Restaurants for You In Albufeira

I recently spent a week in Albufeira and tested the below restaurants. They are listed in no particular order.

Bellavita
An Italian restaurant with the familiar atmosphere we usually expect at Italian eateries but which is more and more hard to find. They serve pasta, pizza as well as fish and meat dishes. For dessert, they offer the Italian classics (Panna Cotta, Tiramisù, Affogato al Caffè). Their pizze are crisp, thin and with just enough toppings. Also they refrain from having “Pizza Hawaii” on their menu, which every Italian tells you isn’t authentic. The restaurant is very family and budget friendly. Pizze for EUR 8-13, pasta for EUR 10-14.

Bellavita Restaurant
Estrada dos Salgados, Vale Rabelho lote 38 – Galé, 8200-428 Albufeira
Opening Hours: Daily 11am-2am
Reservation recommended, online reservation possible.

Castelo do Mar
A Portuguese restaurant with an excellent view above the Albufeira harbor. The restaurant is a bit hidden, so drive slowly once you get close to it, otherwise you’ll miss it. They serve authentic Portuguese fish and meat dishes and the quality is excellent and so is the service. I liked in particular my starter which you see in the picture on the left: chicken liver paté with onion confit and toast. Most of the dishes had some creativity to it, like my dessert: fried vanilla ice cream with honey, see below.

Castelo do Mar Restaurant
Estrada da Orada, 8200-371 Albufeira
Opening Hours: Daily 4-10.30pm
Reservation recommended, let your hotel book a table.

O Marineirho
Again a Portuguese restaurant, mentioned also in the Guide Michelin as a Bib Gourmand. And what can I say? Fresh cuisine – they always have a catch of the day – with very good meat and fish dishes. Starters were delicious and generously sized. Only of the desserts were slightly disappointing, with the exception of the black rasperry sorbet, which was indeed oustanding. However, hospitality is top, including a Port wine on the house after dinner and just order the black rasperry sorbet for dessert and nothing else and you’re good.

O Marineirho Restaurant
Estrada da Praia da Coelha, 8200 Albufeira
Opening Hours: Daily 6.30-11.30pm
Reservation recommended, online reservation possible.

A Casa do Avô
Another Portuguese restaurant mentioned in the Guide Michelin as a Bib Gourmand, with a compelling offer of a three course menu for EUR 19.90 consisting of a starter from the buffet, a choice of main course with usually 3-4 alternatives and a dessert. The buffet was really good and I liked my pata negra course with fries a lot and the dessert was delicious; a lemon meringue pie (cover anything in meringue and I’ll eat it). The only downside was that my family asked for garlic free food and then the offer shrunk dramatically. Moreover, after dinner, my mom didn’t feel well and suspected that some food had garlic after all.

 

A Casa do Avô Restaurant
Sítio de Vale de Parra, 8200-427 Albufeira
Opening Hours: Daily 12.30-3pm and 6.30-10.30pm

Restaurant L14 (belongs to the Salgados Dunas Suites Hotel)
This restaurant was chosen by us simply because it was closest to our room  the evening we arrived. It was a surprising good restaurant though. Service was attentive and the food was fresh and nicely prepared. They offer a Portuguese cuisine at fine dining level with moderate prices (from a Swiss view). One of their desserts won an award last year: a fig tart with vanilla ice cream and meringue crumbles. I liked it, but I wasn’t blown away (last picture on the right).

L14 Restaurant
Rua Boca da Alagoa, Salgados Vila das Lagoas Apartments, 8200-424 Guia, Albufeira
Opening Hours: Daily 4pm-midnight

Vila Joya
Please read here.

Vila Joya
Estrada da Galé, 8201-917 Albufeira
Opening Hours: Daily for lunch and dinner
Reservation required, online reservation possible. Dress code mentioned as “casual elegant” (no clue what that is).

After a week at the Algarve, I didn’t have a single bad meal. The Portuguese cuisine is based on fish and meat dishes and the typical side dish is potatoes. I’d say vegetarians/vegans have a hard time here, but then I didn’t look for meat-/animalless options. Regarding the Guide Michelin evaluation, I do not quite understand why O Marineirho is a Bib Gourmand and the Castelo do Mar is not – in my opinion they are on the same level. Perhaps, the testers didn’t know about the Castelo do Mar.