Problem: how to choose a restaurant in Bairro Alto among the huge offer of over-prized tourist trap serving” fado and traditional food” and more modern, but often disappointing, new offerings?

That’s an easy one! Go to Império dos Sentidos. Trendy setting. Monthly rotating art-exhibitions on the walls. Right in the middle of Bairro Alto, the ideal launch-platform for a great night out. One of the few good restaurants in BA that will serve you after midnight.

The food is a mixture of Portuguese and Italian cuisine. Ah, and don’t forget the champagne sangria.

Have a drink in Capela afterwards to kick-start your night out.

P.S. – say hi to António for me.

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Império dos Sentidos | Restaurants (Port/Italian) | Dinner € 25.00
Rua da Atalaia 35-37 | Bairro Alto | +351213431822
Tue – Sun 19:30 – 02:00

This hotel is one of the most charming luxury hotels in downtown Lisbon. It’s location could not be better: right at the Praça Luis Camões.

Just like Hotel Chiado, the real price for me is the top-floor terrace. Comfortable sofas and chairs, heating and a great view.

Come at night, and have a drink here before dinner. The terrace is heated, so it’s comfortable all year round.

Expect to see a lot of (well-off) foreigners and no Portuguese at all. Prices are as expected: expensive. Best to just take a deep sigh and enjoy the view. Or have some of the free Japanese snacks.

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Hotel Bairro Alto | Bars | Beer & view € 4.00
Praça Luís de Camões 8 | Bairro Alto | +351213408288
Summer 12:30 – 00:00 daily | Winter 12:30 – 22:00 daily

When I have foreign guests to entertain, I often opt for this restaurant. The reasons are plentiful. Located in the middle of Bairro Alto, the restaurant is housed in a beautifully restored wine-cellar.

The food is typical Portuguese and of high quality. Try the fish and seafood. Find out why Portuguese have fetish for codfish. Service is great.

They serve food until late in the evening, so it’s a nice place for night owls.

If you plan to go here in the weekend, your patience will be tested every now and then. It has happened that I had to wait quit long for my table, although I had a reservation. Fortunately the restaurant has a nice bar to have a drink while you wait.

And wait for the dessert trolley. Yum!

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Lisboa à Noite | Restaurants (Portuguese) | Main dish € 15.00
Rua das Gáveas 69/71 | Bairro Alto | +351213468557
Mon – Sat 19:30 – 01:00

So many bars in Bairro Alto, why go to Capela? Owner and resident-DJ Pedro is one of the main embassadors of Elektropop in Lisbon. Music never comes second place in Capela.

Prepare yourself for a kaleidoscope of people and styles and just let go! It looks a bit trashy, but you will get used to it.

When most bars are winding down late at night, Capela keeps just getting better. And since the place is rather small and narrow, you are guaranteed to meet lots of people.

Great combo: late dinner at Império dos Sentidos (next door) and then off to Capela.

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Capela | Bars, Music | Bacardi Limon € 4.00
Rua da Atalaia 45 | Bairro Alto | +351213470072
20:00 – 02:00 daily

Sol e Pesca is a former shop that once sold fishing equipment. It has been out of business for over 20 years. But that did not stop the new owners to launch a bar using the same theme. It feels like you are entering a “fishy” store. Besides beer and other alcoholic snacks, they have wide assortment of canned fish and sea-food (“conservas” as Portuguese call it) which can be eaten on the spot. Quite a unique mix, but it works very well and beats peanuts!

A great place to have a drink, a chat and some fish. It is located in the middle of Cais de Sodré. This area is becoming increasingly popular, with new bars opening up (or old ones being renovated). This place fits in perfectly since it respects the “harbour” spirit of the neighbourhood: a bit shafy, a bit alternativa, but very cool.

Expect the bar (and the whol street) to fill up after 02:00.

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Sol e Pesca | Bars | Beer € 2.00
Rua Nova do Carvalho 44 | Bairro Alto | +351213467203
Tue – Wed 12:00 – 02:00, Thu – Sat 12:00 – 04:00

Let´s say I have a birthday dinner somewhere in Bairro Alto. And I had the busiest day and hadn’t have any time to buy a present. No problem, now we have Bairro Arte to solve our lack of gift-shops during nightlife.

Bairro Arte, besides being a gift shop, is also an art gallery. It’s an art gallery like any other, but as any other art gallery it’s unique by nature. Nevertheless, one thing Bairro Arte can’t be called is a simple gift-shop, for each thing they sell is very exclusive and original.

I feel like being in a shop in Barcelona when I enter the shop, because the stuff they sell is creative and colorful as Barcelona is. For example, they have marble tiles with nice and fun paintings, giant kangaroos statues for our living room, puffs in shape of balls, trendy bags and many things more.

