A long weekend in Porto – Super Bocks and millennial socks
A weekend in Porto with the girls
Once you hit your 40s, careers, conflicting children’s schedules and in our case, the English Channel, can limit the amount of time you can spend with your friends – so we remain eternally grateful for the humble WhatsApp group.
In recent years we decided to treat ourselves to a European city break together every other year, and this year, that decision is what found us in Porto on a pleasantly warm Thursday afternoon in early June, sipping a Super Bock beer in the sunshine.
Porto, the city of bridges, azulejos and of course port wine, is the perfect setting for three women who like eating, laughing and not having to dress up on an evening. It is a stunning city, one that I would recommend to friends, couples and families any day of the week.
Porto by the water
We started our trip with a stroll down to the water front on the Cais da Riberia, a five minute walk from our apartment and one of the main eating and drinking districts of Porto. As you’d expect of the central riverside hub of a major city, there is much here that caters for tourists, so expect to find street artists and performers, crowds on a weekend, and higher priced food and drink.
Still, it’s the natural place to ground yourself in the city, have a cool Super Bock or refreshing glass of green (Vinho Verde) wine at one of the many riverside bars, and once orientated, you can move out of the throngs and start to explore at a gentler pace.
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Cais da Riberia sits aside the River Douro, Porto’s main river and gateway to the Atlantic. From various points both here and on the opposite side of the river, you can jump on an inexpensive river cruise and take in the sights of the city from the water.
Most popular, and the trip we took in the early evening, is the six bridges cruise. We boarded next to the Ponte Dom Luis I, one of the most recognisable landmarks of Porto itself, a huge iron structure with two levels. The cruise took just under an hour for the journey up river, down to the sea and back, taking you under or near to all six of Porto’s famous bridges – one of which was designed by Gustave Eiffel, of Eiffel Tower fame. You’ll also see the iconic colourful buildings and port wine cellars that put Porto on the map, for all the right reasons
For around 18 Euros each, it was a lovely way to get acquainted and set us up perfectly for an evening cocktail and early dinner after our 3am alarm call that morning.
The best advice we were given before we left was that the hills, cobbles and layout of the city do not lend themselves to your best ladies day outfits – if you wore running trainers for three days, you wouldn’t regret it. We did a lot of walking, and if you want to find yourself sipping a sunset fizz at somewhere like The Yeatman Hotel, you don’t want to spoil it because you’re nursing your blisters.
A short march uphill took us to this stunning luxury hotel, overlooking the city from Vila Nova de Gaia. This side of the river is wine cellar territory, and the Yeatman sits proudly amongst them. Looking out from their beautiful terraces affords you views of the many different sides of Porto. It’s a Michelin starred restaurant, so we had our fizz and then headed to a taberna downhill for a more rustic and affordable dining experience – but I would highly recommend a sundowner in their palatial settings.
We dined at Meet and Taste, a traditional taberna. At first glance it looked like a fairly uninspiring menu, but it was a full and inviting house, and we weren’t disappointed. We were served delicious, simple food cooked with flavour and heart. My steak was packed with flavour and cooked to perfection, and my friend’s fish, delicious – even though she wasn’t expecting to have to debone it or look it in the eye. Like I said, traditional! This was accompanied by of course some green wine, to round off our perfect first day in Porto.
Porto on foot
We spent the next morning casually exploring on foot, occasionally referring to the guidebook, but content to see what we found round each corner, with regular stops to refuel.
Porto is a perfectly accessible city (in terms of proximity, if not terrain), and we found that in the space of a couple of hours we’d covered a lot of ground.
The Se do Porto, a 12th century cathedral and another of the city’s popular landmarks, affords fantastic views out to the river, and the Igreja and Torre dos Clerigos affords fantastic views of everywhere, if you’re willing to climb the 220 steps to the top of the tower! We opted to admire it from outside, sipping tea and munching a Portuguese pastry, a theme emerging for the pace we were taking on this trip…
The Capela das Almas is a stunning example of the Porto azulejos, pretty blue and white tiles adorning the whole building, but you don’t have to look far across the whole city to see them. Leave the guidebook and walk where your feet take you, and you’ll never be too far away from a beautifully decorated building filled with colour and sunshine.
