A Licorista e O Bacalhoeiro — Restaurant in Lisbon

🐙The grilled sardines & octopus that locals rave about🍴

While staying in Baixa, Lisbon, I followed a local tip and found A Licorista e O Bacalhoeiro around the corner from my apartment. I was dining by myself, craving fresh seafood and Portuguese soul—and this place delivered good value, fresh ingredients, and friendly service.

Founded in 1917, this spot combines two historic Lisbon houses: O Bacalhoeiro (once a codfish shop) and A Licorista (a liquor store, Companhia Portugueza de Licores). In 1997, they were joined into one restaurant that honors both heritages. 

I ordered grilled sardine with rice and salad. For starter, octopus, that the waiter placed on the table. Both were tasty: the sardine fresh and perfectly grilled, the rice salad light, and the octopus had great texture.

Here are their top dishes that others rave about (and what you should consider trying): • Bacalhau à Brás — classic shredded salt cod with onions, eggs, and potatoes, beloved comfort-food in Lisbon.  • Bacalhau à Minhota — bacalhau served “Minhota style” with onions, maybe cream or sauce, potatoes; a standout version here.  • Octopus salad / Polvo salad — tender octopus with olive oil and sides; a great starter or lighter meal. 

Pros 👍 • Historic & charming setting with a strong sense of Lisbon tradition.  • Fresh seafood & well-prepared dishes; my sardine & octopus were solid. • Knowledgeable staff who know the menu and can suggest dishes. • Reasonably priced for central Lisbon; portions satisfying. 

Cons 👎 • Outdoor / street area around the restaurant can be noisy or feel busy. • Sometimes popular items sell out (e.g. certain fish or seafood rice) if you come late.  • Some starters are automatically brought (and charged) if you don’t decline politely. 

Key Takeaways: • Good value and it’s local. • Don’t leave without trying a bacalhau dish (Bacalhau à Brás or à Minhota are musts). • Ask staff what is freshest today—they often have catch-of-day options. • Arrive early (just after opening) for better picks and fewer crowds.

Dining at A Licorista e O Bacalhoeiro turned a solo meal into a warm taste with simple dishes, sincere service, and flavors you’ll want to come...

By far our worst meal in Portugal. Arrived on time for our 7.30pm booking which we arranged via WhatsApp. 1st guy shook head and mumbled no and walked away. 2nd guy looked our way so we showed him our booking. After some confusion and blank looks from a couple of other service staff, we were finally shown our seats.

While we look at the menu, guy plonked croquettes and octopus salad on the table without a word. We understood the practice so told him we didn’t need them. Taken away, ok, all good now.

They have a cod house specialty so we asked how it is cooked. He simply pointed to the tv monitor and told us to watch. But the clip was more on the croquette making process. Never mind we decided to order something else.

Prawns in garlic sauce was decent but we found the cod rather tough so still had a big chunk untouched. While we were taking break from chewing, they removed our plates and cutlery without saying a single word. We let them because we didn’t plan on continuing to eat. We had drinks to finish. Guy brought the bill and plonked it on the table. By now we get the idea they are trying to clear us out so hurried through our drinks and paid up. The same thing happened to the table next to us.

Never have we been made to feel so unwelcome in Portugal. We read the good reviews before we came, but unfortunately, we did not experience anything good here. On the contrary we felt slighted and came out feeling our dinner was...

This place is absolutely overrated. Yes it is true the food is cheap but still way too expensive for what you actually get. If you really DON’T care about great flavor and fresh fish this place might be ok. But if you want to eat real food I suggest to not ever enter this restaurant! The waiter who served us was very rude. He tried to be funny but he was super offending. Kept on making a lot of misplaced jokes. The part which was really disappointing was the fact that whilst we were still waiting for half of our starters he just came and removed all of our plates because the main dish was being served. Since when do waiters remove plates before people even finish their dish??? and why don’t you ask first? Usually people finish their dish and the waiter informs the chef the next course is good to go. The worst and most horrific part was when they dropped fresh fish on the floor and placed it back without even washing it, in the cooler, at the front of the store! Everybody in the restaurant has seen this horrific mistake. And you should have seen people’s shocked faces. Nobody enjoyed their fish anymore... and let’s be honest No real chef would ever accept this behaviour from their waiters. Food is key and a chef who loves his job would never ever serve this. Especially when you drop it on the floor in a busy restaurant you throw it out! Never ever will I go back to this restaurant. If you do enter.......