Portuguese Taverna

Culinary travels hidden treasures: TAVERNA PORTUGUESA

Restaurants are sometimes comparable to ships navigating in the sea at times they sail through stormy weather and gusty winds, now and then they are embraced and loved by the deep blue ocean, until finally caressed by a soft breeze drop anchor in the calm waters of a safe harbour.

This seems to have been the culinary itinerary of Taverna Portuguesa entrenched in the middle of the industrious community of Paarden Eiland, which under guidance of the old owner Joaquim, was an bastion of Portuguese traditional cuisine.

Less memorable times followed until recently, new owners took the helm of the restaurant steering it back to the old glory and loyal patrons started coming back to enjoy the emblematic ambiance and the service of the famous eatery.

Taverna Portuguesa has regained that continental warm atmosphere, since the moment that you step in and get the special ”Cheers” feeling that "everybody knows your name".

What you expect from a Taverna like Portuguese vocabulary means "a place where traditional cuisine is served at a fair price" and that is what you get.

To prove that statement the menu is extensive, featuring the most popular dishes of the Portuguese cuisine from Codfish, Sardines, Chouriço, Calamari tentacles, trinchado, espetada or L.M style chicken.

Tasting any of these dishes is a rewarding experience to your palate, while you will be able to detect the subtle nuances of flavour and seasoning in food.

Taverna deserves to be ranked among the outlets that serve genuine Portuguese food in a very demanding and competitive environment like Cape Town.

The only downside is that there is no pairing of these traditional Portuguese food dishes, with Portuguese wines, an important detail not to be overlooked and that needs to be corrected in the wine list.