Santa Barbara Eco Beach Restaurant — Restaurant in Ribeira Grande

Would not recommend. This restaurant gives off a pretentious and inauthentic vibe. While the food and service had their flaws, the worst part—and the reason we are writing this review—was the restaurant’s completely unethical tipping policy.

We had a three-course meal, and when we received the bill, we noticed nothing unusual at first. However, the restaurant had sneakily included a “tip suggestion” as two separate line items inside the list of food items, making it difficult to detect—especially for non-Portuguese speakers like us. This hidden tip amounted to 11.8% of our total bill.

As I always do, I tipped around 10% on top of the final amount—unaware that we had already been charged a tip. The waitress stood right next to our table with the card reader after putting the bill on our table, never mentioning that a tip had already been included. She then accepted ANOTHER 10% tip without saying a word. This means we ended up tipping over 20% in a country where tipping isn’t even common, let alone sneaking tip suggestions into the bill.

After realizing what had happened, we emailed the restaurant to express our frustration and request clarification as well as a refund of the suggested tip. They never even bothered to reply.

Other disappointing aspects of our evening: • Upon arrival, we were told the restaurant was “full” and that we’d have to wait 30 minutes for a table—despite the place clearly being empty. Instead, we were encouraged to have a cocktail at the bar first, which felt like an obvious sales tactic. • The wine service was careless and uninformed: When we asked for a recommendation, we didn’t receive one based on what would pair well with our meal. Instead, we were told we should try something “mineral and from the Azores” it seemed like this is what the waitress thinks is what tourists should experience—completely disregarding our dishes. There was no opportunity to taste the wine before receiving a full glass, and it wasn’t properly decanted—the glass was simply splashed with wine. No other beverage recommendations were offered for any other courses. • Warm tuna appetizer was served cold. • Service deteriorated throughout the evening, and staff started setting up for breakfast while we were still dining. • We wanted to order a cheese board for dessert but were discouraged due to the portion size. The waitress said it's usually an appetizer not a dessert (despite it being listed on the dessert menu). They could have, for example, instead offered a smaller version, allowed us to take the left-overs home, or just let us as customers decide what we want. • The atmosphere was unrefined: Our table was next to the bright and noisy kitchen entrance, there was no wardrobe for coats, dishes and silverware were oddly placed on our table without explanation or usage, cocktail glasses which we had taken from the bar were not cleared from our table.

Despite the other flaws, the dishonest tipping system completely ruined our experience. Tricking customers into tipping twice, then ignoring complaints, is unacceptable. Combine that with fake wait times, overpriced food, and dismissive service, and it’s a place we will never return to....

Didn’t like the service at all

We came 30 min before and we’re happy to wait in the lounge zone for our time to come. But when we entered, 50% of tables were empty, so we didn’t get what was the reason to make us wait

There are 15 dishes in the menu. 5-7 of them were unavailable, leaving almost only vegetarian options, which was a bit discouraging

But the worst part was that the staff started to clean the place and almost turned the lights off, while we were literally sitting there and finishing our meal (only 1.5 hours after the start of our booking). Obviously, this made us feel uncomfortable and leave without finishing our meal

View and taste (of the only available dishes)...

So delighted that my friends and I came for lunch.

The restaurant is beautiful, and because we were only one of three small groups dining, quiet and relaxing. We were seen to a table immediately.

There were three vegan options: the soup of the day, a bulgur and tofu salad, and the cauliflower steak. I took #1 and #3, and as nice as the soup was, I wish I'd tried the salad. The cauliflower steak was truly delicious though.

I also got a cocktail which had tea in it - this is a must. It was one of the best cocktails I've ever had. The wine my friends ordered was also delicious.

The staff were helpful, including with my friend who is gluten intolerant, and we overall had a...