The building where Bairro Arte is installed is a very nice example itself of Lisbon old architecture and a well-restored building. And it has a very picturesque and outstanding chimney. The entrance is in the middle of the building, which divides the room for the shop and the room for the art gallery. I always take more time on the shop side. Shame on me!

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Bairro Arte | Art & culture, Shopping | Free
Rua das Salgadeiras, 5 | Bairro Alto | +351910571594
Mon – Fri 16:00 – 01:00, Sat – Mon 14:00 – 01:00

This is a nice and warm bodega in Bairro Alto, right in front of Maria Caxuxa’s bar. But different from this one, Bairru’s is more of a wine bar, a place where I go with my friends to sit, chat and have some wine or sangria.

Since I usually don’t drink that much, a couple of glasses is fine for me – it’s a good thing they sell wine by the glass. Of course, if we are more than three on the table, a bottle is much better. And of course they sell bottles too.

As companion to good wine and good friends, they play some very good Portuguese music. And the staff is chatty and friendly too, which makes the place even cozier.

After dining out in Bairro Alto, this is the place to go just after.

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Bairru’s Bodega | Bars | Glass of wine € 3.50
Rua da Barroca, nº 2 | Bairro Alto | +351213469060
17:00 – 02:00 daily

This large, busy Portuguese restaurant has been one of my favorites for many years in Lisbon. Situated on the edge of the Bairro Alto this restaurant is always very lively and crowded and often there are people queuing to get in whilst the waiters bustle frantically from table to table carrying plates of food and bottles of wine.

This restaurant is frequented by locals and tourists alike (the menu is in both Portuguese and English), the dishes are extremely reasonably priced and the atmosphere in the restaurant is one of conviviality and good cheer. I thoroughly recommend any of the grilled fish dishes, which are always accompanied by the traditional boiled potatoes and green beans (or chips/rice and salad if you prefer).

If you are wanting a quiet, relaxing evening meal then this is not the place to go, but if you want to experience an evening surrounded by the chatting and laughter of large groups of friends and relatives then look no further than Príncipe do Calhariz. Please note, this restaurant is closed all day on Saturday and on public holidays.

I should warn you that as this is on the tourist track it is advisable to watch your personal belongings as there are pickpockets at work.

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Restaurante Príncipe do Calhariz | Restaurants (Portuguese) | Main meal € 12.00
Calçada do Combro 28/30 | Bairro Alto | +351213420971
Sun – Fri 12:00 – 15:30 & 20:00 – 22:30

Imagine an old Parisian café, with little wrought-iron tables, old leather armchairs and vintage black and white pictures hanging on the walls.

Now you can transfer this image into Lisbon’s Bairro Alto, and add a touch of 21st century modernity – a wi-fi internet connection, Chill Out or Bossa Nova ambient music, some seriously delicious snacks, which mix Italian, French and Spanish ingredients – and you have Les Mauvais Garçons!

When we first found this spot it was love at first site – this is one of the cosiest bistrôs in town! In the same space you can find groups of friends having after-work drinks, couples in a romantic date and mysterious loners reading a book or surfing the web.

In its crowdest periods, it can be quite noisy as its different influences bring people from all over the world there – sometimes it can seem like the Tower of Babel!

But most of the times this is a top spot to go to, with a nice wine selection, famous appetizers and desserts and a trendy atmosphere!

Vee’s favourites – Amazing Desserts.

Rita’s favourites – Vintage leather armchairs, bruschettas and pan tomaquet (crusty bread with a spicy tomato sauce)

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Les Mauvais Garçons | Bars, Coffee & tea, Snacks | Wine € 2.50
Rua da Rosa 39 | Bairro Alto | +351213433212
12:00 – 00:00 daily

There is nothing sweeter than a Noobai evening! Discreet and hidden away next to the grungiest (some would say dodgy) ‘miradouro’ (viewing spot) in town, Noobai will take you by surprise. It keeps to the basics, cold beer, drinks and minimalist snacks for pecking. But the view is amazing and the environment is great for taking a rest after a long day.

I have come here often and have never had a bad time. The service is friendly and most importantly, you can keep the focus on your good company while you watch the sun come down. The view is not of a picturesque Lisbon, but a rather more realistic and crude one. The music in the background is also quite pleasant. In sum, all the ingredients necessary for a worry free time, focusing on the important things: friends and conversation.

If it’s a sunny day prepare to head over earlier around 18:00.

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Noobai | Bars, Snacks | Main meal € 15.00
Miradouro de Santa Catarina (Adamastor) | Bairro Alto | +351213465014
Tue – Thu 12:00 – 22:00, Fri – Sat 12:00 – 00:00, Sun 12:00 – 00:00

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