Cantinho do Avillez — Restaurant in Porto

I have spent the last few days in Porto with my wife on vacation and was excited for this meal on our last night. We had read about this place having a Michelin star, so our expectations were on par with that distinction. The experience got off to a poor start unfortunately due to my own error of mistaking the time of our reservation. The host was very kind and was able to still offer us a table outside which we happily accepted.

Unfortunately, the timing, service and food were all drastically underwhelming. It took over 20 minutes from the time we were handed menus to when someone came to take our order. We ordered the drinks and food all at once. The cocktails came out about 20 minutes later. My wife’s cocktail was good, although it had egg whites which was not in the drink description. My Negroni was watered down and only filled about 1/3 of the glass with ice in it.

We ordered the marinated scallops and the prawns in white wine sauce as appetizers. Both dishes were comically small. The scallops were sliced paper thin and placed atop what I would describe as a dollop of guacamole (they call it avocado puree). There was so much avocado that I could barely taste the scallop, and the size of the dish was approximately my index and middle finger put together (two small bites each). As for the prawns, they were served in a small dish no bigger than my balled up fist, and consisted of 8 unseared and underseasoned prawns that were no bigger than a bottle cap each while sitting in a bath of white wine sauce.

There was about a 30 minute break in between the appetizers and main courses. My wife had the scallops over mushroom risotto. The pictures seen online in other reviews look 10x better than what was served to us. Each of the four scallops had the slightest (and I mean slightest) amount of sear on them. Scallops are my absolute favorite seafood because of their unique and delicate flavor. Somehow they managed to erase all flavor from these scallops, which were texturally nice but tasted like absolutely nothing. The risotto was also underdone, resulting in crunchy rice grains throughout the dish. I ordered the octopus. To their credit the octopus was tender and nicely seasoned. Unfortunately it was served over an absolute travesty of “mashed potatoes” - the potatoes were ice cold when I took my first bite and were extremely grainy and lumpy, not creamy at all. Another 20 minutes passed before we were asked if we wanted dessert. We asked for the check instead. The waiter came out 15 minutes later, placed the bill on the table and walked away. Another 5 minutes went by before he returned to have us pay on a handheld machine which he could have brought right away with the bill.

I am absolutely astounded that this place has received the honor of a Michelin star. The service was bad and the food was extremely average and in some cases bad.

Porto has many delicious food options to enjoy and I do not recommend this place. Of course, I am aware that typically sitting outdoors can sometimes result in slower service but that cannot make up for the actually quality of the food. The dishes were bland and poorly composed, the technical execution was unbecoming of a restaurant at this price point (let alone a Michelin star restaurant), and the service was bad.

I am leaving two stars instead of one due to my own error in mistiming our reservation and the fact that some elements of the food were good. The quality of the seafood was good but the execution left so much...

With such a proximity with the Atlantic, its many Affluent and the infinite valley, no wonder Portugal's unique food culture is so rich in sea food, delicate fishes and delicious specialities. However, with such a diversity of fresh products, it can be difficult to find the right things to try or the right place to experience what these lands have to offer. They say there's a thousand way to taste the traditional Bacalhau (Morue) but it would be a mistake to stick to this only.

Chef José Avillez has understood the richness and potential of Portuguese cuisine which is his main focus, and succeded in pushing it further. He contributes greatly in making Portugal a top gastronomic destination. He now owns an array of acclaimed restaurant in Lisbon and Porto. I had the chance to try one of them, Canthino do Avillez, in Porto. It's a more relaxed and comfortable concept, with a menu that combines the most popular and most traditional dishes of the prestigious chef.

The décor itself is very friendly. The wooded walls ornamented with traditional plates sets the tone, yet still gives a modern touch and contrasting brigh red bistro-styled benches announced the easy-going approach. We started by trying their specialty cocktails that were impressively complex and refreshing. The barman seems quiet and modest, but he deserves some praise. They also have a lovely selection of local wines including some of the best producers such as Anselmo Mendes.

We then decided to stick to the best-sellers in the menu, to get the true Canthino de Avillez experience. Extremely delicate and tasty marinated scallops with avocado cream and bread crumbs as well as amazing deep fried green beans with tartar sauce were our entrées. I must say that, for the cheapest item on the menu, the fried beans are absolutely a must-try. The crunchy, soft texture with tasty tartare sauce is a perfect combo.

For the main plate, I tried the veal stew risotto with parmesan shavings. It might not be the most traditional dish of the menu, but it was generous in portions and in deliciousness. We also tried the giant red shrimps from Algarve. I've never seen any shrimp that size, not even close. They are enormous. They look sharp with their huge heads. It's way less copious with the shell off than the risotto, but I'm still glad we tried it.

To finish, you need, I mean you most definitely need to try the hazelnut dessert. I was astonished during my whole trip at how amazing and unique local hazelnuts are and how nonchalant and disinterested people are about them. This is the stuff and this dessert put them in the forefront as a hazelnut icecream and hazelnut foam. I'll...

I went for dinner at this restaurant in March 2023 since the Michelin Guide stated that it offers outstanding traditional food at moderate prices. The dining room is very gloomy in the evening, and the illumination is poorly to create a pleasant or romantic ambiance. For this reason, one needs to switch on the mobile phone flashlight to read the menu. I noticed there were only tourists and no local people, which is odd if traditional food at reasonable prices gets offered. When we ordered, three plates of what we wanted were not available. Same issue with the wine: three different wines I know were unavailable. Since I am very familiar with Italian wines but less with Portuguese wines, I asked for some suggestions based on a clear description of what kind of wine and bouquet I'd favor. Since the waitress was not a sommelier, she consulted the sommelier in charge. Unfortunately, the wine served did not meet the bouquet I described. We ordered the bread service of two different types of bread, served with two kinds of dips and some olives. Amazingly, one type of bread was previously frozen and then thawed. We ordered a starter of prawns in a wine, lemon, and olive oil broth, which is an effortless dish, and the taste depends much on the spices used. The quality of the prawns was good, but they were overcooked. The taste of the broth was insignificant since no spices were used, and neither the oil nor the wine caused any particular taste. As the main course, we had octopus tentacles and a typical Portuguese dish based on onions, salted cod (bacalhau), and eggs. The cooking of the octopus tentacle was correct, but it got served with a simple steamed and mashed potato. Since the octopus and the potatoes were very dry, a sauce or dip could have enhanced edibility and pleasure. The traditional bacalhau dish was tasty but contained little fish. The service was kind, but when I received the bill, the waitress had added already a tip without asking me first. To point out, I am happy to give a bonus if the service and the food are satisfactory, but receiving a bill with a pre-prepared tip is odd. At this point, I need to emphasize that the service fee is already included in the bill in Portugal. To sum up, neither the quality of the food nor the service justify the high prices (the prices were not moderate as mentioned by the Michelin Guide). Based on my experience, I need help comprehending the recommendation of the Michelin Guide since the food was not outstanding traditional food, nor the prices were moderate. There are many other places in Porto where one eats great at a...