Any Must Try Pilgrim Menus?

[Warge]

I will be stopping at Villa do conde, Esposende and Viana do castello.

Are therr any must try Pilgrim Menus on the way or at those locations? I am currently on my walk from Porto now! Thank You! For dinner or lunch!

 

[Warge]

I will be stopping at Villa do conde, Esposende and Viana do castello.

Are therr any must try Pilgrim Menus on the way or at those locations? I am currently on my walk from Porto now! For Dinner or lunch!

 

[Mark Francis Auchincloss]

1. Vila do Conde
Maria Leopoldina Da Costa e Silva & Filhos lda Café Saura
+351 252 633 333

Google Maps

Find local businesses, view maps and get driving directions in Google Maps.

maps.app.goo.gl

2.Esposende
Fao (just before not pilgrim menu though)
Tio Pepe
+351 253 981 510

Tio Pepe · R. dos Bombeiros Voluntários 4, 4740-366 Fão, Portugal

★★★★☆ · Restaurant

maps.app.goo.gl

3. Viana do Castelo
Tasquinha de Santiago
+351 968 200 610

Tasquinha de Santiago · R. Maj. Xavier da Costa 34, 4900-482 Viana do Castelo, Portugal

★★★★★ · Restaurant

maps.app.goo.gl

 

[Grousedoctor]

1. Vila do Conde
Maria Leopoldina Da Costa e Silva & Filhos lda Café Saura
+351 252 633 333

Google Maps

Find local businesses, view maps and get driving directions in Google Maps.

maps.app.goo.gl

2.Esposende
Fao (just before not pilgrim menu though)
Tio Pepe
+351 253 981 510

Tio Pepe · R. dos Bombeiros Voluntários 4, 4740-366 Fão, Portugal

★★★★☆ · Restaurant

maps.app.goo.gl

3. Viana do Castelo
Tasquinha de Santiago
+351 968 200 610

Tasquinha de Santiago · R. Maj. Xavier da Costa 34, 4900-482 Viana do Castelo, Portugal

★★★★★ · Restaurant

maps.app.goo.gl

We’ll be staying in all three towns on our Camino in April. Thanks for the restaurant recommendations. Much appreciated.

 

[Mark Francis Auchincloss]

We’ll be staying in all three towns on our Camino in April. Thanks for the restaurant recommendations. Much appreciated.

Having eaten in all 3 I can strongly recommend them for different reasons but main one is the food/drink is tasty and cheap.

 

[Warge]

1. Vila do Conde
Maria Leopoldina Da Costa e Silva & Filhos lda Café Saura
+351 252 633 333

Google Maps

Find local businesses, view maps and get driving directions in Google Maps.

maps.app.goo.gl

2.Esposende
Fao (just before not pilgrim menu though)
Tio Pepe
+351 253 981 510

Tio Pepe · R. dos Bombeiros Voluntários 4, 4740-366 Fão, Portugal

★★★★☆ · Restaurant

maps.app.goo.gl

3. Viana do Castelo
Tasquinha de Santiago
+351 968 200 610

Tasquinha de Santiago · R. Maj. Xavier da Costa 34, 4900-482 Viana do Castelo, Portugal

★★★★★ · Restaurant

maps.app.goo.gl

Thankyou, i just got into villa, and got my stamp at my accommodation. I jave to bring it to prove im doingthe pilgrimage?t

 

[Mark Francis Auchincloss]

Thankyou, i just got into villa, and got my stamp at my accommodation. I jave to bring it to prove im doingthe pilgrimage?t

Yes if you eat best to get your credential stamped. The restaurant I recommended in Vila do Conde normally have pilgrims menu in evening too.

 

[Sirage]

My default behaviour that there is nothing I must do.
There is no best of anything.

The best coffee is the coffee you just had with your new lover. Other people will taste the coffee differently.

After having too many pilgrims meals, on arrival at Estella I found the best restaurant in town, upstairs with silver service and everyone dressed well except me in my after-walking casuals. A long excellent lunch and very affordable.

 

[Former member 22438]

The pilgrim menu is a kind of tourist menu. French fries, a kind of a burger and a bit of lettuce .
more interesting to go- during weekdays ! - to a (workers) restaurant where they serve a so called “ menu del dia (spanish) or (portuguese) menu do dia.
there is an old Spanish law , issued by the ancient Generallisimo Franco that every worker deserves a decent 3 course menu with a free drink during midday for a decent price, nowadays about 8 € . the Portuguese adopted this and you pay between 5 and 8 €
look around for a restaurant that offers a menu del (do) dia and you get value for money. soup, meat, fish, fruit etc depending on the weekday.
when you see a full restaurant with people eating, go inside. Really worthwhile.
I used to work for some years in Spain and ate every day of the week in those restaurants.

