Katsu Asian Bistro — Restaurant in Lisbon

It seems that this restaurant has just opened, and while the décor hasn’t fully settled in yet (the minimalist look makes it feel a bit like an IKEA cafeteria), the food has already put it on the map as a must-try.

From the moment you walk in, the open kitchen catches your eye. You see the chefs at work, which adds a sense of honesty and excitement to the experience. Even better, the two chefs — who I imagine are also the owners — not only prepared our food but also came out to serve us and explain it directly. That personal touch gave the whole evening a warm, genuine feel, as if you were being welcomed into their own kitchen.

We began with the smashed cucumber salad, which was an unexpected highlight — crunchy, refreshing, and an umami bomb that carried layers of flavor well beyond its simplicity. From there, the hamachi tataki arrived, perfectly seared on the outside, silky inside, and full of fresh, clean flavor.

Next came a sushi roll with eel and oyster mushrooms, which was, simply put, to die for. The smoky sweetness of the eel pairs perfectly with the earthy depth of the mushrooms, lifted by a very well-balanced hint of truffle. It was one of those dishes you immediately want to order again.

The star, of course, was the Katsu Sando (thus the name), offered in both chicken and cod versions. The chicken sando, to my surprise, is made with chicken thighs, which are juicy, flavorful, and stay incredibly tender inside their golden, crunchy coating. The cod sando offers a lighter take, with flaky fish that pairs beautifully with the crisp breading. Both are excellent — comforting, satisfying, and worth coming back for.

We paired everything with some really good sake, which rounded out the meal beautifully.

If there was one drawback, it was the pacing. The dishes came out a bit too quickly — we would have preferred to linger and space things out more. Later, when we decided to order a second round of those amazing sandos, the kitchen was already closed. In Portugal, where people typically eat late, 10:30 still feels kind of early on a Saturday night, so we left with the sense that service was a little rushed. I think the chefs had somewhere else to be that night.

That said, prices are very fair for the quality, and the food itself is excellent. So while Katsu Asian Bistro might still look a little barebones inside, the food and service already shine. With chef-owners cooking in front of you and serving at the table, it feels personal and authentic in a way that’s rare to find.

Not bad for a joint that’s been open only...

Ah I really wanted to like the place, however not enough good things to make me come back. I hope that they manage to improve on a few things, maybe it's just growing pains.

What they got right: Friendly staff that was well trained Good menu length and interesting options Tableware was very nice

What they can improve on: The food flavour profiles were not balanced. The pineapple kimchi was too sweet, it had no fermented or spicy taste, which I would expect from kimchi. The tuna tataki was cooked very well, was almost beefy in taste, but the sauce lacked depth and flavor, no acid to balance out the sesame oil and heaviness of the tuna. The katsu sando was tasty but the batter on the chicken could be less eggy. The dumplings in the sauce were a let down, they were in a very creamy white sauce that lacked depth of flavour and was too creamy for a dumpling, again maybe something spicier, more acidy, or salty would be better. If it's a fusion dish then maybe that's ok, but it should be made clear that you are not getting Asian flavors from this dish.

The pricing of each dish is on the high side while the portion sizes are quite small. If it was a punch of flavours, this would not matter as much, but in the context of the dishes above, I don't think it provided true...

I really liked the restaurant; it's very beautiful and charming. The food is very good, and I loved the dining experience. But I give 0 stars for the service provided by a girl—I don't know the waitress's name, but she's completely unprofessional and doesn't care about people. We went there to have a good experience, but she managed to ruin everything. She forgot our orders and even went so far as to accuse us and even question us about why we ate something that was the wrong order. My sister is vegetarian, and she simply sent fish sushi to the table, and my sister ate it without knowing. This is very serious. What if my sister got sick? We even called her to remind her of another order, and she said we didn't order anything else, and she simply turned her back on us , and left without returning to our table. Unfortunately, it was our first time at the restaurant, and her service was horrible. I think that she have to pay more attention to the guest on the room and very carefully with the order.

To finish my comment, the food was...