Viva Creative Kitchen — Restaurant in Porto

Recommended by many websites and friends, Viva did not disappoint. This tiny (16 seats + 2 at the kitchen bar) is helmed by the owner/chef Hans who prepared and plated every thoughtfully composed dish absolutely alone. He has no sous-chefs, no garde manger, only assisted by a lovely young woman who did double duty as a server and a dishwasher. We were delighted to sit at the two seat kitchen bar for dinner where we were able to observe the chef’s meticulous attention to detail and his seamlessly organized compact kitchen. It also gave us the opportunity to ask about different ingredients and preparations for which the chef was happy to answer. We started with the port-infused burrata on a bed of greens with marinated plums and slivered almonds. We asked the chef to recommend a wine pairing and his choice was perfectly suited for the dish - it was an absolutely on point. We followed with a Tuna Bowl with fresh tuna marinated in Ponzu sauce with sliced avocado, carrot, edamame and wakame seaweed on a bed of sticky rice - another winner! We finished with traditional almond liquor over ice as a digestivo. We cannot end our review without acknowledging how absolutely delightful chef Hans was from the moment we entered his restaurant, during our meal and his best wishes as we left for the evening. His restaurant deserves every accolade it receives. In addition to all the traditional Portuguese restaurants that Porto has to offer, we have no hesitation to highly recommend Viva as a creative...

An extraordinary, intimate dining experience. The tiny dining area in front has only five tables for two and several counter seats. The rear contains the open kitchen where the talented chef prepares an eclectic mix of Asian, Italian and other cuisines to create some of the most inspired treats, which are served tapas style.

We started with the burrata cheese with truffles, hibiscus infused honey, pickled radishes and greens, which was out of this world. Next up was the salmon bowl, which combined fresh salmon in sweet chilli sauce and chives, edamame, mango, pickled ginger, seaweed salad and housemade kimchi over Japanese rice to create a true taste treat worthy of the finest Japanese chef. Then we shared the tuna tartare with avocado, red onion, chives, crispy onion topping and ponzu sauce. Obviously inspired by the popular Hawaiian-Japanese tuna poke, this version took it to the next level.

All the dishes used only the finest, freshest ingredients and were beautifully presented.

A very reasonably priced bottle of white wine from Vinha D' Ervideira was the perfect accompaniment to the meal. A simple vanilla gelato affogato followed by some delicious port wine was the perfect ending.

The food was amazing, the friendly service impeccable and our evening delightful. We giggled all the way back...

So just had an amazing surprised experience at this fab resto around the corner from our Airbnb _only 7 months In business / thinking the competition might be a little nervous / for good reason. Had a long day touring the Douro Valley _ very beautiful, but as I am gluten allergic , I was famished for a meal. My hubby found this gem and declared that we must go / I was otherwise destined to gluten free bread and jam . Instead we went. They obliged to let us in even though they were closing in 15 minutes. Well I managed just better than fine with my smoked salmon salad main and fig infused burrata cheese as starter. I will add the pics later. Best Portugal restaurant so far. I am picky. Fresh, tasty, inventful, it has that extra yesssssss factor ! Congrats you two ! AND the manager and the chef(husband of controller) , make sure all is well and all are happy. That is why you should not miss this extra special place. Only 10 table seats and 8 bar seats. Get there early to secure your spot. I do not give 5...