PAJÚ — Restaurant in Porto

Day 14. Left Lisbon this morning and stopped in Aveido on our way to Porto. It was raining in Porto and all I wanted to do was closed myself in my room and have some alone time. Possibly fall asleep and wake up in the morning (with it still raining) and leave. I'm pretty sure Bri felt the same way. I had already had what I believe to be my highlight of the day which was a moment with Bri at a gelato / coffee place in Aveido where we were both fully present and having a great conversation about life, the universe, and everything. If you know me well enough you know I'm all about the human connection. Then we hit the road and head to Porto. Traffic was crazy in the city and finding our place was a pain in the neck and once inside the warm dry place I just wanted to hunker down for the night. After a little rest I started to feel the call of Porto. I wanted to head to the Ribeira area but it was a little over a mile walk and the rain was nasty. We could have taken an Uber but I got on google to see what was closer. I find this approx 249 feet away from our AirBnB. 4.5 Stars, 121 reviews. I start reading the reviews and this place looks amazing. I check the hours and see that it is open from 9pm to 5am. Yes ... 9 in the evening to 5 in the morning. I'm intrigued and now I have to go there. Of course it is only 8:30pm so we have to wait a while for it to open. Which we do and then we head on over there just a little after 9pm. So we arrive ... yes it was about 249 feet away, plus or minus a few feet. There is a door but no way to open it. I look inside and don't see anyone. But I see a doorbell and I ring it. A moment later a gentleman comes around the corner and opens the door to let us in. We are the only 2 people there. We pick out our seats and he brings us menus. We ask him about his recommendations and also tell him what we have heard. So we start off with a bottle of red wine from Duas Quintas in Douro called Ramos Pinto. I don't know much about wine, but it was delicious. And Paulo, the proprietor, says it is his favorite. He then brings us these little breads I think called brow, but I can't remember. They are flaky bread crust with sausage and pork stuffed in it. Then he brings us these green eggs which are hard boiled eggs stuffed with sausage like stuff and then lightly fried until just golden brown. Then a creamy potato and cabbage soup. All of these things he tells us about the tradition and how he makes this and that from scratch or has people make things for his shop with his specification just like his mom used to make for him. And then he brings us this sandwich called a Francesinha (pictured). It is a sandwich with sausage, pork, and ham on bread with cheese and this gravy all over it. It was sooooo delicious. All the while he is talking to us and telling us about his place. He has owned for 36 years. At 2am he turns off the lights and just uses candles to light the place. At first this was because he only had a license to operate until 2am. Now he can operate it all night with lights but he still turns them off at 2 am and uses candles. Bri and I both connected with Paulo and really appreciated his taking the time to share with us all of the tradition and history behind the food and his business. And in the end it was getting late for us and I took an amazing piece of chocolate cake to eat back at our AirBnB. Paulo if you can read this it was the best chocolate cake ever and Pajú is now my favorite restaurant. If I wake up in the middle of the night I just might head over there for a nightcap. So there it is ... day 14 highlight. Not too many days left here. Today I started missing home for the first time. See you all New Years Eve if I...

The restaurant is located in a charming, rustic setting with beautiful granite block walls. The staff is friendly and welcoming, and the service is excellent.

I started my meal with the Francesinha, a classic Portuguese sandwich made with linguiça sausage, ham, mortadella, and beef, covered in melted cheese and a rich tomato-beer sauce. The Francesinha was absolutely delicious. The bread was perfectly toasted, the meats were flavorful, and the sauce was rich and decadent. For my main course, I had the Bacalhau Croquettes.

In this restaurant they serve food until late, I arrived at 11 pm, and I saw people arriving at midnight and they were still served dinner.

I highly recommend to anyone looking for a delicious and authentic Portuguese dining experience. The food is excellent, the atmosphere is charming, and the service...

Family owned. Father and son run the joint. We came here for a late night dinner. Doesn’t open till 9pm. The door is locked and you have to be let in or reach your hand through the window to open the door. Serves home cooked traditional Portuguese food. Simple style. We had the tripe and veal. Food was explained carefully with pride. They also have Franchesinha. Open late till 5am.

They told us that the reason they started the late night dining was to adapt to the fact that previously there was major construction on their street and during that time they almost went bankrupt and they petitioned city hall for a late night permit and it has worked out well for them and...