Restaurante Gavião Novo — Restaurant in Funchal

We ate there yesterday evening, straight off our flight. We asked nicely it they had a table. We were told they needed to check if the chef was still accepting orders as it was 9:50, but were shown a table. The waiter than came with the menus and said very abruptly that we needed to order quickly as people had homes to get back to. We had literally just asked if it was OK, and would have happily looked elsewhere had the answer been no. We then ordered food and made it very clear my partner had a serious nut allergy and asked if the caprese salad was OK. Normally it is, but some places like to throw pesto over them which is not. We were rudely told it was a salad. Of course, but persisted that they checked. The waiter went away to place the order and came back with drinks and when we asked, said the kitchen had said it was fine. The food came and there was a green drizzle on the salad, again we asked to check that was OK. We were told it was provincial herbs in oil. My partner took 1 bite, started tingling and realised it was nut based. We then called the manager over and were told it was a walnut pesto. We had to rush off to get emergency medication. Absolutely ridiculous, completely ruined the start of the holiday, all due to lazyness and lack of caring. Avoid at all costs! The food was very very average from the bit I ate of my meal and the service was poor and didn't care about...

There are many places to eat in Funchal and deciding which one to visit is difficult without a personal recommendation but we tried Gaviao Novo and we were not disappointed. A wonderful menu with a varied but sensibly sized selection. We wanted to eat local food and we were treated to clams and limpets as a starter and as we couldn't decide whether to try the Parrot fish or Trigger fish, we were offered half of each for both of us! Perfect. We tried to go back on our last night but it was a Sunday and sadly it was closed and we had a much less successful meal in a restaurant further down the road. It was not a cheap meal but it was not a rip-off either. Exactly what we wanted and I would strongly recommend this restaurant for anyone wanting to enjoy a good quality meal using local ingredients. Staff...

It’s a very luxe place. It is expensive but it is 110% worth it. The house wines, white and red, are very smooth, the food is amazing. I got the seafood rice and it was amazing. It’s a portion for two and you get 2 and a half plates worth, the fish to rice ratio is perfectly balanced, not too much rice just to try and fill you up. The squid, muscles, and the rice were cooked to perfection, not a fishy taste off it at all. The service was sublime. We were made feel so welcome and taken care of all of the time, we were never left with an empty plate or an empty glass. The only thing was we were outside and were little flies, but I don’t think that’s in control of the restaurant. If you’re coming to Madeira, a seafood fanatic and don’t mind spending an extra bit, definitely recommend...