Hífen — Restaurant in Cascais

Came here for a late lunch with my family on a Sunday at around 2 PM. The restaurant has two floors and it was still pretty packed at that time. We wanted to try a bunch of different things so we decided to share everything amongst 6 people. We asked our waiter (who was awesome - wish I remembered his name) for some recommendations and he did not lead us astray. This is everything we ate:

-Beet root soup - we all wanted to try this but didn't each want a whole bowl of it, so we ordered 3 of them and they were nice enough to split it into 6 separate cups. This was not my favorite because it had a bit of bitter aftertaste -Croquettes - we ordered one smoked ham and one pork sausage. Each order comes with 4 croquettes, so it was a good amount to just try it out. I liked the pork sausage one. The smoked ham was a little too smoky for me -Pica Pau Veal (Mustard Sauce, Cucumber Pickle, Garlic, Basil & Sweet Potato) - I'm not sure if I loved the mustard sauce. Perhaps it was too much of it. Maybe it would have been better if they left it as a dipping sauce on the side? The veal itself was really good though. It was so tender -Octopus Lagareiro's Style (Potato, Avocado, Sugar Snap Peas & Parsley) - this was one of my faves. Everything just tasted so fresh and the octopus so soft -Garlic Prawns - this was probably my other favorite dish of the meal. It was super garlicky and flavorful. I also like that they leave the heads on because that's the best part of the shrimp -Fried Codfish Pancakes - this comes topped with an egg yolk that they spread across the pancakes for you. It also comes with a side of chorizo and beans you're supposed to eat with the pancake. The pancake was just okay. I wasn't a huge fan of the texture. I also wish there was more chorizo with the beans -Tuna à Café (Jerusalem Artichoke, Ginger, Shallot, Chives, Egg, Black Garlic, Kale, Worcestershire Sauce e Togarashi) -this was a nice dish. I liked the plantain chips (?) it came with. It was a unique twist

For drinks, they have some pretty interesting cocktails. They have your classics but they also have some house special ones. I had the Speachless (Infusion of Vodka and Rhubard, Apricot Liqueur, Rhubarb & Lime) and hubby had the Pink Starburst (Plantation Fiji, Pink Dragon fruit and Rhubard Shrub & Lime). While I probably wouldn't order either of them again, it was unique and I appreciate that.

Overall, we had a great meal and we were all stuffed. Definitely a good restaurant if you want to try out some unique/fresh dishes (and that are super...

as a restaurant owner and working in restaurant for 15+ years I experienced some of the most rudest and most unprofessional behaviour I’ve ever seen here and I truly hope the owners see this to improve their staff because hífen is such a great restaurant and with a good vibe and good atmosphere.

At first we were treated a by a very kind and lovely hostess who said we could stand outside for wine and dessert. While outside I noticed a two seated window table on the upper deck. I went inside and asked if we could sit up there and the kind waitress said it’s only for dinner but after I said we will order dessert and wine and asked to check if there were no bookings she looked and smiled and said it was available. She kindly told us to go upstairs.

We were seated and in such a good mood and vibe and unfortunately was greeted by a waitress with an extremely sour look at on her face after I ordered the wine and dessert. She said nothing but came back two minutes later to inform that it’s only for dinner (no point in even saying that when already bringing the wine) and when I said I already explained the waitress downstairs we were only ordering dessert and wine I literally got a straight up death stare from this person and got an extremely sour reply back.

As she left I noticed her chat with others of the staff to attempt to remove us.

She came back a second time but this time to try to remove us (we literally only order one wine each and one dessert - 20 minutes maximum we will be there) but then immediately back tracked her decision when I informed her again that we were told it was fine to sit here and confronted her unprofessional but attempting to kick us out after already seated….

She then said “oh it’s fine with me if you stay - but management doesn’t want you to sit there”…after all that? Yea right. She literally came back a second time JUST to tell us that we can’t sit here again ? What’s the point of that ? Why bother saying anything at all ?

Honestly everything would have been fine and we would have been gone in under 15-20 min. There was no other table booked. The kind lady downstairs already informed us it was free and available.

It made me and my girlfriend feel sooooooooo extremely uncomfortable and unwanted at a restaurant that I have visited frequently and had such great experiences at. We wanted to leave immediately but maybe that was her plan all long. So gross.

Completely disrespectful and unprofessional. Good job at making your customers feel so unwanted and...

Quick review:

I recommend the restaurant’s food, but for those who are doing walk-ins, maybe choose a different place for better, more immediate service and for here to make a reservation in advance instead. You will desire at least two hours to dine here.

Detailed review:

Although the food and drinks are phenomenal, I cannot give this restaurant a full 5 stars due to its service. I ordered a single meal and received it much later than a large group of people who arrived about 15 minutes after I did. Additionally, I had ordered bread along with my course, and it never came. Due to the staff always being busy, I didn’t have the chance to ask for my bread again until I finished my meal and had to leave for an appointment.

An odd circumstance I witnessed was the mixologist picking up one of my napkins and using it to wipe down another customer’s drink, as I was sitting at the bar and he was preparing in front of me. I believe he had thought that this napkin was clean, but it was too late when I noticed, as he was finishing wiping down the drink and immediately deposited the napkin in the trash. The lack of cleanliness and attention to detail from that bothered me. I feel bad for whomever received the drink.

I believe the issues lie within the short amount of staff, and I wonder if things would have been different had I had a reservation for dinner rather than lunch. It didn’t help that their kitchen closed after I finished my meal, so I had to leave soon nonetheless.

I’d like to try to come back again, and with a reservation, because once again: I feel as though my experience would be different, and better well-serviced. The staff were friendly, but in short numbers. I was recommended a meal (with bread, but came without) and it was small, but perfect. I wish I had time for more, but once again, their kitchen had closed by the time I finished the meal. It was odd, too, because the waitress had recommended I order dessert and even another meal if I was still hungry… yet how could I if the kitchen is closed? The staff had also kept bumping into me at the bar and into others, and it became somewhat frustrating when one is taking a sip from their drink and has to fumble to make sure they don’t spill it. I understand they’re in a hurry, but it didn’t help that there wasn’t even an apology.

That’s a small pet peeve, so I kept it at the end of the review. I hope you have a better experience than I did, because the food and drinks were genuinely the best part of...