Castiço da Sé Porto

Who would've guessed that through the small streets between São Bento train station and Ribeira there would be a magical place that is, for a lot of portuenses, the meca of panados. Well... and what are panados? Well, it's basically the Portuguese rendition of Wiener Schnitzel, and a personal favourite of mine, especially due to the nostalgia of being a kid and eating these little rascals every time my mums decided to cook them.

And what exactly makes these panados so special? Well, besides the restaurant having that picturesque look of wood and old gourds all over the place (as a place like this should always have), the panados taste just about right, being not too greasy but not too dry, and with the spicy tomato and bean rice fitting perfectly for this particular food. As an extra, the owners are a delight to interact with, mainly Dona Carla, representing the harsher way of Porto people being nice: yes, they will like to have you there, but also they might sting you friendly with small provocations. Well...at least for me and my friends... that might be something they reserve for natives only. Nonetheless, it's an amazing and cheap place, where panados reign supreme!

Just make sure to call to know if they have them, since they don't always make it during the week.