Restaurante Cozinha da Ci — Restaurant in Vila Nova de Gaia

We found Restaurante Cozinha da Ci at lunch time after a port tour and tried it because it had good reviews. It was nearly full at 12.30, with a French group (always a sign of good food!). It only has 14 seats and we got the second to last table of 2. It has a small menu of very good food! We tried the pork cheek with chips and salad (extremely delicious) and the bacalao fishcakes with bean rice (very tasty). Followed by chocolate cake (which I don't usually like but this was delicious) and creme brulee (extremely delicious). Plus a beer, a lemonade and a coffee, the bill came to €35, so very reasonable!

The French group ordered chorizo flambé, which was fun to watch as it burned at their table for 10 minutes! The lady who took our orders and served us was such a nice, kind, smiling lady, who spoke excellent English and also tried French, though she said English was easier. She made it a wonderful experience.

While we were there about 40 more people came in to ask for a table but they were turned away because there were no more tables!

A few days later we returned as they opened, at 12.00. It filled up again by 12.40. We tried the chips with eggs, peppers and mushrooms (good) and a plate of padron peppers to share but I ate them all (awesome), meatballs (nice) and chips. Their chips are homemade, fried in olive oil - delicious. We caved in and had dessert again. Still delicious! With 2 beers and a coffee, about €35 again. We had a lovely chat with the waitress, again very smiley and kind! These two meals were the most enjoyable we've had in Porto this week. Excellent food, good value, lovely staff, relaxed and no hassling to leave! We so enjoyed visiting here - thank you so much to the ladies who run the restaurant! Excellent...

Don't be distracted by a restaurant that offers port tastings. Across the street in Gaia is a small family-owned Portuguese restaurant worth visiting. After stopping in for lunch on a Thursday in August, here's my experience:

1. Food: I ordered the Portuguese cabbage soup and the "ovos rotos" with a Coca-Cola. Each dish was delicious and fresh tasting. The ovos rotos comes out with a runny egg and fried peppers and mushrooms on perfectly fried French fries. So tasty!

2. Price: My entire bill came to 13 Euros for a soup, main dish and a soda.

3. Space: It's tiny with just a few seats, but it's quaint. By the front, there's a world map with pins in it representing where guests are visiting from.

4. Service: When I dined here, there was a server and a cook in an open kitchen. Both were very attentive...

Cozinha da Ci is one of the best restaurants I’ve been to in Portugal! As a vegetarian, it’s hard to find places where I can get a “typical Portuguese meal” and actually have a full meal, complete with a good, unprocessed protein. (I’ve been to Pt more than a few times now.) The eggs with mushrooms & potatoes was generous & delicious- I hadn’t eaten all day after traveling from Lisboa, and I decided on this place after browsing options. After the lime mousse, which was a perfect ending on a warm, humid evening, I left on cloud 9.! I’m very appreciative of the delicious, home-made food, the absolutely amazing sangria (made like I make it, which is rare!), and the amazing women who make the magic happen🙏 I’ll be...