Macguls-o Paquistanês Restaurante Lda — Restaurant in Coimbra

We last visited this restaurant a few years ago. We were not overly impressed then, but decided enough time had passed for there possibly to have been some improvement.

Sadly, this was not the case and, in fact, this was less enjoyable. The problem with our first visit centred around the size of the portions which we felt were on the small side for the price charged. Now it seems the portion size is even less and we were struggling to find any protein at all in a couple of the dishes. All the dishes were under seasoned and my personal problem was the amount of sugar in the dishes! My partner agreed but, to be fair, our two companions said they enjoyed the meal. I suppose I should have paid more attention to the menu which categorised the dishes as mild, medium or hot and, in the case of the mild dishes, also stated, "no added sweetener". There was the warning right in front of me as it inferred that the medium and hot dishes were sweetened. Why, heaven only knows, but this level of sweetening was well over the top and ruined everything for me.

Onion bahjis we know come in all forms but these flat discs of were of a very un-onion like matter. There was little seasoning and an abundance of grease. The pappadoms, roti and naan were fine as was the rice, but that's about it.

So different was this to our first visit, it's almost as if the establishment has changed hands. We will not be returning...

Food is average and not spicy as expected.

The location, near the river, is amazing, the room have a really cool painting in the wall of the old city of Coimbra, where you can see how the city was. The ceiling is also amazing.

The room is very cold in the winter and you might need to wear a jacket if you go for dinner. No air conditioning system spotted.

Prices are a bit high for a Portuguese restaurant and the portions are very small for the price. (Comparing with other restaurants in Portugal)

Over all the experience was...

Very disappointing. We ordered a medium Lamb Vindaloo, a Spicy Chicken Tikka Masala, and garlic naan for about €23, plus the Uber Eats delivery charge. Meat was cooked well, and sauces were reasonably flavoured, but the Vindaloo was thin and mild, the tikka masala had an odd thick texture and barely any spiciness. Rice portion was a little small, and dishes seemed to be made by adding the sauce to the meat rather than having the meat cook in the sauce. Considering the lack of spice, rice, and mediocre quality, I would give...