Moinho Dom Quixote — Restaurant in Sintra

I really want to like this place, but I can't. First, the view is incredible and I absolutely love the tables scattered around the garden. I love all the dogs running around. So the immediate vibe was very positive, and then it went down hill from there. . I was given a menu and waited about 15 minutes for someone to come by for my order. I speak some Portuguese and the waiter also spoke excellent english, so language was not an issue. The place was not very busy when I arrived (it filled up over the 1 1/2 hours I was there). . I ordered the following: tapenade and sourdough bread, quiche with salad, a coffee, and water. I asked that the coffee and water be brought out first as both the dog and I were very thirsty.

About 20 minutes later I was brought my coffee and the tapenade. I was really looking forward to sourdough bread as I have not had any in a few years. They brought a small jar (really a commercial jar instead of homemade tapenade?) but not the Bread! The server then disappeared so quickly that I could not ask for either the bread or the water. . About 15 minutes later my food arrived with the wrong quiche and again, the server disappeared so quickly that I did not have time to tell him it was incorrect. I finally was able to track him down (I had to go looking for him), the plate was removed, and the correct plate was very quickly served....but still not water. The mushroom quiche was just horrible and I could not eat it. But the water finally arrived after my entire meal was eaten. . It took another 30 minutes for me to get the bill. . I am used to Portuguese servers leaving you alone to enjoy your meal, but this was beyond culturally acceptable. I should not have to ask three times for the water, and I certainly should not have to physically go search for my waiter because I have been served the wrong meal. . As for the food....I REALLY wanted to like it as it seemed very SoCal fresh (something greatly lacking in the carb heavy local food) but this was just poorly done. I would have happily paid the higher than normal prices...for good food, but this was just not good food. . In the end, I felt that this restaurant catered to a lot of foreigners who were more interested in the atmosphere than in actual quality of...

It has been many years that I am coming here because once upon a time I loved this place. It used to be quirkily romantic, welcoming and laid back with simple tex mex snacks, nice customers, friendly service, crazy bohemian interior and gorgeous gardens. All that is gone (except the garden). After the recent renovation the design is neither here nor there, not bohemian, not modern. Stuffing that many chairs and tables into the place certainly did not help. The last time I went it was already murderously loud and hugely overpriced but food was still very nice.

Now the food seems to be aiming for Michellin stars but does this entirely on the price side of things.

We stared a long time at the menu without finding anything even slightly interesting. I settled for guacamole and Cesar Salad just to be on the safe side. The salad was a tiny plate with some mushy things sprinkled with canned mayonnaise. My friend went for olives and a quiche for the same safety reasons and ended up staring at a huge round blob of yellow generic industrial cheese. Our third person was more adventurous and ordered a proper dish, which turned out to be a weird assortment of bread, potatoes, nachos and a tiny piece of grilled meat all thrown onto one plate (probably the cook expressing his discontent with her daring to ask for potatoes instead of bread).

My second tiny glass of wine never arrived, even after ordering three times. Neither did the water. The waiters were mostly standing around in a group around the bar, happily ignoring us and the loud cacophony of tourists probably getting ripped off as well.

Your are better off buying a packaged salad and a bottle of wine and finding yourself a nice bench...

Me and my husband had our second date in Moinho D. Quixote, on September 14th, 2020. The food was great and service was very nice, and the evening turnout so magical and romantic that my husband saw the opportunity to give our first kiss and he took it. On August 22nd, 2024, we decided to go back to the "scene of the crime". Unfortunately, the experience turnout very UNWELCOMING and DISAPPOINTING. That day was my BIRTHDAY and I am 19 weeks PREGNANT. I am not imune to toxoplasmosis, so I have to be very careful with what I eat. A waiter came to welcome us, and asked which language we preferred. My husband said Portuguese, and the attitude from most of the staff became: "Urgh! What are they doing here?" VERY UNWELCOMING!!! But we decided to not let that ruin our evening, and we sat down. After carefully reading the menu, the only choice that seem possible for me was the foccacia sandwich with chicken. It came with lettuce, which it did not say on the menu. I called a waitress and ask how where the vegetables cleaned. She went to the kitchen and said they already came cleaned, sealed and biological. My husband started to explain that being biological didn't mean a thing for my case, that we were concerned with... And the waitress simple turned her back and walked away without so much as an "excuse me". ABSOLUTELY RUDE!!! And the food wasn't good enough for the price they charged. TOURIST TRAP!!!

By the way, I work in a private school that teaches Portuguese for Foreigners and most of the students know that I am a foodie person and often ask me good places to eat. For my sadness, I will never recommend this...