O Laranjeira | Pensão Restaurante — Restaurant in Viana do Castelo

The restaurant: Food was okay nothing special. I asked for octopus, it was good but my husband had the lamb chops and they were very chewy and not enough cooked for our taste. Also be aware they will charge you the bread and cheese per person even if you don't ask for it. We thought it was included as in other portuguese restaurants along the Camino however we had to pay more than 7eur for it. For gluten and lactose-free folks like me that's not convenient at all. The rooms: they were small but comfortable and clean good enough for one night. The breakfast was very disappointing. We got a small plate of fruit for the three of us. I could have eaten the whole plate by myself. Besides that only bread and cheese not good if you have a special diet. I asked for a simple omelet and an extra banana and I had to pay 7.50eur for that. I should have had a second breakfast somewhere else...

We had an excellent meal at O Laranjeira. The atmosphere is calm but not stuffy, the staff were very pleasant and the food was incredible.

We both started with the tasting plate; in our case a cod fritter, a local sausage, a shot of garlic soup and a raw cabbage salad. Each was individually delicious and the combination worked very well. I had the kid (goat) as my main course and the roast potatoes alone were amazing. The meat was delicious and tender and the vegetables savoury and fresh. From the beautiful selection on the dessert trolley I chose the lemon merengue pie, which was perfectly light.

It was a...

We had lunch here on a Saturday and even though the staff was nice and attentive, that does not make up for the reheated potatoes on the pork and chestnut dish, which was unremarkable. Furthermore, we selected this restaurant considering that the price per dish was a little below the other nearby restaurants, but as 0,5l of water costs 2€ and a beer costs 2,5€ the bill quickly added up anyway. We asked for 1 covert, but were charged 2xindivual coverts which meant 4€ for supermarket bread, olives and thin slices of cheese. If we ever visit Viana do Castelo again, we will look for other...