Essencial

Restaurant · Bairro Alto ·

Essencial

Restaurant · Bairro Alto ·

Open kitchen with French-Portuguese seafood & meat tasting menu

Information

R. da Rosa 176, 1200-390 Lisboa, Portugal Get directions

€50+

@infatuation

132,814 Postcards · 3,234 Cities

The 29 Best Restaurants In Lisbon - Lisbon - The Infatuation

"Essencial is a buzzy, tiny, and minimal restaurant in the middle of Bairro Alto that feels more like having dinner inside someone’s (very well-decorated) house rather than at an actual restaurant. Pick from two options: a full menu with dishes like oven-baked rice and scarlet shrimp or a three-course tasting for small plates of turbot with caviar and pigeon foie gras." - rita geraldes

https://www.theinfatuation.com/lisbon/guides/best-restaurants-lisbon-portugal

Joana Freitas

Essencial

@michelinguide

48,380 Postcards · 8,030 Cities

"This small restaurant, set on a side street in the popular Bairro Alto, features a fully open kitchen in the centre of the room and minimalist décor in neutral tones. Drawing from his experiences in international restaurants, Chef André Lança Cordeiro blends French techniques with seasonal Portuguese ingredients. You’ll find dishes brimming with personality, such as the famous pâté en croûte stuffed in various ways, or the lobster & sweetbread vol-au-vent, prepared with barnacles, mussels, codium seaweed, and samphire... The fixed-price menu is complemented by a solid tasting menu. Be sure to check out the wine list — it’s very appealing!" - Michelin Inspector

https://guide.michelin.com/en/lisboa-region/lisboa/restaurant/essencial

Essencial

@infatuation

132,814 Postcards · 3,234 Cities

Essencial - Review - Bairro Alto - Lisbon - The Infatuation

https://www.theinfatuation.com/lisbon/reviews/essencial

Joana Freitas

Essencial

ruwei Y.

Google

It was truly amazing! From the starters to the desserts, every dish was crafted with so much care and attention to detail — absolutely unforgettable. All the staff were incredibly polite and gentlemen-like, and the main course was even presented and explained by the chef himself. I’ll definitely come back next time! Highly recommended.

Matt

Google

Wonderful meal and experience which we all loved. The open kitchen is awesome to watch the chefs do their thing, and they were very accommodating to us. There wasn’t a course we didn’t like and would highly recommend anyone to come here!

Jorge R.

Google

Essencial is a wonderful establishment to explore local cuisine, offering dishes with excellent flavor and a French influence. The service was exceptional; they guided us through each ingredient, the preparation process, and, if desired, provided a curated wine pairing to complement the meal. It truly is a unique and fantastic culinary experience.

Nelson C.

Google

Beautiful food, excellent service, the atmosphere is very calm and elegant. It’s a place that you can relax and also return. They got a tasting menu and also a menu if you don’t feel doing the tasting.

Anastasia S.

Google

I chose this restaurant based on good marks and to be honest i was very upset with everything…. Firstly, they don’t serve any plates for bread and butter, within a minute our table was full of crumbs.. no one came to wipe it until we asked We thought that full set menu for 90 eur includes best dishes from the restaurant, but in fact we didn’t like any of them, maybe just seabass and a dessert were good That was very disappointing, because dishes from menu for 55 eur looked more attractive than ours. Overall the taste of all dishes was kinda weird, the sauces overlayed the taste. The dish with pigeon was the weirdest for me, like they rolled meat in kind of an omelette, and the sauce was too strong Feeling upset after visiting, because I expected something more tasty

Olga G.

Google

This is an insanely good restaurant. Don't think twice. The zucchini flowers with snow crab, the lobster roll, shrimp rice, the yuzu pistachio desert are to die for. The atmosphere is amazing - the kitchen is right there in front of you, and yet you cannot feel its closeness in terms of smell. All the staff is extremely professional, welcoming and collected. An amazing dinner!!!

Yael S.

Google

“Fantastic dinner at Essencial. French cuisine with a personal and creative touch from the chef. We chose the 3-course set menu and loved every part of it. The bread starter was excellent, and the amuse-bouche, especially the gougères, were outstanding. The lobster with caviar was delicious, as was the lamb. A great experience in an informal setting with truly creative food. Exactly what I love!

Flor D.

Google

The place is quite expensive for what it offers. We spent 80 euros each! The service is very good, but the food is not fresh, the menu combinations feel a bit odd, and the options are very limited considering the price. The restaurant should either be larger or have a better atmosphere. Unfortunately, the food didn’t sit well with me and gave me stomach cramps.