Lais de Guia — Restaurant in Matosinhos

Update 20.08.2023 Updating with 1 star only After 6 month avoiding this place because of not pleasant previous experiences, visited it few days ago. Ordered coffee to one waitress. She disappeared and I never saw it again during the visit. Then I asked another waiter, to check where is my coffee, he was not friendly, also disappeared for a while, so he brought it in 15 more mins, so to serve 1 coffee they need more than 40 mins, why? So amazing location and great potential, this place only going down with their service, so sakes for great Matosinhos beach.

Amazing location. Few nice and polite people working. Rest of them only talking to each other and have good time together while you’re waiting 20 mins to do ( not to get) the order! You can not open the door to the toilet ( it’s hard, because it’s broken), you can not close the door when you inside because it’s broken, you can not splash there water, because it’s almost broken, no paper or water to wash the hands, only some times you have water. To avoid this unpleasant experience tried to use toiled for disabled people, but wonder how they can use it in case of need, because the toilet is full of sun umbrellas. Very disappointed with higene, basics service lack...

We did come at a busy time ,so understandable we were offered a seat inside. Not bad at all. Great music and out the sea breeze. If you’re against smoking not ideal, as all the doors are open so ALL the smoke blows inside. If you’re not a smoker it wouldn’t be enjoyable.

This was my third visit, on my previous visits during quieter footfall the staff could speak English, and were super polite and attentive. On a busier night like tonight not so much. Couldn’t even say hello. My food order was wrong, and then my burger came raw….. but they don’t speak English so didn’t understand. 🙄

It’s also card only…. Have WiFi advertised and shows on WiFi search. But you ask for password and it’s not working. This is over 3 weeks. Not great service as you won’t be able to access online banking should you need without data.

Also if you want to compare to UK level of food, I’d say weatherspoons on a bad day. The fries are dreadful. The sweat and aspirin burger isn’t remotely like sweat and sour sauce. The bruschetta bread was soooo stale, with the tiniest drizzle of balsamic.

On a plus note…. Fabulous sunset views and good wine or cocktails. So I’d recommend for a drinks. Just not food,...

I had been a regular since 2017, when this was a relaxed spot with fair prices and good quality. Unfortunately, things declined: prices went up, quality dropped, and service became terrible. One visit, we waited 40 minutes for two crêpes, a drink was forgotten until we asked three times, and the server was unfriendly and indifferent. Just trying to get anyone’s attention was a struggle. Meanwhile, the DJ was blasting awful music so loud we couldn’t even talk.

The last visit was the final straw. Staff told us there were no tables, but instead of being polite or accommodating, they just barked “you wait here.” All the couches were free, but you can only sit if you spend at least €30. We were just two people wanting a quick afternoon drink, not forced spending. So, despite empty tables, they turned us away. In the end, the only thing this place still has going for it is the location. Everything else, service, quality, atmosphere, has gone downhill....