Louro - Menu

Many restaurants in Northern Portugal tend to have similar menus and serve very large portions of food, quite often for two people. Some great, some not so grea... read more Many restaurants in Northern Portugal tend to have similar menus and serve very large portions of food, quite often for two people. Some great, some not so great. If you want a complete break from huge portions of salted cod with chips and like fine dining then Louro is definitely to be recommended. We went on a Tuesday night in September small number of tables so booking essential as the restaurant was full by 9pm. There is an a la carte menu where starters are priced around €8 €10, mains around €25 and desserts €8 or there is a five course tasting menu priced at €45. We had the tasting menu which was excellent value for money. Basil sorbet with panna cotta and octopus terrine to start followed by sea bass and tenderloin both cooked to perfection the tenderloin was medium rare which was perfect for us. After a spearmint palate cleanser the dessert was kefir ice cream with plums. No wine flight but Louro had a good list of wines by the bottle and also by the glass. We had wine by the glass to match the food selection of local vinho verde, alentejo and douro wines for between €3 5 a glass. All in all a super meal. Perhaps the only negative is the restaurant space itself a large room, harshly lit in places, perhaps lacking in atmosphere (certainly if you prefer the hustle and bustle of traditional restaurants in larger towns). This didn 't bother us it 's all about the food here. In summary; excellent food and wine, very well presented, good service and exceptionally good value for money when compared to many fine dining restaurants in the UK. We enjoyed Louro and would return without doubt. It 's a cut above all the other Michelin Guide restaurants we visited in Northern Portugal.

We grew tired of typical Portuguese food where the servings are huge and salt is often the only flavoring, so we drove outside of Viana do Costelo 10 15 minutes... read more We grew tired of typical Portuguese food where the servings are huge and salt is often the only flavoring, so we drove outside of Viana do Costelo 10 15 minutes to Louro and we 're glad we did! It was the best meal we had while in Portugal for 2.5 weeks. The food wasn 't fussy or gimmicky no pop rocks or dissolving olives like a Rui Paula place : but it was extremely inventive and fresh. We both had the tasting menu for €40 which was a very fair price given the quality of the food. The portion size was perfect for us. And the staff could not have been nicer. The decor is very simple, like being in a brightly lit, spacious living room.