought it. Usually, if it’s served without asking, it’s free. They even charged for a small appetizer that seemed complimentary. Honestly, this was the worst experience I’ve had in a restaurant. I never give 1 star, but even 1 feels like too...