New Michelin Guide Portugal revealed

On this evening, Chef Vítor Matos was the chef who shone brightest in this edition, winning a total of three Michelin stars. How is that possible? Two for the Antiqvvm restaurant in Porto and another for the 2Monkeys restaurant in Lisbon, which he shares with his colleague Francisco Quinta. As for the two Michelin stars, they also announced that all the restaurants that received two stars in the last edition will maintain the distinction this year.

Alongside his remarkable work in the kitchen at Antiqvvm, Chef Vítor Matos is expanding his offering, with the opening of new businesses and various collaborations (Blind, Hool, 2Monkeys, Salão Nobre, Onze...).

His proposal invites foodies to take a "trip around the world" with their taste buds, transcending the purely gastronomic, because, as he points out, through his dishes Vítor Matos seeks to "promote the values of a cultural, natural, social and artistic cuisine".

New restaurants awarded a MICHELIN Star

In addition to the restaurant awarded two stars, the MICHELIN Guide Portugal 2024 confirms the country's gastronomic growth with four new one-star additions. The total number of establishments in this category is currently 31.

2Monkeys, Lisbon

Chefs Vítor Matos and Francisco Quinta have revolutionised Lisbon's gastronomic offer with this restaurant, located inside the Torel Palace Lisbon hotel. Here, the experience takes on a new character, trying to narrate the flavours of Portugal from a creative perspective and around a gastronomic bar, so the atmosphere is more informal and there is a constant dialogue with the diner.

Desarma, Funchal

On the terrace of The Views Baía hotel in Funchal, there is a restaurant with a magnificent view of the coast that exudes originality from every pore. Chef Octávio Freitas' proposal rethinks the culinary experience as an imaginary battle between the senses and each flavour, always praising the splendid larder of the Madeira archipelago.

Ó Balcão, Santarém

In this establishment that seems an old tavern, chef Rodrigo Castelo defends the essence of Ribatejo cuisine. His proposal values the region's products and strives for authenticity, focusing his work on the defence of native Ribatejo species.

SÁLA by João Sá, Lisbon

Chef João Sá invites diners to discover other lands and other flavours in what he considers to be his home, inspired by his travels. His proposal ranges from local products and plantations, very localised in Portugal, to others with an exotic touch, with special references to the Asian world.

New Bib Gourmands and 2 MICHELIN Green Stars

For those unfamiliar with the term, Bib Gourmand rewards restaurants with the best quality-price ratio. There are currently 32 establishments in Portugal with this distinction, 8 of which are new this year. The new winners are: Flora (Viseu), Inato Bistrô (Braga), Norma (Guimarães), Olaias (Figueira da Foz), OMA (Baião), O Pastus (Paço de Arcos), Pátio 44 (Porto) and PODA (Montemor-o-Novo).

There are also two more restaurants with a green star, which reflects their commitment to more sustainable gastronomy, as the MICHELIN Green Stars recognise initiatives or commitment to sustainable gastronomy. These restaurants are: Malhadinha Nova, by João Sousa, in Albernoa, and Ó Balcão, by Rui Castelo, in Santarém, which also received a double award this evening.

After the ceremony, which was presented by Catarina Furtado and streamed on Youtube, we were invited upstairs for a food tasting of the seven Michelin-starred restaurants in the Algarve, which was an excellent opportunity to see how these delicious dishes are made right in front of us. Each restaurant had two dishes on the menu that gave us a flavour of what to expect when we visit them.

Please find below the full list of awarded restaurants:

1 star

· 2Monkeys (Lisboa, chef Vitor Matos e Francisco Quintas)*

· Desarma (Funchal, chef Octávio Freitas)*

· Balcão (Santarém, chef Rodrigo Castelo)*

· SÁLA de João Sá (Lisboa, chef João Sá)*

· Encanto (Lisboa, chef José Avillez e João Diogo Formiga)

· Euskalduna Studio (Porto, chef Vasco Coelho Santos)

· Kanazawa (Lisboa, chef Paulo Morais)

· Kabuki (Lisboa, chef Paulo Alves)

