Taberna Madeira — Restaurant in Funchal

I try to avoid negative reviews based on a single experience, but this one was so unacceptable I feel compelled to warn others.

We had a reservation for 20:00 and placed our order fairly quickly. Even though we already had some dishes in mind, we asked the waiter for recommendations – he suggested the Rump Tenderloin with tartare sauce and the tuna belly with peppers dressing. We also ordered sautéed squid, migas of sweet potatoes, and fried corn, along with a bottle of wine.

After 45 minutes of waiting, the food started arriving. The first disappointment – the waiter casually informed us that the fried corn we ordered “no longer existed.” Instead, without asking, they brought fries we never ordered. When we pointed this out, the waiter initially tried to claim we had ordered them. Only when we reminded him about the fried corn did he quietly take the fries away, offering no apology or explanation.

Then came the main courses. The sautéed squid tasted boiled and was practically inedible. No seasoning, no flavor – just rubber. Still, we didn’t want to make a scene.

The Tenderloin arrived but was impossible to cut, let alone chew. And the tuna belly? Overcooked to the point of being grey, complete with bones and scales. It was beyond disappointing. Again, we stayed polite, not wanting to embarrass the staff.

When another waiter cleared our half-full plates, she casually asked if we enjoyed the meal. We mentioned it wasn’t great but left it at that. No apology, no effort to make up for the experience.

To top it off, when the bill arrived (a handwritten scrap of paper, not an actual receipt), we noticed an extra dish had been added. When confronted, the waiter immediately admitted it and knocked €5 off the bill, clearly aware of what he had done. It felt like a quick way to brush it under the rug and avoid further discussion.

This whole experience felt like a deliberate scam targeting tourists. They know you’re on vacation and won’t make a fuss. I’ve left countless reviews and only write negative ones when I believe a place is intentionally trying to deceive people.

Taberna Madeira is a classic tourist trap. They survive on misleading high ratings and tired, outdated tricks. In 2025, with people spending their hard-earned money and precious time, businesses like this should not exist.

Avoid it – even if you’re starving.

P.S. : We didn’t take pictures of the food because I wasn’t planning on leaving this negative review until they even tried to...

We were so impressed by our first visit that we decided to come back on our final night.

Unfortunately, the second time around, the service was… to be improved.

Good to know:

Both times we went, there were plenty of tables available. Maybe we were lucky but I’m pretty sure you don’t need a reservation! Bring cash! Double-check your bill 💸

From a food perspective, it doesn’t get any better: each plates we tried were perfectly seasoned and cooked as it should. You can tell that they have talented chefs that care about serving premium food in the kitchen!

On our first visit, the owner personally took care of our table and we received perfect service and great recommendations.

The second time around, we felt like the service was… very unprofessional and cold. The waiter argued with us as he thought we were taking too many plates and said that he would hate for us to waste food… After a day of hiking and fasting, we politely explained our point of view and that we’d be fine but… he pushed back. In the end, we got our plates but with an “extra side” of attitude and laughers from his colleagues that also didn’t seem to agree.

One last thing… On our first day, we paid by credit card despite a sign saying that their machine was broken - the owner said that it was an old sign. On our second visit, we had to argue with the waiter that we knew the machine was not broken and just a business decision and he still insisted they couldn’t accept it. We had to go to an ATM, pay a fee and come back to pay our bill. Not professional at all and it lead to a very poor customer experience.

Overall, I have mixed feelings about recommending this place. If you have the chance to be served by the owner, then it’s a no-brainer: you should absolutely eat there, this is a 5 stars restaurant.

On the other hand, if you’re served by unprofessional staff, you might enjoy the food but… not so much the experience, hence the average rating.

PS: Always double-check your bill. They forgot to bring us a plate and we were charged for it. We only realized back at...

I was here in January where my partner and I ordered some meat dishes. One of them was a pepper steak. We asked for a medium cook. When we got it, it was very rare, almost raw at some parts. We called the waitress to tell her it was too raw. She answered rudely saying they could cook it more if that is what I like. Implying that I was being a nuisance, and that everything was fine from their perspective. It was not. We simply wanted it medium, as we asked for in the beginning. What followed were a bunch of interactions with this young waitress who was just rude and quite unfriendly. She seemed mad. Quite the contrast to the older waiter (maybe the owner?) who was helpful when we arrived.

At the end when we wanted to pay, they came down with the bill and decided to tell us then, that their card machine was not working. Again, rudely. At this point I was fed up with the waitress. Why wait all this time with giving this information. Like, wtf. She told us that there was an ATM nearby, where we could withdraw some cash. My girlfriend wanted to go alone, but it was late in the evening so I went with her. The ATM was just down the street. When we were withdrawing money, i noticed that one of the waiters had followed us, to check that we were not running away from the bill. He tried to hide himself, but he did a poor job. When we turned the corner I could see he had run back quickly to the restaurant to hide himself. Which just made the whole situation absurd. Like. You tell us literally when we get the bill that we cant pay by card, and then you follow us around like we are thieves in the night.

The food was decent, but the service was horrible and the bill situation was quite ridiculous. Made the whole...