Our travels that morning took us to, but not into, the famous Livraria Lello – voted the world’s coolest bookshop and supposedly, one of the inspirations for Harry Potter. It’s more than a bookshop, visitors queue for significant amounts of time (90 minutes when we passed) to step inside its hallowed interior, but it is very much an experience rather than a shopping trip. As an avid reader, I was sad to miss it on this trip – but our afternoon’s activity was beckoning, and it’s the perfect excuse to visit again.
Top tip – book your timeslot online before you arrive in Porto so as not to miss out! As for us, we had an important date to get to…
Porto on your plate
From the oldest supermarkets to one of Porto’s biggest markets, from a taberna to a garrafeira port bar – we ate and drank our way round Porto in style that afternoon, and I’m not sure my friend will ever feel that full again.
We pre-booked a Taste Porto Vintage food and port wine tour, based on a recommendation from a fellow Girl About, Katy. I’ve never especially considered myself a “foodie”, but this was hands on the most enjoyable experience I’ve had on an organised tour.
Our guide, Sergio, came from a small village outside of Porto but had lived in the city for a number of years, and was the perfect host for our walking tour, taking us around a selection of typical eateries to sample their traditional food and drinks.
We began with blended local cheeses and spiced meats, before pushing my culinary limits with the Porto staple that is canned fish. We livened ourselves back up after a few wines with a sweet pastry rabanada, a fabulous bifana (a superior version of the humble pulled pork sandwich), before finishing the day with a port wine masterclass and paired pastries.
And that’s not even the full line-up. 13 different foods, 7 different drinks…and each one perfectly set against a talk around the history of the dish and the people who make and serve it.
Did we have dinner later that evening? We did not.
This would be a novella if I went into everything we ate and drink on this trip, suffice to say, it was plentiful. The one treat we didn’t brave was the famous francesinha, a hearty mega sandwich topped with cheese, egg, a beery sauce and served with fries. There just simply wasn’t the room for it at any point. Next time…
Porto by the sea
Needless to say, the next day was spent giving our stomachs a rest, especially after a late night sampling some of the wine bars recommended by our guide. Fuelled by the green wine and pastries, we spent our last day walking the 6km down to the beach, at Foz du Duoro. The climate of Porto in June is the perfect temperature, t-shirt and shorts weather without stifling heat, which is ideal for casual strolls and conversation about the important topics of the day – Trump, HRT, and whether or not I looked like a millennial because I was wearing trainer socks. Life’s big topics, right there.
There are plenty of places to eat and drink in the area, or you can simply catch some sun and listen to the waves for a few hours whilst enjoying the break from city life. We hopped on the 1930s vintage tram back to the city, a really fun way to travel. The Linha 1 tram is every hour, is 6 Euros each and was a quirky end to a very relaxing day.
Sadly, our last night was upon us, and we spent it eating petiscos, and you’ve guessed it, drinking wine, basking in the hospitality of sommeliers and mixologists who made it their mission to find you the perfect sip.
Everywhere we went the staff took such great pride and pleasure in your enjoyment of the product, but without a hint of pretension. The focus was on quality, comfort and enjoyment, rather than aesthetics, but achieved both by having their heart where it matters.
What else can I say about this beautiful city? It exceeded all my expectations, took me out of my culinary comfort zone, and ramped up my step count. The perfect place to soak up culture and beauty, without the frenetic feeling some major cities can leave you with. Take it at your own pace, watch the world go by, and most importantly, wear the right socks.
Porto…until next time. I’ll see you soon for a francesinha.
Porto musts
Eat…petiscos at Mercado do Bolhão
Drink…green wine at Prova wine bar
Do…Taste Porto food and drink tour
See…Sé do Porto
Ride…the Linha 1 tram to the sea
Stay…in or around Riberia
by Amy Blackburn
