Gula do Meko — Restaurant in Sesimbra

Check Google for pics of lapas from this restaurant, and then look at ours.

We went for lunch at Gula do Meko a week ago, for the first time. The food was yummy, and the service was pleasant.

The 2nd time was NOT the charm. After seeing their lapas on Google, we were expecting light colored shellfish, that were just smaller than its shell. We made the 2nd trip specifically to try their lapas.

What we received were greenish and brown overcooked lapas, with a few light colored ones. My husband surmised they were probably cooked from above and not below, as the part below was okay, but the top was rubbery, on all of them. We ate a few, but could not finish our plate. Ours had shrunk, because they were so overcooked, and as you can see, the garlic butter that was meant to be in every shell, had disappeared in some.

While there, a table next to our also ordered lapas, and theirs were the light colored seafood we'd seen in pictures, and they were bigger. My husband intentionally got up twice, just to make sure we were seeing the better cooked, and larger lapas, we thought we were seeing.

We called for the manager and the excuses began. Listen, people make mistakes, it's part of life, but to stand there and not acknowledge there was a problem was the worst part. He chose to ignore my husband saying they were overcooked, to assure us we, and the table next to us, got the same lapas.

We never questioned if they were from the same batch, simply that they were overcooked.

We had plans to continue to patronize this restaurant, but never again. Again, things happen, but it's how you handle issues, with your business, that makes the difference. Anyone could see they were overcooked, but he was so worried about being right, he lost customers.

I encourage anyone thinking about this restaurant to check pictures, before you go, to have a reference. He never took the lapas off the bill, and as you can see from our pictures, this is NOT appetizing and frankly is not seafood that is cooked well. In fact, they shouldn't have been served, between the discoloration and lack of sauce in the shells.

I absolutely would never recommend this place, not because you won't enjoy some food, but because if you have an issue, they will cling to their pride, instead of correcting the mistake.

There are lots of seafood places in Setubal, we'll definitely give another more appreciative one our...

We were able to get a table without reservation, altho we did need to wait around 20 minutes for a vacant table outside, the food was well presented, missing a bit of seasonings for my taste, the staff was super friendly, we got a free extra dish as the staff got it wrong offering it to us free of charge, and it was surprisingly delicious, next time I'll order two servings of fried octupos, the ambience is pretty tipical, there is nothing that stands out too much, which is good, but could be better if there was more Suttle lighting especially on the inside area.

Regardless, I recommend this restaurant, the Sunset is great, sadly I got there too late.

Looking for further development on the...

I went there on a Friday evening and the restaurant was full. We ordered a robalo (seabass) with a salad and vegetables; for desert a cheese tart. The fish was delicious, the sides were small but ok, the dessert good but not spectacular. The service was slow but the staff were cordial. It is an overall “ok” restaurant. If you’re in the area I recommend, but don’t expect it to be a...