A generous toasted loaf of bread, red meat, sausage, melted cheese and a helping of crispy fries. To complete, dip this sandwich in a deep dish with a thick sauce based on beer or port wine and, if you like, add an egg with soft yolk on top and you have the famous francesinha.
Despite the name, the delicacy is typical of the city of Harborin the north of Portugal, and has variations, such as those with ham, sausages, chicken or even vegetarian versions. But three facts are certain: it was not made to be light; the francesinha is devoured with a knife and fork; and both residents and tourists of the city consume the dish, routinely.
So, it’s almost mandatory to try francesinha when you’re in Porto. Whether in the historic center or on the other side of the Douro River, in Vila Nova de Gaianew or traditional restaurants prepare the dish succulently and add a touch of originality: each one has sauces with recipes that differ from each other – some kept under lock and key.
Next, check out five restaurants in the city of Porto where you can eat a good (and well served) francesinha:
Santiago coffee
It is one of the most traditional and well-known houses in Porto to enjoy a good francesinha, highly recommended even by the people of Porto. The restaurant, close to Praça dos Poveiros and Rua Santa Catarina, famous for its various shops, it was founded in 1959 and has the dish as its flagship.
Here, in addition to the well-known ingredients, francesinha has bologna, fresh sausage and ham (cooked ham), but its secret lies in the sauce, described by the house itself as “inimitable”. The pots, the seasonings, the boiling time… There are several elements that contribute to distinguishing the house sauce.
Rua Passos Manuel 226, 4000-382 Porto, Portugal
T&C
Just cross the D. Luís I bridge, Porto’s postcard, and you will arrive in Vila Nova de Gaia. It’s in the WOW – World of Winea new complex of museums, restaurants and shops, where you can eat a perfect francesinha at the T&C restaurant and have one of the best views of the city of Porto.
The house has a sophisticated rustic decoration – it was an old port wine cellar and some tables are inside replicas of large barrels – and serves dishes that every Portuguese family makes and knows, including francesinha. Here, she takes the sirloin steak, sausage, egg and sauce with Port Wine – and is accompanied by a portion of French fries.
Interestingly, T&C also serves the vegetarian version of the dish, made with tofu, tofu sausage, eggplant and mushrooms.
Rua do Choupelo, 39, 4400-088 – Vila Nova de Gaia, Portugal
Brewery coat of arms
Next to Café Santiago, the coat of arms is another well-known business in the city when it comes to francesinhas and cold beer. There are four units spread across the region, and the restaurant near Avenida dos Aliados is one of the most popular.
There are not many detours, the house francesinha goes in the oven, takes the most traditional ingredients of the dish and is dipped in a succulent sauce. As it is very well served and stuffed (go really hungry!), you can also order half a portion and even with or without egg. To complete, the tip is to order “a thin”: cold beer in a 250 or 400 ml glass.
Rua Ramalho Ortigão 28, 4000-407 Porto, Portugal (Allied Unit). Check the website for the other three units in the city.
buffet phase
It is, perhaps, the most straightforward place on the list: with very few tables, here you only eat francesinha, without many options beyond that. The small restaurant at the top of Rua Santa Catarina, a long road with large department stores close to the historic center, serves the typical dish in a different way: with a spicy sauce and sausages on top of melted cheese on bread.
Because it is very limited, the buffet phase there are usually queues at the door – where there are often more locals than tourists. Family business, reservations are not possible here.
Rua Santa Catarina 1147, 4000-457 Porto, Portugal
Afonso
A little further up the main attractions of the historic center, on Rua da Torrinha, Afonso is another reference in the city of Porto when it comes to francesinhas. Very generous, it is stuffed with bologna, ham, steak, more ham, sausage, sausage and cheese, in that order, in addition to toasted bread, melted cheese, egg and sauce.
The simple house with Portuguese tiles even has a painting with the face of Anthony Bourdain on the walls: not by chance, the chef and presenter visited the place in 2017 for his program on CNN North American and, of course, ate the francesinha. “Meat, cheese, fat and bread: an immortal combination,” he said.
Rua da Torrinha, 219, 4050-612 Porto, Portugal
Source: CNN Brasil
