Em Lume Brando — Restaurant in Vila do Bispo

As a foodie, it's almost a chore to eat here after reading all the great reviews. With an attitude to that, we reserved a table. The menu goes by "less is more" and makes our foodie heart beat faster. Selected dishes only. Quickly you can choose one of the 4 appetizers, or one of the 3 main courses of fish or meat each. For vegetarians there is only one dish. The colorful tomato peach salad with smoked cream cheese creates a successful start, wonderfully fresh and summery light. The meat croquettes are exciting and spicy. Although a little too long fried and therefore very crispy and somewhat dry. Promptly, the extremely attentive servide serves the main course. Both cod and octopus come to the table promisingly. At least as far as the visual presentation is concerned. Unfortunately, both dishes are disappointing in the end. The cod is juicy and tender but the puree is spice-less and bland. The octopus is tough and just as tasteless as the very cute gnocci and the vegetable puree that resembles more of a baby mush and is flavorless. We forgo dessert and are very puzzled by the previous reviews. But maybe we just...

Difficult 5 stars for me. I wondered whether to give 4 stars instead. Outstanding appetizers and desserts but main courses fell a little short. The place is a nice corner in this resort village by the sea. Quiet area with nice greenery around. The outside seating area is a must ( I recommend reservation if you want to guarantee outdoor seating). Service is 5 stars. We tried 3 appetizers and 3 desserts and they were first class. For the mains the ribeye steak was medium well instead of medium rare. The lamb was overdone and lacking in taste. The fish and octopus were good. My recommendation for 2 people would be to order everything in the appetizer and dessert section and share the main dish. I wanted to deduct a star for the mains but considering the rest of the meal and the service with reasonable prices by international standards, I decided to go for 5. Recommend if you are...

Worth the interesting experience. Creative but fails the under-promise and over-deliver test for me personally. Smoked sous vide mackerel was fantastic cook, texture and flavor, the miniscule dollops of unnecessary avocado crema an odd choice. "Summer" salad was a giant miss - just a bowl of bruschetta topping with ham on top. Scallops perfectly cooked but the accompanying pasta perfectly not. "Octopus" bottarga so insignificant that it is unfair to even list it as a dish component. "Celery" gnocchi had no celery - perhaps a translation error and should have been celeriac? "Gnocchi" also a misexecution attempt assuming they meant Italian fluffy pillow pasta made from potatoes. Tempura green beans crunchy and fun. All-orange-colored dessert should have been described as having been all-orange-colored, plus foam! as the driving concept....