 

[Warge]

The pilgrim menu is a kind of tourist menu. French fries, a kind of a burger and a bit of lettuce .
more interesting to go- during weekdays ! - to a (workers) restaurant where they serve a so called “ menu del dia (spanish) or (portuguese) menu do dia.
there is an old Spanish law , issued by the ancient Generallisimo Franco that every worker deserves a decent 3 course menu with a free drink during midday for a decent price, nowadays about 8 € . the Portuguese adopted this and you pay between 5 and 8 €
look around for a restaurant that offers a menu del (do) dia and you get value for money. soup, meat, fish, fruit etc depending on the weekday.
when you see a full restaurant with people eating, go inside. Really worthwhile.
I used to work for some years in Spain and ate every day of the week in those restaurants.

So i just have to walk around and look for menu del dia? Its a wednesday today and ill be walking from villa do conde to espespnde, you think ill find 1 of these?

 

[VNwalking]

So i just have to walk around and look for menu del dia?

Restaurants will have them. Just ask.

 

[Former member 22438]

Restaurants will have them. Just ask.

The only way you can be sure that a restaurant serves a menu do dia is that it has been advertised in front of the restaurant and/or that it is full with workers from about 13:00 to 14:30.

 

[Anniesantiago]

To me, the Menu del Dia is always a better option. Less expensive and better, more varied menu.

 

[naplesdon]

My default behaviour that there is nothing I must do.
There is no best of anything.

The best coffee is the coffee you just had with your new lover. Other people will taste the coffee differently.

After having too many pilgrims meals, on arrival at Estella I found the best restaurant in town, upstairs with silver service and everyone dressed well except me in my after-walking casuals. A long excellent lunch and very affordable.

On market day (Thursday, if my memory is correct) that restaurant serves roast suckling pig as it’s specialty.

 

[C clearly]

To me, the Menu del Dia is always a better option. Less expensive and better, more varied menu.

It has not been my experience that the Menu del Dia is less expensive than the Menu de Peregrino, but it is better quality.

 

[Jami Gray]

I will be stopping at Villa do conde, Esposende and Viana do castello.

Are therr any must try Pilgrim Menus on the way or at those locations? I am currently on my walk from Porto now! Thank You! For dinner or lunch!

Don’t know about a pilgrims menu, but I think it was Praia da Luz, right on boardwalk, north of Porto, had the best looking grilled cheese sandwich I have ever seen. I didn’t order one, but saw someone else get it, and I was very jealous. At least it looked like what we in US call a grilled cheese sandwich.

 

[Anniesantiago]

It has not been my experience that the Menu del Dia is less expensive than the Menu de Peregrino, but it is better quality.

Interesting. I almost always find it less expensive.

 

[Scott Sweeney]

I will be stopping at Villa do conde, Esposende and Viana do castello.

Are therr any must try Pilgrim Menus on the way or at those locations? I am currently on my walk from Porto now! Thank You! For dinner or lunch!

Try everything!

 

[Ghost Rydurrrr]

It has not been my experience that the Menu del Dia is less expensive than the Menu de Peregrino, but it is better quality.

I did the Menu del Dia a couple of times during my recent camino and they were great. I didn't really see very many Menu de Peregrino options along the Camino Portugues and ordered it thinking that it was for Pilgrims. The ones I had usually ran about $12 Euro (in Spain) but these were actual restaurants and not albergues.

 

[C clearly]

The ones I had usually ran about $12 Euro (in Spain) but these were actual restaurants and not albergues.

Both Menus are restaurant terms, not albergue terms.

 

[Ghost Rydurrrr]

Both Menus are restaurant terms, not albergue terms.

I was just pointing out that I was eating in an actual restaurant as opposed to an albergue restaurant as the pricing might be different since the clientele might be different.

 

[Former member 22438]

On market day (Thursday, if my memory is correct) that restaurant serves roast suckling pig as it’s specialty.

They call this dish “leitão “ in Portuguese
A good place to eat this dish is nearby Coimbra and Mealhada on the part from Lisbon to Porto.

 

[Kathor1]

I did the Menu del Dia a couple of times during my recent camino and they were great. The ones I had usually ran about $12 Euro (in Spain) but these were actual restaurants and not albergues.

12-15 € is a good price range for menus del dia throughout Spain. I saw an article that said something like 11,75 € was the average. There is no law about a menu del dia or its price. The law was removed from the statue books a long time ago. Here is a good article about it: The secret life of the Menú del Día. It clears up some myths.

 

[Mark Francis Auchincloss]

The pilgrim menu is a kind of tourist menu. French fries, a kind of a burger and a bit of lettuce .
more interesting to go- during weekdays ! - to a (workers) restaurant where they serve a so called “ menu del dia (spanish) or (portuguese) menu do dia.
there is an old Spanish law , issued by the ancient Generallisimo Franco that every worker deserves a decent 3 course menu with a free drink during midday for a decent price, nowadays about 8 € . the Portuguese adopted this and you pay between 5 and 8 €
look around for a restaurant that offers a menu del (do) dia and you get value for money. soup, meat, fish, fruit etc depending on the weekday.
when you see a full restaurant with people eating, go inside. Really worthwhile.
I used to work for some years in Spain and ate every day of the week in those restaurants.

The bars/restaurants in Northern Portugal and Galicia serve the same food for pilgrims menu as they do for menu del dia albeit they often offer 2 courses for pilgrims rather than 3 for menu del dia so its cheaper although you can convert to menu del dia !

