Restaurante Aliança — Restaurant in Ponta Delgada

Aliança was recommended by the proprietor of a nearby cafe as a good place for steak. Clearly an excellent suggestion. Among all the diners, I was the only one not having steak or bitoque. My partner went for sirloin - lots of roasted garlic! I was the outlier - I had been looking for and looking forward to Bacalhau a Bras since coming to the Azores. The couvert of very soft, fresh bread, cheese, and red pepper sauce was delightful. And yes, wine - house wine is available in white (branco) and red (tinto). We shared a 1 liter jarro. The restaurant is impeccably clean. The staff are very friendly and helpful. Language was not a barrier - very fluent English was spoken by staff. Clearly, a local favorite - there were no other apparent tourists.

There is a patio space on the street out front (a pedestrian only street) to supplement the cozy indoor dining room. A reservation would be a good thing to consider - the dining room was full even on a January Monday evening.

January...

If you are from the Azores, you know that the thing to get here is the beef. As tourists, we did not know how proud the Azoreans were of their cows. Bar Aliança shows you why. Definitely try the house special, a rib eye cooked in fat that is seasoned with hot pepper and garlic. We dragged every french fry through what oil remained.

It also has a fair wine selection. My wife and I just had the house white and the house red and both were good. You will be served an appetizer farmers cheese and bread, which we saw some people refuse, but it was worth it for the two euros charge.

We also tried fish stew, which was good but a little salty. With the bread and cheese appetizer and splitting the house special there was a ton of food and the soup was an unnecessary course.

I'll note this is the best beef on the island, confirmed prominently by several awards on the walls. We will definitely return next time we are in...

I have travelled all over the Mediterranean on this deployment. I have eaten food from many countries, and different tastes. But this was just exceptional, everything about it. The service was stellar, personable and extremely helpful to explain the dishes available. Excellent english and sense of humor, which is a seller for me being a canadian sailor. I highly recommend the shark fillet, just delicious the way they cooked it with butter, garlic and other spices the rest of the plate filled with vegetables and potatoes. If I come back to this port I will 100% be coming back for some more seats and drinks. The best part is the prices are incredibly fair for the quality that you receive. P.S. the caramel cake... it's a yes just eat it, you know...