· Le Monument (Porto, chef Julien Montbabut)

· Al Sud (Lagos, chef Louis Anjos)

· A Ver Tavira (Tavira, chef Luís Brito)

· Cura (Lisboa, chef Pedro Pena Bastos)

· Esporão (Reguengos de Monsaraz, chef Carlos Teixeira)

· Vila Foz (Porto, chef Arnaldo Azevedo)

· 100 Maneiras (Lisboa, chef Ljubomir Stanisic)

· Mesa de Lemos (Viseu, chef Diogo Rocha)

· Epur (Lisboa, chef Vincent Farges)

· Fifty Seconds by Martín Berasategui (Lisboa, chef Filipe Carvalho)

· Midori (Sintra, chef Pedro Almeida)

· G Pousada (Bragança, chef Óscar Gonçalves)

· A Cozinha (Guimarães, chef António Loureiro)

· Bon Bon (Carvoeiro, chef José Lopes)

· Eleven (Lisboa, chef Joachim Koerper)

· Feitoria (Lisboa, chef André Cruz)

· Fortaleza do Guincho (Cascais, chef Gil Fernandes)

· LAB by Sergi Arola (Sintra, chef Sergi Arola)

· Loco (Lisboa, chef Alexandre Silva)

· Pedro Lemos (Porto, chef Pedro Lemos)

· William (Funchal, chef Luís Pestana)

· Vista (Portimão, chef João Oliveira)

· Gusto (Almancil, chef Heinz Beck)

2 Stars

· Antiqvvm (Porto, chef Vitor Matos)*

· Casa de Chá da Boa Nova (Leça da Palmeira, chef Rui Paula)

· Alma (Lisboa, chef Henrique Sá Pessoa)

· Belcanto (Lisboa, chef José Avillez)

· Il Gallo d’Oro (Funchal, chef Benoît Sinthon)

· Ocean (Alporchinhos, chef Hans Neuner)

· The Yeatman (Vila Nova de Gaia, chef Ricardo Costa)

· Vila Joya (Albufeira, chef Dieter Koschina)

Bib Gourmand

· Flora (Viseu, João Guedes Ferreira)

· Inato Bistrô (Braga, Tiago Costa e Miguel Rodrigues)

· Norma (Guimarães, Hugo Alves)

· O Pastus (Paço de Arcos, Annakaren Fuentes)

· Olaias (Figueira da Foz, Mónica Gomes)

· Oma (Baião, Luís Moreira)

· Patio 44 (Porto,Simão Soares e Afonso Ramos)

· Poda (Montemor-o-Novo, João Narigueta)

Recommended

· Apego (Porto, Aurora Goy)

· Bahr (Lisboa, Nuno Dinis)

· Blind (Porto, Rita Magro)

· Bomfim 1896 with Pedro Lemos (Pinhão, Gonçalo Pinto)

· Casa do Gadanha (Estremoz, Ruben Trindade Santos)

· Cavalariça (Comporta, Bruno Caseiro)

· Downunder (Lisboa, Justin Jennings)

· Fago (Marvão, José Diogo Branco)

· Fauno (Porto, Tiago Amorim)

· Gastro by elemento (Porto, Ricardo Dias Ferreira)

· Horta (Funchal, Santiago Agnolles)

· Lamelas (Porto Covo, Ana Moura)

· Ma (Coimbra, Ricardo Casqueiro)

· Noélia (Cabanas de Tavira, Noélia Jerónimo)

· Numa (Portimão, Nuno Martins)

· O Palco (Coimbra, Marco Almeida)

· Quinta do Tedo (Folgosa, Família Geadas)

· Seiva (Leça de Palmeira, David Jesus)

· Sem (Lisboa, Lara Prado e George Mcleod)

· Sem Porta (Muda, Tiago Maio)

· Vinha (Vila Nova de Gaia, Henrique Sá Pessoa e Jonathan Seiller)

Paula Martins is a fully qualified journalist, who finds writing a means of self-expression. She studied Journalism and Communication at University of Coimbra and recently Law in the Algarve. Press card: 8252

Paula Martins