Sardinha — Restaurant in Peniche

Wednesday October 5, 2022 What a huge disappointment! Avoid! Restaurant A Sardinha in Peniche is a Tourist Trap...! Beware! It spells danger!

Second bad experience with this place, just a few weeks apart. In my first review (below), I wrote I might try again..., and I did give them a second chance, unfortunately!

I made a reservation for 4 people using The Fork App and was expecting a discount, complimentary coffee or just "Thank you for coming back". None was made.

€ 92.85 is what I paid, for 4 people. Fish Caldeirada (very impressive because served in a large pot, but savourless and watery, large amount of potatoes and bland broth and very little fish) served with greasy fries and 2 grains of rice (literally not enough for 1 person), 1 bottle of house red wine, 1 bottle of still water, 2 coffees and No dessert. Surprised by the unusually large amount requested, I asked for the bill but was denied it; all I received was the credit card stub. I did not insist, not wanting to make a fuss...

What a huge disappointment!

Friday August 12th, 2022 Good food at reasonable prices. This place is very large and is clearly based on maximising turnover over customer satisfaction. A lot is invested on marketing. Leaflets are handed to passers-by in the lower part of town, on Largo do Município, by teams of touts and the active touting deployed on Rua Vasco da Gama, in the immediate vicinity of the restaurant can be enticing. I had made a reservation, a few days in advance, by telephone for a table for 4 people, outside. When I got there, I noticed that most tables had a sign on them saying "Reserved" but I was shown to a table with no sign on it, at the back of the Restaurant, inside. No need to make a fuss, you'd better sit where you're told and be quiet. And when the tables next to us started being moved around and put together, I asked what was going on, and was told a large group was expected. I asked to be relocated to a quieter part of the restaurant or outside as first requested but that was ignored. The staff were way too busy, going to and from tables as well as frantically touting outside to show interest in a dissatisfied client. I drove 38 kilometres, one way, to meet friends who travelled more than 140 kilometres to A Sardinha... I'm disappointed, the experience could have been very different with a very small pinch of empathy and customer orientation. If I go back, it'll be a...

I am a huge fish fan and went there for dinner. To be fair, the little fried fish - along with bread, olives, cheese, etc - is the best for me, they were served immediately after your sitting down, however you won’t find out that actually these are not free until you saw the bill. I saw the bill and got very irritated by this sneaky service, but thinking of the little fried fish, I decided not to complain.

since I like those little fired fish a lot, I ordered an extra portion of the same kind of fish. I guess the fish is the same kind, but the way to make it was definitely different, and it costs 10 Euro. Dang!

We got the fish stew for two persons, let’s put it in this way, I won’t order it again, neither would I recommend it to others. It was big, that is it.

There were two waiters serving the tables, one speaks English, the other one probably speaks very very little almost none I guess. The English speaking one is the main one, taking most responsibility of our table and the tables around us, but it was not comfortable. Probably because it had been a long day and after all the business was very busy, the job is tiring, but......anyway. The Portuguese waiter was very friendly and smiled a lot, even if he didn’t really talk to us - unfortunately we don’t speak Portuguese at all.

Two stars for the two little fired fish I had and one star for the friendly Portuguese...

The hostess who takes your name for the table will ruin your experience. The food is overrated compared to the neighbouring restaurants. It’s clear this place is all about marketing and drawing people in, only to disappoint. Bad service is sometimes excusable but the hostess is inhumane working like a robot. While waiting for our table I witnessed her rushing a table out and telling an elderly woman she just had to wait (rudely) when asking how long it would be for a table. My mother tried to ask her a question 3 times and she brushed her off even when she tapped her arm she briskly walked away like she couldn’t be bothered. It set the tone for a terrible experience and the food isn’t good enough to make up for that kind of service. After reading a few other reviews mentioning her I wasn’t surprised in the least. Apparently she’s the owners daughter which is such a shame because they would be better off not employing her as the first person you interact with. We won’t be back as long as she’s standing out there. Mira Mar and Onda Azul are steps away and there service was attentive and friendly. Don’t under estimate the power of...