 

[Kathor1]

I paid little attention to whether it's called a pilgrim's menu or a menu del dia.

I had absorbed, from reading the forum, the message that the pilgrim's menu is usually cheaper than the menu del dia which is usually qualitatively better.

I don't recall places that offered both - it was either or. The combination of these usually 3-course meals was often a combination of food that was on the restaurant's list of food and drinks anyway.

In general, again my vague impression and memory, places that offered a menu del dia had a better overall offer than a number of cheap places that offered a pilgrim's menu.

From a quick look at some Spanish websites, I get the impression that the pilgrim's menu is an invention for the Camino Francés that is now threatening to invade the Camino del Norte and it would be better if it were kept out.

 

[peregrina2000]

If you are on a tight budget, the menú del peregrino may be the thing to try, but get ready for french fries and filete de ternera. My experience is like @Kathar1na’s. Most restaurants do not serve both a menú del día and a menú del peregrino, though I’ve seen some. Menús del peregrino tend to be limited to the really heavily traveled caminos - I’ve never seen one on any camino other than the Francés, Portugués, Primitivo, Norte, or Vdlp, but of course they may exist.

I know a lot of people complain that Spaniards don’t eat their vegetables, but I bet that is a complaint that comes from eating bar food and menús del peregrino. Fresh produce is more expensive than the food served in the average menú del peregrino. The one exception, in my experience, is iceberg lettuce (at least if you are willing to call it a vegetable ). Plenty of that available on menús del peregrino!

I think that fresh fruit and vegetables are still very important in the average Spaniard’s diet, though unfortunately the trends are similar to what we see in many countries. It’s going towards more and more fast food, prepared food, junk food — with the bad health outcomes those trends portend.

 

[Camino Chrissy]

The one exception, in my experience, is iceberg lettuce (at least if you are willing to call it a vegetable ). Plenty of that available on menús del peregrino!

I do not care much for iceberg lettuce, so usually bypass the salads offered on the main Camino routes, although a tomato is often added along with canned limp white asparagus; tuna or eggs can be a bonus. I prefer the darker, leafy green varieties of lettuces that taste better and have the most nutrients. Possibly they are served in the Michelin star restaurants, but I wouldn't know.

 

[Warge]

Anyone know of a good restaurant in Castello, its 5pm now and i am trying to find one close to the bridge!

 

[peregrina2000]

Possibly they are served in the Michelin star restaurants, but I wouldn't know.

I don’t think you need to go to a Michelin star restaurant to find real greens. They are used in soups all the time, and in Portugal at least, frequently on offer sauteed with garlic (couve). There’s a sweet spot between menú del peregrino and michelin stars, and I’ll bet most restaurants that offer a menú fit in there. I have found that I can usually get an excellent menú del día in the 15-18 € range, and there will almost always be good fresh vegetables on offer. Since it is going to be my main meal (thank you Spain, for letting me eat lunch after walking between 3 and 4!), it’s worth the few extra euros for me.

 

[Camino Chrissy]

Laurie, you speak fluent Spanish and have been going to Spain for many years and know more than the average pilgrim. I have had some very good soups with fresh kale and carrots...yum. I was only speaking of the cold salads that are normally offered on basic Pilgrim meals and Menu del dias because that's what's seen on the outdoor menus and the salad that arrives.
I knew I was exaggerating when I said a "Michelin star" restaurant was the main option for obtaining what I personally consider a quality salad.

 

[Annette london]

I’m not a ”foodie” so will generally eat anything that’s going although I must admit the chips do get a bit monotonous!
a few weeks ago I was the only one eating in the little village cafe of Airexe and the pilgrims menu was one of the tastiest I’ve eaten.
Lentil soup, Roast beef and tarte de Santiago and all for €10 including a bottle of wine which certainly kept me company!

 

[MartaM]

We had a great afternoon meal in Vila Chã - fresh caught fish grilled over charcoal, clams, peppers, wine…. I won’t name the place but we were a bit surprised when paying the €40 bill for 2 since no menu & no prices advertised. Later I looked at Google reviews and saw many comments re: ’tourists’ charged inflated prices. Apparently pilgrims fall into the same category. Luckily we could afford it and it was good!

 

[C clearly]

we were a bit surprised when paying the €40 bill for 2 since no menu & no prices advertised

The fact that no prices were advertised should have been a clue that this would not be the cheapest place in town. It was likely the Menu del Día at a good restaurant. What was inflated about €20 per person for fresh caught fish grilled over charcoal, clams, peppers, wine…? Sounds good to me!

 

[MartaM]

The fact that no prices were advertised should have been a clue that this would not be the cheapest place in town. It was likely the Menu del Día at a good restaurant. What was inflated about €20 per person for fresh caught fish grilled over charcoal, clams, peppers, wine…? Sounds good to me!

It was likely the only place in a small village, family run… not fancy in any way (dishes being washed in a bucket next to toilet) Not complaining, just sharing an experience. In the future, we’ll ask!