Chú-Chú — Restaurant in Lisbon

Chu Chu offers an enticing menu with dishes that showcase bold and balanced flavors. As Korean Americans, we bring a specific taste palette to every meal, and Chu Chu's offerings impressed us with their thoughtful preparation and unique combinations. While it's not typical to share plates at restaurants here, we chose to do so, allowing us to enjoy a wider variety of their delicious offerings.

The Food:

Vegetable Soup (Soup of the Day): This was a delightful surprise. While it had the yellow appearance of a cream of chicken soup, the flavor was entirely different--more akin to a rich cream of potato soup with various vegetables. The depth of flavor was outstanding, and it was the perfect warm, comforting dish. It was a wonderful start to the meal, especially after just leaving Morocco.

Veal Skewer Wrapped in Bacon: The veal was incredibly tender and juicy, with a texture reminiscent of perfectly cooked pork tenderloin. The flavor was impressive, and we paired it with sautéed vegetables, which complemented the veal beautifully. The vegetables--predominantly spinach with carrots and red bell peppers--were mild yet flavorful, likely cooked in beef fat.

Mixed Bread: This plate offered both toasted and fresh baguette halves. The fresh baguette was wonderfully chewy on the outside and pillowy soft on the inside--perfect for dipping into the soup and cleaning the bowl. The toasted bread, on the other hand, was overly hard and felt more like a large crouton, best softened by soaking in the soup.

Sweet Potato Fries: These were well-cooked and satisfying, a nice addition to round out the meal.

While we didn't try the desserts, the menu looked incredible, and we wished we had room to sample something sweet.

The Service:

The only drawback was the service. While the staff addressed our needs when we flagged them down, there were moments when we felt overlooked and lacked consistent attention. That said, the food came out quickly, which was appreciated.

Final Thoughts:

Chu Chu delivers thoughtfully crafted dishes with bold, satisfying flavors. The vegetable soup and veal skewer were particular standouts, with combinations that left a lasting impression. Sharing plates allowed us to sample more of the menu, and everything we tried exceeded expectations. Whether you're a local or a visitor, Chu Chu is well worth a visit for a flavorful and memorable...

This restaurant was recommended by our hotel and was full of locals when we were there, so I guess I had high expectations. The good: the wait staff was very attentive and helpful. The vinho verde was good. On the other hand, the food left a lot to be desired. I had the sardines, which were quite large--not what most Americans are used to eating from a tin--and pretty tasty. My wife had the bacalhau, which is codfish, preserved in salt. Unfortunately, salt was the only flavor it had. Like, I could already taste the salt before it even touched my tongue. I learned later that there's a process for removing the salt and restoring the fish to something resembling its "fresh" state. I had bacalhau somewhere else later in the week and didn't have this experience of overwhelming saltiness. I could probably forgive the salty fish, if the bread, at least, had been better. We ordered the box of bread which included a small, cold loaf of bread and several small slices of toast... which were very stale. Certainly not the most expensive item on the menu, but it seems like something that should be easy to get right. So many positive reviews, here, maybe we just caught them on...

Went there on Monday, the waitress, Joao I think, was super rude, felt like I was in a Parisian restaurant. Codfish was great, the humburgers were worse than at gas stations. The noise of the butcher cutting meat is unbearable. The food is a bit over price but ok for the neighborhood but the service really don’t pay off.

Edit: I was polite with the waitress and receive very rude service, hence why I felt the need to write this review. I can happily recommend historical restaurants in the area and I could tell other waitress had better matters. Now seems the owner saying that I have no respect and I don’t know what is a historical restaurant tells everything one should know about this place. Past results don’t tell current ones, I wouldn’t dare taking hamburger back, the guy was rude without complaints imagining complaining. There are plenty of great and historical, even older restaurantes in this area. And indeed paris is more expensive and for the same (bad service), but not the rule in Portugal, services here are excellent and in fact this place is a shame...