Restaurante Maria Rio — Restaurant in Coimbra

Recommended by our host. Easily the best meal experience we had in Coimbra. Felt like we were having food prepared in a family kitchen.

FOOD: 5.0. Chose 3 petisco dishes for two: 5.0: Octopus salad. Outstanding. Not only was the octopus excellent, but we finally were able to have robust peppery arugula in Portugal. 4.5: Dogfish with (I think) polenta and soft egg 4.0: Legumes à Brás

WINE: 3.5: House green wine. Pleasant on a summer evening.

DESSERT food and drinks: 5.0: Premiado à Rio: portion was quite large. Local specialty dessert that hit the spot on a summer evening. Not too sweet. Heavenly. 5.0: Amarginha: Local almond liqueur, on ice. Wonderfully refreshing, and not too sweet. Also heavenly. 4.0: Tawny Port.

AMBIANCE: 5.0. Simple and intimate, with open door looking out over river. Very comfortable.

SERVICE: 5.0. Amiable and very considerate. And -- unlike many restaurants in Portugal -- in reaction to our US credit card, the credit card machine did not present the two-trick-questions designed to earn the restaurant a commission by doing a disadvantageous (to us) exchange rate to dollars; rather, it simply...

Zufall" – das ist das magische Wort, das unsere Portugal-Reise in ein Comedy-Spektakel verwandelte. Eigentlich wollten wir ja in ein schickes Gourmet-Tempel, aber als Hundebesitzer mit einer kleinen Westi-Dame an der Leine, sind wir ja bekanntlich eingeschränkt. Unsere Füße brannten wie zwei Grillhähnchen nach einem Marathonlauf durch Coimbra, und wir waren kurz davor, unsere Schuhe weg zu schmeißen, um barfuß zu gehen. Und dann... Trommelwirbel... trafen wir auf Maria Rio! Ein Schild mit "Hunde verboten" funkelte uns entgegen wie ein rotes Tuch vor einem Stier. Aber Maria, die gute Seele, sah unseren kleinen Westi-Engel an und verfiel sofort in totale Verzückung. "Natürlich dürfen Sie eintreten!", rief sie, als hätte unser Hund gerade den Friedensnobelpreis gewonnen. Das Essen? Ach ja, das war auch da. Irgendwie. Zwischen all dem Hundeknuddeln und Marias "Oh, ist der aber süß!"-Gesängen geriet es fast zur Nebensache. Aber hey, wir hatten ein nettes Ambiente, einen braven Hund, der unter dem Tisch lag und heimlich Krümel klaute, und ein Essen, das so gut war, dass wir fast vergaßen, wie sehr unsere Füße schmerzten. Danke, Maria Rio, für diesen unfreiwilligen Comedy-Abend! Wir kommen wieder – mit noch mehr Hundeleckerlis und vielleicht sogar einem Clown, um das Ganze noch zu toppen!

"Coincidência" - esta é a palavra mágica que transformou a nossa viagem a Portugal num espetáculo de comédia. Na verdade, queríamos ir a um templo gourmet de luxo, mas como donos de cāo com um pequeno Westi à trela, somos notoriamente limitados. Os nossos pés ardiam como dois frangos assados depois de uma maratona de corrida na cidade de Coimbra e estávamos quase a deitar fora os sapatos para andar descalços. E então... rufar de tambores... deparámo-nos com a Maria Rio! Um sinal a dizer "Proibido cães" olhava para nós como um pano vermelho em frente a um touro. Mas Maria, a boa alma, olhou para o nosso anjinho Westi e ficou imediatamente em êxtase total. "Claro que podem entrar!", exclamou, como se o nosso cão tivesse acabado de ganhar o Prémio Nobel da Paz. A comida? Ah, sim, também lá estava. De alguma forma. Entre todos os mimos do cão e os cânticos da Maria "Oh, ele é tão giro!", quase se tornou uma questão menor. Mas, ei, tivemos um ambiente agradável, um cão bem comportado deitado debaixo da mesa e a roubar migalhas em segredo, e uma refeição tão boa que quase nos esquecemos de como nos doíam os pés. Obrigado, Maria Rio, por esta noite de comédia não intencional! Voltaremos - com mais guloseimas para cães e talvez até com um palhaço...

Really bad service. I made a reservation that was confirmed, they asked me to wait for the table for 15 minutes and than they told me that they would now give the table to someone else. As I was alone they certainly wanted to give to table to a couple to make more money.

I have to reply, because this is not what happened. I booked the table around 15 minutes before I arrived at your restaurant. You acknowledged the reservation and asked me to wait for one specific table where other guest where about to leave. After making me wait for 15 minutes, while I was observing the guest leaving and the table being prepared, you told me that you would now give the table to someone else. You did not offer me to wait for...