by Karl Wilder
Unless they can master the Lisbon bus system – and still want to take a long walk – then visitors to 5 Oceanos will have to take a taxi. For this dock side eaterie with its views over the sea is way off the public transport network but consider the Euros spent on the cab an investment in eating at this quite extraordinary restaurant on the pier. It is so well worth the cost of the fare to have the meal of a lifetime.
And if you take a look at its website, it would be easy to conclude that this fish and seafood restaurant is way out of your price league. After all, the online menu has no prices – usually a sign that you would require special banking facilities on the way in.
But you could not be more wrong. This serves food from the ocean – and many of the dishes are costed according to that day’s market prices and the weight of the food on your plate. It really is a bargain.
Imagine a pile of what appear to be insect legs piled on a plate, you twist the foot of this grubby black creature, remove the skin and find the ocean inside. Sea Barnacles were my first bite at my first dinner in Lisbon.
I have eaten around the world and feel I have tasted most everything, yet these ugly little bites were a revelation. Your first barnacle is like a first love, you will never forget it.
Oh but there was more, garlicky clams, fresh oysters, cockles and a fish fresh from the water simply prepared and simply delicious.
This along with a bottle of exquisite red, a Douro from the region called Carm. Being as I was with Carmen, it was the perfect wine. Never be afraid to pair red with fish. Break the rules, live a little and eat bugs from the sea.
Life can still surprise when you allow it to.
And back from this reverie to the price on the bill. It all depends what you eat but two people can dine magnificently with a good bottle of wine in exchange for a fifty Euro note. At lunchtime, you can do well with ten Euros a person.
Address: Doca de Santo Amaro,
Armazém 12,
1350-353 Lisboa
website(in English as well as Portuguese) http://lisboa.5oceanos.pt/
Phone (+351) 213 978 015
email: [email protected]
