Anta Bar — Restaurant in Lisbon

APPETISER SCAM

At first this small bar seemed somewhat appealing. We had initially intended to just browse the menu but were seated by a staff member and given one single menu to view. With the singular menu we also had a small tray of appetisers and a basket of bread placed before us. The starters were just mediocre. Nothing to rave about.

-the menu is misleading in the way it doesn’t specify how the small (emphasis on small) appetiser is priced. -the waiter that was serving us was hard to understand and mumbled the following to me and only me: “you pay for what you eat” -this was confusing as there was no clarification with what this statement meant and the way it was almost whispered into my ear.

-following this we ordered some beverages and the menu was swiftly whisked away by a waiter. -it was at this stage we decided we would only have one round of drinks and eat some of the small appetiser.

-as we consumed our drinks we nibbled away at the appetiser. -it was not long before we had finished and intended to move along so we asked for the bill to pay.

-a waiter moved out with a pen and paper and began his thorough inspection of the appetiser tray. -he poked around and inspected every single inch of the tray that we laid our fingers on. -in total we were appraised ~€21 for the appetiser alone. -upon disputing/questioning this we were shown the final cost breakdown. -charged €4.80 for the butter we spread on the bread was only the start of the insanity. -somehow this minuscule, mediocre meal was priced higher than than most main course meals in the area.

TL;DR -the staff at Anta Bar are sly and deceptive, overcharging and abusing their appetiser scam. -DO NOT EAT HERE but if you unfortunately do get sucked in, the least you can do is save yourself €21 by not touching...

We went for dinner on Tuesday, and had SUCH a great dinner and a great experience with the family that owns the restaurant.. that we had to come back Wednesday for Lunch! We were looking for an authentic Portuguese meal from a Portuguese family. The place we had originally looked at online was closed and we stumbled on Anto! It was to our surprise one of our best culinary experiences in Portugal. First we met Miguel (the son) and he was such a cool guy who was kind and explained us the menu and how the food on the table (like the tapas you would see in Spain but if you have been to Portugal you know that’s how it is here) you only pay if you eat it. The first day for dinner we ordered, octopus salad, sea bream fish, the small clams (in white wine & garlic) and garlic prawns. On Wednesday when we went back, I ordered grilled octopus ( AMAZING!!) grilled cod fish (AMAZING), grilled salmon, and one of those specialties, fresh caught local portuguese Sardines. Oo we were also looking for this desert we saw once on a menu translated into “Camel Drool”. We finally found it. My husband and I travel to Chile and we both said it tasted exactly like Manjar. (condensed milk boiled on the stove that turns into something like dulce de leche but MUCH better than Dulce de Leche as we know it in California) ! I would 100% recommend going to this restaurant over any other in the area..if you want me are looking for an authentic family owned restaurant that cooks delicious Portuguese meal! It WILL NOT disappoint .. 🩷 thank you Miguel and Alberto for making our experience in Lisbon absolutely wonderful from your delicious food, great service, and...

Food was mediocre at best. Head waiter did not speak English, but that is not an excuse to not smile, welcome you to the restaurant, & make you feel at home -- rude is too nice of a word. He seemed annoyed we did not choose to eat the bread and olives, etc. that was brought out to us. Ordered the veal cutlet, another waiter who spoke some English took care of us, he asked the same head person if it was still on the menu, said it was, took the order, came back to tell me they were out. I settled for the "pork beef" dish (no beef in it, by the way) -- tough pieces of meat with grizzle on it, the 3 pieces were all cooked differently. Came with rice & chips (I could have gotten this at the chippy around the corner). Out of all the places we chose to eat right in the neighborhood, we couldn't have made a worse choice. You get what you pay for. No one thanked us for coming in, no "Obrigado", this same person just took our card. Go elsewhere, it cannot be much worse than Anta Bar. To the business owner: have this person learn how to make diners feel more welcoming, & try smiling, like you really enjoy your job. If this person WAS the owner, you have a lot to learn about treating your customers better than you did us. Good...