SOLMAR - Restaurante & Alojamento — Restaurant in Porto Moniz

I tend to disregard negative reviews before visiting a restaurant and prefer to give each place a chance. I don't mind occasionally stepping into a sticky place if it means I might stumble upon a hidden gem. However, as much as I wanted this place to be one of those gems, it unfortunately was not.

We visited this establishment twice in one day. The first time, we were told that the kitchen was closed and would reopen at 6 PM, which was understandable. However, the waitress wasn't particularly polite, to put it mildly. Still, we decided to return around 7:30 PM. This time, we received no greeting, even though the staff had changed.

We initially sat at a table with a view of the church, but we were promptly told to sit closer to the entrance because the tables farther away would not be served. I understand that working in Seixal, with its mountainous terrain, can be physically demanding, but taking a few extra steps shouldn't make a significant difference. Perhaps it was a security measure to prevent us from leaving without paying. Nevertheless, we moved to a table closer to the entrance, accompanied by a nice plant sitting on a chair next to us.

We were given a menu, which, compared to other establishments in Seixal, was on the pricier side. Still, we were looking forward to fish, seafood, or at least something different from the usual French fries, frozen pizza, or meat skewers. Unfortunately, when the waitress returned, she informed us that there was no seafood or fish available, and that only meat and fries were on offer. And with that, our experience at Solmar came to an abrupt end.

Compared to other places in Seixal or Porto Santo, the service at Solmar was by far the worst. I can't comment on the quality of the food, as we didn't stay long enough to try it. We still have a few days left in Seixal, so if we dare to visit Solmar again, I will certainly...

We arrived to the restaurant which was busy, but people were leaving, there were three empty tables outside and more than five inside. Nonetheless, we were asked to leave immediately, the waitress told us there was no space, that everything is reserved and told us to leave. The waitress told us that we would wait two hours. Since we saw people leaving and half of the terrace was free as well, we called to the restaurant to ask for reservation and they replied that there was no problem. Therefore, we came in and were stopped by the waitress who said it was full, so we replied that we had a reservation, she wanted to know who said it, then after a while she finally let us in. Although we came in before other people, the waitress brought to other table tablecloths, menus and left us with nothing on the table but one menu for three people. After a while the waitress came, put the tablecloth and napkins aggressively down and left with no word. The food was very good the tuna as well as the fried fish and rice, unfortunately we were a bit sad of such unfortunate and inappropriate behaviour, so we stayed only to finish the main course and left somewhere else to have a good coffee and dessert where we would feel more...

The unfriendliest service in Portugal? Stopped by here at 3.30pm this afternoon after a long hike. Wanted to have a drink, having seen that they have a nice terrace at the back. Apart from two occupied tables on the terrace, the place was empty. Was received by a very grumpy blonde lady with a ponytail. In an unfriendly manner she informed us that the terrace was only available to people having food. For drinks only, we were offered a table by the car park staring at a concrete wall. Found this very petty given that the place was nearly empty. Who eats at 3.30pm? in the afternoon and even so she could have offered a table on the terrace, but saying that she might have to ask us to move if the place got busy (unlikely!) Portuguese people are generally so hospitable, but this lady was the unfriendliest we have come across, both on the islands and on the mainland. Not surprised by the low ratings of this place, that lady is clearly somewhat frustrated. Read the other reviews afterwards and (1) realised I'm not the only one to think this place is a dump and (2) glad I didn't...