A Cevicheria — Restaurant in Lisbon

We came to eat here a little over a week ago and I wanted to think about the experience before leaving a review.

Firstly, I was extremely excited about coming here because the reviews were amazing and because I love ceviche. I knew before hand it would be a bit more of an experience and wanted to do the tasting menu.

I'll start with the good. The pisco sour was great, and most of the food was delicious.

The bad. The tasting course was 5 plates plus dessert, it took us 3 hours to eat. We sat down at 8:15, and left at 11:15. We ordered the tasting menu and after about 15 min we got served something that was not part of the 5 courses, it was some cornbread, nuts, and sauces which were all really good. I thought that was a nice touch to give out a pre-course for free (note this was not the case). Once finished it took another 15 min until the next course, we tried eating slow but they are small courses so we probably took 5-10 min eating each course. We had to wait 20/30 min between courses, we actually started to get hungry between courses.

We also ordered a bottle of wine, after pouring the server asked if we would like to keep it chilled which we said yes to and they took it away to an ice box behind the counter. We thought neat! we need the table space. The problem was when we finished our glasses it took us about 15 min to flag someone to bring our wine back, we even had another course and were waiting so we could drink wine while we ate it.

By the time we got through the dinner we were still hungry just because of the amount of time we were there, We would have loved to be there for an hour and a half. We had 3 tables turn over next to us during our stay, all who just ordered 2-3 things off the menu which came out super fast. It seems the wait times were just an issue with the tasting menu.

The first 3 courses really were amazing, but the 4th was an octopus which was really tough and chewy, and the last course which had a quinoa base was really gummy.

When we got the bill the cornbread course was on the bill, we asked the server (different from who we ordered from) what it was and he said we were supposed to have been told it was an option (we weren't) so we asked for it to be removed which they did. Seemed a bit sneaky to me but could have been a mistake.

Overall the service ruined what would have been a nice meal. And for the price I would have expected...

With rather mixed reviews from extreme ends of the spectru., we went to A Cervicheria with an open mind but nonetheless high hopes.

We were very fortunate to be seated very quickly at 8pm when we arrived, as the restaurant was almost full and once seated, many more came. So this place is clearly popular!

The restaurant is small and built around the "bar" which is a great place to see the food prep.

English menus and English speaking staff helped a lot with food and drink recommendations. It is not an extensive menu, which is a good thing!

Starting with the pisco sour which they strongly recommended, the cocktail was very well balanced with a creamy texture but nice citrus to give it good character. The pisco is their own, which I think is a nice touch.

We began with the salmon ceviche and king crab dish (I forget the name!). The salmon ceviche was perfectly balanced without overpowering citrus. Nice chunks of fish with a nice foam to finish. The king crab was also nice, but it sat on a bed of squid ink potato that I felt competed a bit too much with the crab. With crab of this quality, I thought it would be better for it to stand out!

What surprised me was the fish, the pork belly sandwich. Pork belly can be a little overwhelming with the oily fattiness of the meat. However the guys here balanced this sandwich perfectly with cilantro, sweet onions...sublime. I was already full before I got to this point, and this sandwich still got me stuffing my face!

The staff were very attentive and helpful and the ambiance bright and fresh. Overall a very nice experience and pretty good food.

Clientele are clearly mostly visitors, but I did notice a few locals as well.

The reason it just misses its 5th star is the price. It is properly expensive! For 3 dishes , 2 cocktails, bread and water, expect to pay about 65-70 EUR! Good for 2 people. The pisco sour alone was 11Eur, which is really expensive for Lisbon.

I still recommend coming here, but the prices could be a little more accommodative. But given that it's still really popular, take it as a...

I recently visited Cevicheria in Lisbon, expecting an enjoyable dining experience, but it was nothing short of a disappointment from start to finish. To begin with, the portion sizes were absurdly small, especially considering the exorbitant prices. I understand that high-quality cuisine might come in smaller portions, but this felt more like a rip-off than a sophisticated meal. The dishes were so tiny that they barely left an impression on the plate, let alone on my appetite.

Not only were the portions minuscule, but the taste was equally underwhelming. For a place that supposedly specializes in ceviche, the flavors were bland, lacking any of the freshness or zing you'd expect from this type of cuisine. The ingredients seemed low-quality, and the fish didn’t have the fresh, delicate flavor you look forward to in ceviche—it tasted a bit off, almost like it had been sitting around too long. The balance of acidity and spice was entirely off, leaving the dishes either too sour or strangely dull.

To make matters worse, the service did nothing to improve the experience. The staff was inattentive and lacked the warmth or professionalism you'd expect from a restaurant with such high prices. For the amount they charge, you'd think they'd at least be willing to make sure the customers are happy with their meal, but it felt like we were barely acknowledged.

I left Cevicheria feeling completely unsatisfied, still hungry, and wondering why on earth anyone would recommend this place. The overall experience was frustrating, overpriced, and did not live up to the hype. There are far better dining options in Lisbon that offer better value, better flavors, and far better service. I would not recommend Cevicheria to anyone. Save your money and...