Farès — Restaurant in Lisbon

the size of the portions and the price of the food is an insult to any portuguese. and this is not a fine dining.

any local restaurant (in portugal or in the middle east) if you pay a couple money for 'bread' there's a basket of bread, not a single unit of it as a sample. and the bread didn't look fresh and wasn't super tasty (how come for a pita bread!?)

they call a main to a fish dish that cost's 18€ (ok..) with a size of a starter. super tiny fillet of a aquaculture fish payed as a hefty prize. in a good local restaurant that's a full main dish as a balanced meal - with carbs and veggies. this dish had - i counted - 15 green pees and a foam.. can you call this a main dish??

this kind of menus (with almost no carbs) are made for the client to have to order a lot of dishes and still to pay the sides as extra. it's just those places that are a money making machine only, no customer satisfaction. for many tourists this can look 'ok', compared to what they pay in central europe.

I'm not - by far - a big eater nowadays, but after paying 40€ per person, we were still hungry and didn't had a balanced meal. As a local I felt pretty bad after my meal to support this kind of business.

the staff...

Went there with a friend who had previously enjoyed the food and recommended the place. Unfortunately, we left before ordering due to the service experience.

Upon arrival, we were asked to wait outside by Rodrigo, because he “needed space to circulate,” which we did. The restaurant wasn’t particularly full, yet we were informed of strict time limits for our stay. Our assigned table was near the entrance, and as cold air kept coming in, we asked if we could move to the less exposed table, empty next to us. The response was, “That table will have someone there by 9:30.” When we asked if that specific table had been reserved, the answer was vague: “We don’t know, maybe.”

The whole interaction felt unnecessarily rigid, and it was difficult to understand why flexibility wasn’t an option. After reading other reviews mentioning similar experiences, particularly from fellow Portuguese diners, I couldn’t help but wonder if this was a pattern. Regardless, the lack of hospitality was disappointing.

We decided to leave and ended up having a wonderful meal at Rumi, a similar restaurant nearby, where we were greeted with warm smiles and...

As you enter Fares, the establishment immediately strikes you with welcoming and charming service, very intimate interior that creates the perfect environment for enlightening conversation with a partner or a group of friends, and an anticipation of that delicious creamy hummus and haloumi cheese.

They do have excellent cocktails (and I am usually a wine drinker) which I highly recommend you to try. The selection of drinks is light, well-thought, and high quality. I tried a cocktail with fresh rosemary and tequila and it was fresh, interesting, nicely decorated and just delicious.

Hummus and pita are very fresh and delicate, and appear to be homemade. And what can be better than a warm pita right out of oven?! This time we tried hummus with braised lamb and let me tell you... Looking very unpretentious, this dish is true highlight. If you eat lamb, don't skill it here. Soft, juicy, falling of the bones, bursting with a myriad of subtle middle eastern herbs and spices... I'll be coming...