Solar dos Presuntos — Restaurant in Lisbon

Im a Portuguese Lisbon local who has gone to more than 80 typical portuguese restaurants here in the Lisbon region (some more traditional, others a bit more high end), and I always heard good things habout this restaurant. However, both me and my girlfriend were VERYY disappointed.

We had a reservation and at the entrance they sent us up to the 1st floor. Upon arriving nobody was there to attend us, we just stood there like 2 idiots standing. Waiters passing by us and completely ignored us, had to call 1 waiter saying that we had a reservation and we were waiting for our table. He said he was going to check, but nothing. After a few minutes I talked with another waiter, he said he was going to check. The same… we stood there for around 5-10 minutes until someone finally sat us down.

Overall food was very good but the price was definitely pushy. +30€ for 1 very nice cod dish but still… far from the normal charged price for the same quality standard. Nevertheless, reasonably happy with the food. So someone would think that at least the service would compensate that extra price, however quite by the contrary…

The service was VERY POOR and I’m not exaggerating:

1- We had the issue explained above when we arrived. 2- I had to call a waiter to order because nobody was coming. 3 - We ordered a starter, wine and 2 dishes. A lot of time went by, still no wine. The starter came and after 5 minutes, still no wine. Had to call another random waiter for the wine, he himself didn’t know how to check the wine we ordered so I had to order again the wine from him. 4 - After having the wine, they served us the first glass and after that nobody came to check our glasses to serve us. During the whole dinner I had to serve me and my girlfriend wine. Which would be okay in a normal restaurant but not when we are paying for a +50€ wine bottle and +30€ dishes. It’s the minimum service we would expect. 5 - 10/15 minutes after taking our plates nobody came to ask what was the dessert we wanted. I had to call a again waiter and said to him in Portuguese the dessert we wanted. He didn’t even understood portuguese, he had to call another waiter to come to receive my order 🫣

I swear I’m not joking, at least 5/6 different waiters attended us during dinner, it seemed so disorganised and amateur. For the price you are paying it’s just unacceptable and embarrassing.

I have had Wayyyyyyy better service in a lot cheaper restaurants in Lisbon.

I paid 150€ for 2 people (75€ pp) and gave 0 tip. Will...

Solar dos Presuntos - Sometimes a Memory is Better Than the Reality - We had dinner at Solar several years ago with friends. The five of us did not have a reservation, but the restaurant was kind enough to find us a table upstairs. It was one of the best dinners we had in Lisboa and we talk about it often. Yesterday, we had the opportunity to return to Solar, but the experience was far different. This time we had reservations, but when we arrived they struggled to find us a table. Later, we ordered a bottle of white wine from the online list (they use a QR code to access their menu). The server Mauro went to get the bottle and returned saying that they were out-of-stock. This occurred two more times before we finally settled on our fourth choice that was priced two and half times the original. We are not sure if this was an attempt to up-charge us to a higher priced bottle or was it like the server said, “a problem with their inventory.” But, two questions, how can the restaurant be out of three bottles of Portuguese wines in Portugal and why could they not update their online list of wines??? Now for the food, we both had the lobster soup that was a bit fishy smelling and salty (not what you want with fresh fish). The main meal of octopus was above average, but we have had above average at other restaurants in Lisboa (we have been here for three weeks). In addition, at the end of the meal the server asked for a tip. That has not happened to us in our three weeks here. Do they ask the locals for a tip??? Overall, I would say we got less value at a higher price. I would give Solar 2.5 stars for an average score, but we are limited to two stars or three stars. It was not above average this time so I am giving it two stars. There are many other restaurants that you can do...

First things first: I enjoyed the place and the food was really good. The staff was rather lovely once we were at our table but... I had a reservation for a group of 16 persons and, by the door, there was a bit of an uncomfortable wait, let's say? Not only for the fact that there is no place for people to wait inside and have a drink, e.g., but also because I had a reservation, other people had, and, don't know, looked like we weren't that welcome? Don't know, the man that was having a go as the hostess wasn't very welcoming, I mean. It's a were famous people are portrayed everywhere and it was picked among my pals just because it was regarded as one of Cristiano Ronaldo's favorite place... I mean, the cod fish was REALLY yummy, and one of the best I have ever had in Portugal, which is a lot, the portion was big, but I haven't been to any other upscale places before. Some Spaniards complained of it, as usual - for some, it were salty, for some, not too soft, for others, both - but that might not be so regarded, since they always have complaints on anything that isn't their favorite Spanish restaurants in Spain, or their mom's food. Moving on after a gratuitous roasting. The cod fish cakes were pretty decent, but far from the best. The wine, once again happening in another Portuguese restaurant, wasn't that impressive at all. I would recommend it if you're VERY much into football ("the real one", as John Oliver would point out) and or if you want to roll the dice and see if you get to meet anyone famous (there was a man leaving when we arrived that must've been a famous one - a footballer for his absolutely average, ordinary look? -, since the manager was helping him out with his coat), but I wouldn't come back myself on a future...