Loco — Restaurant in Lisbon

When we want to make a review on a Michelin restaurant I believe we should take our time. If not for any another reason, because you just paid 200 Eur per person :-) and you are supposed to experience something not ordinary. I’ll start with the environment and decoration. It’s a nice simple restaurant, nothing too fancy or surprising in terms of decoration. But I believe people are not looking for fancy stuff when they come here. They have one really nice detail, and that is the kitchen open to the room, so you get to see all-time the staff running around to prepare the food. That brings a nice dynamics to the place, so for me definitely a plus. Also this allows the customer to understand how much work these guys put on the preparation. Cooking people also brings food to the table, explaining what we are about to taste (makes sense, because there is no menu). On the staff, I must say they are really nice, friendly and available. The service I may say is excellent. Most of the staff are just young “kids”, but that is not necessary a bad thing. My only note on the staff is, due to a very demanding level of service, these “poor” guys are basically running all night to make the necessary. When I say running, it is literally running some times :-). In my opinion, despite the staff never allows the clients to realize their stress level when interacting with us, I felt that the stress was a little in the air. You feel it around you (as I said despite all efforts from the people not to show it), so it does not contribute for your comfort during the meal. In such place it would be expected to have a more calm atmosphere around you. The other thing I notice, on the down side, was the noise. The noise was really loud and in the end, after more than 2 hours, my head was exploding. Maybe I was unlucky. Now, coming to the most important part: the food. When I come to such places I expect to be surprised with different food experience, exotic dishes, outside the usual, etc. etc. Well, in that perspective LOCO achieve the goal. We actually eat different exotic food, or at least very different food preparation of some common goods. The only problem is… different is not necessarily good, and I must confess, from the around 20 things I tried (between starters, main, desserts, sides, etc.) I did not dislike anything (except one, because I don’t like Oysters, but that is a personal thing), I really liked 4 or 5, but the majority I found totally indifferent… meaning it did not bring me any especial feeling or sensations. Also, the type of goods used are not especially "noble", I mean, they are never using some super XPTO caviar, Black Diamond Truffles, shell fish from Alaska or Kobe meat :-)… I say this as a joke, but my point is that when we come to such places, it is also part of the experience to taste some unusual stuff. I know the LOCO philosophy is based precisely on that concept of using the season regional goods, etc etc, but I do not find this a plus, considering the expectations on the meal. So, when it comes to the food (and that is the major part in a restaurant) it is quiet disappointing and that’s the major reason for my lower classification (3/5). To finalize few things I must say in favor. They manage to keep a great pace on the meal, where during 2 hours there is not a single boring moment. Basically during two hours there is always something happening. So it is a “fun” entertainment experience and that is a plus. Also the wine list, for the restaurant level, does not “burn” your wallet with crazy prices, and that is respectable. Because I was driving, I could not take the wine menu experience, and that was a pity. To conclude I’m sorry for not giving more positive feedback. Please note it was not a frustrating experience, I did not regret to come, but honestly I expected more, mainly on...

This must be probably the hardest review I’ve ever written... It’s hard to choose where to start from, so let’s just start by the end: the conclusion – It was amazing!! More than I could hope for after seeing hundreds of photos, reading dozens of reviews and even some interviews. Although the menu is always changing, I will not describe any dish in detail, for the purpose of the experience. The menu is divided in 17 moments, from the 7 starters, to the bread moment, to the 5 mains (fish, vegetable and meat), palate cleanser, desserts and the last, but not least, the coffee moment. As the restaurant states, and that’s definitely how it feels, you will go on a journey through our beautiful country, where coffee and bread have their deserved tribute as main staples of the Portuguese daily routine. I advise you to choose the wine pairing, as you learn a lot about winemaking and especially Portuguese winemaking tradition, and try really distinct, bold, signature wines that you would miss out otherwise. All the chefs, sommelier, and service are very nice and available to answer all your questions without hesitating. They truly respect your pace at eating and are always aware of what every diner is doing at any given time. The highlight for me was definitely the “maître” (headwaiter), João, that explained everything to perfection in an exciting and detailed way that left me mesmerized by his communication skills and the way he can convey a food and a story. I could be listening to him talking for days on end. On the downside, one of the dessert was too harsh and sour on the palate, mainly due to the over proportionated amount of sour jelly at the bottom. And a great downside for me was the goodbye. In the other Michelin star restaurants I've been to, at the end of the service, you are able to be greeted by the head chefs, maître and sommelier and, in that way, as you’re being escorted out of the restaurant, you get the chance to tell them your impressions about your gastronomic experience. This didn't happen at LOCO. When we were leaving, with the exception of the sommelier, there were no one else to escort us out and that we...

I had a wonderful experience here in Loco, this is the ONLY fine dining experience that I was satisfied with during my trip to Paris, Lisbon and Porto.

The dishes were generally good, of course I prefer some of them to the others, but more importantly, I think many of them were unique and I can still remember why I like them! And you can see how the team carefully crafted each dish. I don't want to write too much about the dishes, one simply needs to go and taste it.

Another thing that impressed me was the service level, the team was top notch! I love how they have the different chefs came to our table to explain the dish, and all of them were very amicable. The restaurant also operates with an open kitchen, and sometimes it gave the vibe of TV drama when Chef Alexandre shouted some commands and everyone responded "Oui Chef!"

I also need to give credits to our lovely hostess, which I believe was the restaurant manager, Gabriella. She confirmed me about the food restrictions for our tables at the very beginning, and I am so glad that they were able to offer something to the 2 friends that indicated beef restriction and it was nothing less than the original menu, my friends were satisfied!

While most of our group did the wine pairing, 2 of us ordered separate glasses. She recommended very nice wine paired with the food at a reasonable price. Of course, the wine pairing offered more tastings but she did her job so well and I didn't think her separate selection for us was anything less than the wine pairing menu!

The experience on-site was brilliant but it didn't end just there. They cared enough to send us the full menu of the food and wine that we have tasted, and even remember the separate glasses for those who didn't do the wine pairing!

Just a kind reminder that, coffee and tea is on extra cost, anyways, no harm to the experience itself.

I guess that's how you draw a perfect ending to a michelin-starred restaurant experience, strongly recommend...