Tonight I took the family out to our local Portuguese Restaurant which I now know is more Mozambican Portuguese influenced than being genuine Portuguese. The week in the Algarve was interesting and disappointing at the same time for finding local culinary dishes. I like Peri Peri and it was around, but not quite the same from what we are used to and when we move there we will have to make our own sauces.
One of the draw cards that keeps pulling me back each time is the fresh crispy Portuguese rolls which goes very well with their home made chili sauce. The sauce is so popular that it has now made it's way into the super markets around the country .I can vouch for this sauce as I can sit and eat this with a spoon as here is a slight burn, but a hint of lemon comes through as well.
My daughter had the seafood rice which I noticed is available in Portugal as well so that was about the only similarity I noticed tonight. The owners family of the restaurant is from Madeira and they shut the doors for the entire period of January as they all return home for a 1 month holiday.
Granny had the usual which is the prawns and I had the full chicken which is 1000 x better than Nando's and 1/3 rd of the price. This is the juiciest chicken around and for once I could not finish the entire plate.
I ordered extra hot and I guess the alcohol took the sting away as it was not noticeable. Maybe I will notice how hot this is tomorrow. I can recall a story when my brother asked what is ring sting and I made him find out lol. He has never forgotten this incident.
My son had the Portuguese steak and I was not sure what made this Portuguese and my guess maybe the Mozambican sauce. My son in law ad the ribs which is nuts as why order something that you can get everywhere else hence no photo.
My grandson took great delight in informing them it was my birthday so he could get the free bowl of ice cream. The kids had chicken schnitzel of the kiddies menu which is like an upgraded chicken nugget.
We were swamped with drinks with everyone ordering jam jars and fish bowls of alcohol and typically taking advantage of grandpa's wallet. We do not do this often and I suppose they make hay whilst the sun is shining .The entire bill including tip for 5 adults and 2 kids was roughly $100 which I guess I know now is cheap in comparison to what is in Europe. This bill would have been more than double and possibly triple in the UK.
The good thing is the family was all together and we had a good time out which is what this is all really about. As we were leaving there was a big queue outside and I guess everyone was avoiding load shedding which was kicking off at 8pm. This restaurant has generators and solar so they are well equipped for this scenario and should cash in tonight.
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Happy Birthday!... belated.
I was thinking, why are YOU paying for your birthday?? I seem to always be treated on mine. I do get it though. Actually, if the food is really good, 5 adults and 2 children, $100 doesn't sound so bad, especially with extra drinks.
"Maybe I will notice how hot this is tomorrow" ...THAT made me laugh. It reminded me of once, long ago, the women in my family went to a restaurant where we had been once before and on the previous visit, my younger sister had gotten some sort of spicy-hot shrimp and I had vowed if we ever went back, that is what I would order, so I did. They were SO delicious and I couldn't quit eating them. Nobody warned me about the next day.... LOL... Lord Have Mercy !!! ....I had never experienced such a thing and I was truly surprised. I did learn my lesson, but still, they were amazingly good.
Glad you had a good outing with your family for your special day.
Yes ring sting is not a myth. My brother was spending a week with me when I was living in Durban and here was a burger joint called Gobble And Go. They were an Indian fast food outlet that was quite popular back then and their sauce was so good, but had a rather harsh burn. I only remembered about this when I was in the UK recently and my brother mentioned this story when we visited a curry house. It did make me chuckle as he had no clue what was coming.
I always pay for birthdays lol and I also thought the bill was very reasonable with drinks.
I was not familiar with "ring sting".... but it reminded me of something I had heard before about "burning you a new one".....which when I heard it, was applied to someone getting a bad whipping, however, the words kind of seemed to apply to this "happening".... but admittedly is not very lady-like to say..... it did make me laugh though.
That is nice of you to pay for your birthday. It makes it special for everyone I am sure.
I think guys speak in another language on certain topics and you only find out the terms and what they really mean when you experience them lol. I took everyone over seas last year for 2 weeks so a birthday meal is cheap. Travelling with 7 people is a nightmare as not everyone fits in taxis along with suit cases so you have a convoy. I think I was numb to the restaurant bills after about the second day.
Oh wow! Yeah, I can see how a mere $100 seemed like nearly nothing next to the two week trip.
Happy of Happiest birthdays my friend! We l have a Portuguese/ Mozambiquan style food. Although there are heavy influences if Portuguese cooking i Mozambiquan cuisine, they are not the same. However, our restaurant, Petiscos, never disappoints!
We also went out for my birthday to "Ons Huisie' which was just phenomenal in every way. Aside from the incredible food, it is situated in a small private bay on the Wes Coast, so we got the most of the gorgeous sunset and the boys got a chance to run in and out of the water, and as parents we felt totally safe. Which is rare these days. Celebrating with my best friend in the whole world, her mother and my family is what made it most magical though!
Yes there is a very big difference in food between Portuguese people from Mozambique and Portuguese people from Portugal. We were disappointed in the Portuguese food in the Algarve as it was fairly bland. Thanks so much and a belated Happy Birthday to you as well.
Happy Birthday! It was just my daughter and wife's birthdays too!
Thanks mine was earlier in the week and made more sense to go out on a Friday night.
Wishing you a very Happy Birthday dear @cryptoandcoffee. Wishing you best of health and happiness..cheers
Thanks.
Happy Birthday! 🙌🏻
My wife and I bought some peri peri sauce a while ago and it was good, but we couldn't really eat too much of it. It really packs a punch!
There is different strengths and it is not all hot.
Good to know!
dooooooood... that looks like good stuff!!!
happy bday!
Thank you. It was decent food.
Thank you. It was pretty cool with loads of drinks this time.
Happy Birthday!!! I wish you good health and many years to come.
Tanks. I plan to be around a little longer lol.
I'm a bit late. Happy Birthday mr cryptoandcoffee. I hope you had a great one!
From this post though, I at least know you had some good food for your birthday :P.