CAFÉ CENTRAL – FOZ DO ARELHO
Not to be confused with the establishment of the same name by the fruit market in Caldas the Café Central in Foz do Arelho is a restaurant offering good Portuguese cooking at very affordable prices.
The owner, Fernando Aleixo, invested what must have been a small fortune in developing the extension to the ever-popular café which is adjacent to our office. The result is a smarter than usual Portuguese restaurant which, although catering principally to the local inhabitants, manages to attract a significant number of tourists during the summer season.
The restaurant is managed by Fernando junior and offers many of the usual dishes to be found in every Portuguese restaurant but with some additions. The quality of the fare is higher than usual with the chef having previously worked at the Grelha Nobre restaurant in Caldas.
Last night three of us ate at the Central; between us we had “fish and chips”, excellently cooked with sizzling hot chips; a tamboril rice stew, liberally sprinkled with prawns which was one of the day’s specials ( along with roast pork and fried chicken ). Our third diner ordered Naco na Pedra which is a sizeable piece of steak served to the table raw but all ready to cook on the fiercely heated stone which accompanies it. You can suit yourself how well you want it cooked and the meat is of exceptional quality.
All but one of us was too stuffed to cope with dessert as well but the odd one out enjoyed a chocolate tart which, although a generous portion, was light and, seemingly, highly enjoyable.
We ordered a carafe of wine which has to be the best house wine I have ever had and, with two coffees the bill came to a staggering 33 euros for the three of us!! Why eat in at prices like that?
I should not close without mentioning the service which being principally in the hands of our own delightful Andreia was, of course, impeccable.