At the heart of Central Portugal lies Coimbra, an ancient city with a young student heart. To eat here is to navigate that same contrast. One moment you could be seated in a medieval alleyway peeling meat off a tray of pig bones, and the next sipping Bairrada sparkling wines on a rooftop overlooking the Mondego.
Coimbra is a city where 15th-century recipes for egg-yolk sweets live alongside progressive new kitchens. There are half a dozen must-try regional sweets, plus hearty local specialities like chanfana (a rich, wine-soaked goat stew) and Bairrada-style leitão (roast suckling pig).
Whether you’re looking for a tasca or a chic date-night spot, here’s my pick of where to eat and drink in Coimbra.
Where to eat in Coimbra
Rui Manel dos Ossos
Bones is the specialty. If you’ve been in Portugal for a hot minute, you might first think it’s another funny name the Portuguese have for a cut of meat – like pork feathers (plumas) and pork secrets (secretos). But no, the famous house dish at Rui Manel dos Ossos is literally bones – or ossos.
When you order ossos, a small silver tray will arrive loaded high with pig’s spine bones, slow-stewed in a rich peppery broth. It was recently said that Zé Manel dos Ossos, on the same alleyway, did the best bones in Coimbra. But the original owner passed away some years ago, and while that tavern still operates as is (and the interiors are epic) – the original kitchen team is now led by Rui Ferreira, who moved them here at the end of 2025.
While the 110-seat restaurant doesn’t (yet) have the charm of the tiny old snack bar, at least you don’t have to wait an hour for one of six tables. We ordered the bones, of course, and another dish of pork belly (barriguinha de porco) that comes with a tart, garlicky, vinegary sauce and bean rice. When you mix the two, the magic happens.
💰 Price: €/€€
🍴 Food: Traditional Coimbra dishes
📍 Address: Beco do Forno 20, Coimbra
🗓️ Reservations: Possible
Zé Manel dos Ossos
Zé Manel dos Ossos, open since 1959, is a step back in time. Inside the tiny six-table tasca, the walls heave with a collage of notes from past customers, scribbled on ripped-off corners of the paper tablecloths and taped to every surface except the taxidermied boar’s head (complete with sunglasses).
This legacy tasca continues to serve ossos (pork bones), simmered in a peppery broth. Pair that with a half dose of the feijoada de javali (bean stew with boar) and a jug of white or red wine. This place isn’t a secret and has very few tables, so arrive early or be prepared to wait for the next sitting – like we had to.
💰 Price: €/€€
🍴 Food: Bones, bones, bones
📍 Address: Beco do Forno 10 122, Coimbra
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🗓️ Reservations: Walk-ins
Refeitro da Baixa
The best date night restaurant in Coimbra must be Refeitro da Baixa. Slightly more upmarket, this gorgeous little restaurant shares the space with the last ceramic factory in Coimbra (which has apparently been open since 1824).
Our table was next to a roaring fireplace and beneath the giant flue of the former kiln. We could see right into the ceramics workshop through big glass windows. Yes, finally, a restaurant that combines my two loves – artisanal ceramics and food!
Chef João França has designed a menu celebrating Portuguese produce and seasonality. Food-wise, the tuna ceviche might be the best and most interesting I’ve tried in Portugal, and the confit bacalhau (salted cod) was a perfect modern take on bacalhau com grão-de-bico (salted cod with chickpeas). Pair with a local wine from Bairrada, of course.
💰 Price: €€€
🍴 Food: Modern Portuguese. Order a dish with local Mondego rice.
📍 Address: Quintal do Prior, Terreiro Erva Nºs 2 a 4, Coimbra
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🗓️ Reservations: Recommended
SAFRA_
My other suggestion for a chic dinner date is SAFRA_, a warm and welcoming progressive Portuguese restaurant in the heart of Coimbra’s old town. Chef Sérgio Silva offers a short, seasonal menu with plenty of creative snacks and a few main dishes designed to share, based on what he sources from local producers and the Coimbra Municipal Market.
