"Category: Tourist Area. When we finished our hike from Eira do Serrado down to Curral das Freiras, we were famished. The first restaurant we came to was this one, but we wanted to see what this very small town had to offer, so we walked on. There are a few other places to eat in town, but we chose to walk back to this one. Why? Someone invested a lot of money in this place. Its new-ish sleek glass and steel construction and multiple indoor (which you can see from outside) and outdoor seating areas say “We are not just another tourist restaurant. We are doing something different.” We heard them and we responded. To be fair, we also wanted to dine with an outside view of the incredible natural beauty of the valley and surrounding massifs and this restaurant had a perfectly sited outdoor table. So we walked in and got the perfect outdoor table that we wanted. Then we ordered. Then we decided it was too cold, went inside, and got a different table perfectly situated to appreciate the wonderful view, but warmer. The menu is chestnut centric. Think all chestnuts, all the time. But that’s a good thing. If you know my channel you know I use chestnuts 🌰 (check out my chestnut and pear ravioli). They are underrated. And this restaurant is making Herculean efforts to bring chestnuts to the world. Not surprising. Curral das Freiras is the heart of Madeira’s copious chestnut production and hosts a famous annual autumn Chestnut Festival. To help further the restaurant’s mission and to support the economy, we ordered only chestnut-centric dishes. We shared the chestnut soup (chunky, with potatoes, but I dreamed of using their chestnut cream to make the soup), which was chestnutty and good, and the chestnut-and-sausage-stuffed roasted chicken breast with Dijon mustard cream sauce, which was deliciously more French than Portuguese, and the sauce was good for dunking the accompanying frites. Suggestion: pool the sauce on the plate, not on top of the chicken, to showcase the beautifully roasted chicken. YouTube’s Chef’s Apprentice"

John Hornick Chef’s Apprentice

"A great place to taste roasted chestnuts! When it comes to dinner dishes, they are okay but not particularly memorable. The fish was served with a sauce that was far too sweet. Unfortunately, the passion fruit cheesecake was the worst I had during my stay on the island—it didn’t taste homemade.

Summary: not the worst, but not the best either"

Anna

"Nice cafe/restaurant with incredible view both up to the mountains and down to the valley. Very friendly service. Short but a good list of different dishes. Dining is possible in the roof and inside."

Antti Salovaara