Taberna Trovador — Restaurant in Guimarães

We went 2x to this restaurant. The first time we didn't book but the waiter said that we could have free a table for just 50 min. All good, because we only wanted to have a quick bite! It was a fast and efficient service. Everything was great so we went for a second time.

This time i did a last minute booking. The host said on the phone that they only had free tables outside... The weather was good, so no problem. We arrived at the restaurant and said to the waiter that we had made a reservation and he put us at random table outside. Later the host/manager came to our table and asked if we had a reservation. We confirmed that we had and he asked us if we didn't mind changing tables, bc they had big group coming and they needed the table we were at. We didn't mind, so we moved! No big group showed up the entire time we were there!

Then we made our request, which included roasted chorizo and bread. The waiter brought the roasted chorizo and it was disapointing bc i thought it was going to be roasted at the table. The waiter explained that it was prohibited, even thought i saw being done inside the restaurant on a table next to our the first we were there. The chorizo was dry and burnt... and the bread was missing in action. I also asked for some ketchup and mayo for the french fries... The waiter said the they didn't have on the restaurant, even thought we asked for the same thing on the first time and got it! The rest of the food was just OK...

Going back to the restaurant for the second time was a huge letdown... The place has clearly...

Given the reviews, I was very excited about trying this place. Unfortunately, it did not reach my expectations. We booked a day in advance, which perhaps was too last minute, but our reservation was accepted. When we got there, we were taken to a table near the bar (which it would be fine, if the back of my partner's chair wasn't hit often by waiters coming in and out of the bar to serve food). It was also near the toilets which is not ideal. As mentioned above, the reservation was last minute but I would have preferred if Taberna Trovador had declined as opposed to what happened.

After we sat, we were informed that we had to give up the table after 1 hour and a half. I was not informed of this at the time of the booking and found it peculiar as it never happened to me in Portugal. We opted for petiscos and these were good but not as good as some of the reviews suggested. The rojões were dry but the pork cheek was very tasty. That's why the 3 stars for the food. I live near Guimarães and it is a place I will visit often but, unfortunately, this is not a place I will be...

This place is what one dreams of as a tourist. They don’t pay you too much attention if you wait. So asking when you need another glass of wine I’d recommend, but that’s our failing as foreigners. They kept producing dishes. The wine was gorgeous and served in really nice glasses. The food was really lovely too. The rest of the tables were filled with locals having great times. At the end of the meal they said it was cash only. I only had €20, so had to go and get money. I asked for the bill to see how much I needed and it came to €17. That’s for a big basket of bread, home made terrine, I think , two legs of some bird(not chicken), fried cod, black pudding, a pork sandwich and two massive glasses of gorgeous red wine. I went to 141? I think, the night before, because the Taberna was full. Microwave food and worse wine in smaller servings. Don’t push the locals out because they’re this places life blood, but if you’re lucky enough to get a table, be nice, be respectful, be humble and be thankful. This is a 6 star experience. This is why Western Europeans...