Kelly M.
Yelp
I see lots of reviews talking about how "classy" or "pretentious" they felt eating here, I'm not sure where you guys have dined but this place is neither. The only thing I will agree on is that this is indeed on the pricier side for a restaurant in Lisbon. This was easily my most expensive meal in the city during my stay.
Yes, as the other reviews note, you have to ring a bell to get into the restaurant. If I'm being honest, it felt more tacky than anything else. I thought they had accidentally locked the door when I showed up. I could understand if the door didn't lead immediately into the restaurant but it does, so the intended effect is not achieved. Not only this, but the little remote used to call the staff and indicate readiness to pay the bill is not "bougie." The other reviewers would like you to think it is, but anyone who's ever been to Koreatown in Los Angeles knows that almost every single restaurant there has the same device and many are far from bougie, with a good number offering simple Korean eats. In fact, many Asian restaurants in California offer such a device with many falling into the simple eats category.
Alright now that I got that out of the way, I will address the food. I will not be holding what I mentioned above against the restaurant as I rate primarily on food quality because that's what a restaurant is. To start things off, I had the garlic shrimp. These were very good. The sauce they were presented with was great. I believe they came with two red peppers that added a slight kick, which I thought made the dish delectable. However, the fact that there were only two meant I only got this flavor experience twice. I understand that Europe is not as used to spice as America or other countries but I think more red pepper pieces could've made the garlic shrimp truly phenomenal.
Next up, I had the octopus. It was tender with good flavor. However, I think the flavor was too dependent on the garlic served when it to ensure tastiness. The octopus did not stand well by itself, it was heavily reliant on the garlic. As with a lot of Portuguese cooking, this was an oil heavy dish. This wasn't too bad for the octopus, but made the potatoes inedible in my opinion. The potatoes were legitimately soaked through with oil and I just couldn't do it.
I was assured by my waiter that it was the octopus was most popular dish in the restaurant and that many come here just to order the octopus. High expectations to say the least. I will admit, it was the best octopus I had in Lisbon. It was not however, the best octopus I've ever had, that award would go to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. You might be wondering just how much octopus I tried here. Every single restaurant I went to in Lisbon insisted that their octopus was "the best," so I ate octopus at least once a day while here. I conclude, this was indeed the best octopus in Lisbon, just not the best ever. I don't recommend ordering octopus at other restaurants in Lisbon because I was here for 4 days indicating a 1/4th chance of having good octopus. I'm guessing the number would get worse if I stayed here longer.
Lastly, I finished up by indulging in the caramelized pineapple puff pastry. This was very good. The syrup on the plate tasted good which is a rare compliment from someone who is not a fan of syrups. The pastry itself worked well with the pineapple and blackberries underneath it and it was nicely complimented by the ice cream. I am not a fan of ice cream but I liked this stuff.
Overall, I would recommend coming to Frade dos Mares. The food likely won't disappoint. It was one of the best restaurants I ate at while in Lisbon. If I was in Lisbon for an extended period of time, I would likely come back. If someone asked me for what the best octopus I had in Lisbon was, I would point them to this place.