Marisqueira Antiga — Restaurant in Matosinhos

Embark on a Seafood Extravaganza at Esplanada Marisqueira Antiga: Porto's Prized Catch! Anchored in the heart of Matosinhos, Portugal, Esplanada Marisqueira Antiga has carved its reputation as the seafood siren of the city. Drop your anchor here if your culinary compass points towards a captivating seafood spectacle amid your Portuguese voyage. Join us as we reminisce about our unforgettable dining experience at this unparalleled seafood haven. An impressive exhibition of fresh-off-the-boat fish and seafood heralded our arrival. Their dazzling display set the tone, underscoring the unparalleled quality of ingredients this seafood sanctuary had to offer. We embarked on our gustatory journey with jumbo prawns, a flavor explosion that rivaled Poseidon's trident. Then, we navigated through flawlessly cooked sea bass and sole, their flavors as vast and complex as the ocean depths. The freshest salad and vegetables provided the perfect, crisp complement to our aquatic feast. And the finale? A heavenly mille-feuille dessert, serenaded by port wine, was the ideal gustatory lullaby to our meal. Our waiter, an authentic mariner of the dining sea, remained at our beck and call, ensuring smooth sailing throughout our dining journey. Every detail at Esplanada Marisqueira Antiga was geared towards a seamless dining experience. Each dish arrived impeccably prepped, with shells meticulously removed for effortless enjoyment. The restaurant atmosphere was reminiscent of a classic seafood shanty, its charm undeniably captivating. And for a delightful surprise, keep an eye out for the whimsical dessert cart that waltzes around the room, offering tantalizing sweet treats that are impossible to resist! When in Portugal, if your palate pines for an extraordinary seafood saga, set your course towards Esplanada Marisqueira Antiga. This esteemed seafood sanctuary promises a bounty of fresh, mouthwatering seafood dishes to make you wish for an eternal feast. We guarantee – this is a voyage your taste buds will reminisce long after you've left...

Definitely amazing seafood, we were a large crowd of 20 and i managed to book a table of 6 x 3 and they were definitely very accommodating as friends come at different times and we fit everyone in. In Portugal unless you organise things well in advance, you cannot just walk in to book a table for 20 , it was not possible. You have to break your bookings down by 3 or 4 tables. Locals also eat there so they know what to do. Small caveat is that like most Portuguese dishes, they tend to come in quite a large portion, so we had the imperial seafood tower for 4 people and 6 of us finished it and was quite full by then. That was 480 Euros but very well worth it. Everything was very fresh and tasted amazing - uni, oysters, caviar, etc That would have been more than enough. Our friends next table had the lobster rice which look amazing and tasted amazing and we ordered one portion but they made 1.5x portion which cost another 120. . I could have disputed it to be charged 1 portion but was too drunk to dispute :) Overall very good but you need to be careful on how much you can eat .. and also make sure you agree the price and weight of fish etc before you order esp if you don’t speak the language. So, overall good but if you are in a big group just be careful not to over order and check your...

ATTENTION TOURISTS: Beware of bait and switch prices. Let me start by saying the food was excellent. The servers were very nice and mostly did a good job of staying on top of things from a fine dining perspective. What I did have a problem with, is being told one thing and getting something else.

I asked what the smallest crab was, and the server said it was around .5 kilos. I said that was fine. I get the bill and it's 1.5 kilos, over $80. I asked for an order of razer clams. The server was very nice but didn't speak great English and told me something like your clams are done. What I didn't know was he said there were no razer clams, and they substituted some small clams instead which would have been fine, but they cost double the price which no one told me about.

So I was expecting a bill around $100 at most and ended up getting a bill for almost $200 all in including tip. This is for one person.

The staff is very nice and the food was great, but I feel like I was taken advantage of. I will be back in Porto again but certainly never at this restaurant, which is a shame because I had such a good time there. If any of the staff reads this I hope it was worth price gouging an...