We stuck to the small plates so we could try more, though we did feel some envy when the beautiful beef wellington landed on our neighbour’s table. Chef Sérgio is the son of two bakers, which may explain how he’s mastered the many types of doughs that appeared on our table, such as the SAFRA_ classic croissant stacked high with tartare, or the flaky, fine pastry of the shallot tartin with smoked eel. Everything was fantastic, though the highlights were definitely the scallops with a thick, long ribbon of fresh pasta and a bone marrow and roasted red pepper sauce, and the bao bun loaded with lamb and kimchi.
💰 Price: €€€+
🍴 Food: Progressive Portuguese with global influence
📍 Address: Rua da Moeda 44, Coimbra
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🗓️ Reservations: Recommended via WhatsApp +351 965 007 978
Cordel Maneirista
Chef Paulo Queirós is a passionate advocate, researcher and educator of traditional Coimbra dishes and convent sweets, which is why I wanted to visit his restaurant Cordel. Here, across the river from the old town, his project has been ongoing since 2013 and now sits in a cute three-storey maroon building between Portugal dos Pequenitos (Portugal in Miniature) and the renovated Convent of São Francisco.
Cordel brings modern techniques to traditional Portuguese and Coimbra gastronomy. I can never overlook any escabeche dish, a style of cooking where the meat is marinated in an acidic, vinegary sauce. The perdiz de escabeche à moda de Coimbra (Coimbra-style pigeon escabeche) was a bright, punchy start. I followed that with the confit bacalhau, served here with a chickpea mash and vegetables, and stole bites of the delicious, soupy fish rice.
If you have a sweet tooth or adore Portugal’s tradition of convent sweets, you must try Cordel’s traditional Pudim das Clarissas de Coimbra. This perfect balance of sugar and egg yolks was invented in the nearby Convent of Santa Clara, but the restaurant’s version has won awards.
Lunch menu: Worth nothing – Cordel has a gorgeous terrace with views and a decent-value lunch menu.
Cooking workshops: If you’re visiting with a group, you can book a private cooking class to learn traditional Portuguese or Coimbra gastronomy, and even take a class focused on convent sweets.
💰 Price: €€/€€€
🍴 Food: Coimbra gastronomy
📍 Address: R. Carlos Alberto Pinto de Abreu 4, Coimbra
Website
🗓️ Reservations: Recommended
A Cozinha da Maria
The best chanfana (goat stew) I’ve ever eaten is at this small restaurant in downtown Coimbra. The waiter ran over, his hands enveloped in oversized oven mitts, gripping a bubbling terracotta pot loaded with our dark, rich goat stew. Once we stuffed ourselves silly on the generous portion of meat, we wanted to bottle up the remaining broth and flavour our lives with it.
The alheira (smoked-bird sausage), croquettes and vegetarian mushroom risotto were also great, and the staff were super kind.
💰 Price: €€
🍴 Food: Traditional Portuguese
📍 Address: Praça do Comércio 110, 3000-116 Coimbra
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🗓️ Reservations: Walk-ins
Read next… 36 hours in Coimbra
Taberna Casa Costa
Seeing uniformed service workers dine at any local spot is usually a good sign. By 8pm on a Wednesday, Casa Costa’s two dozen tables were totally rammed with local families, friends and a handful of prison guards from across the street with comically large keys hanging from their belts (yep, just like in the movies). As we’re waiting to place our order, a kid swings past and high-fives them all.
I’d been told this is the best chanfana (goat stew) in the city. Sadly, they’d run out by the time we sat down, so that verdict will have to wait for our next visit. Instead, we asked for the alheira (smoked sausage) and naco de vitela (veal steak). This is a proper tasca with a sweet community vibe.
💰 Price: €
🍴 Food: Friendly neighbourhood tasca
📍 Address: R. Augusto Filipe Simões, Coimbra
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🗓️ Reservations: By phone 239 717 739
João dos Leitões
The Bairrada region is famous for two things: wine and leitão. This area, between Coimbra and Aveiro, is the best place to eat suckling pig, a regional delicacy where whole piglets are roasted with garlic, salt, pepper, parsley, bacon, lard and bay leaf until the skin is crispy and the interior soft. Delicious.
Leitão da Bairrada is a must-try, and in Coimbra, João dos Leitões is one of the best spots to go. Open since 1970, they use a traditional wood-fired oven powered with eucalyptus or vine, which heats up to around 300°C (572°F). You can sit down in the restaurant and enjoy the piggy as a meal with sides, or drop in – as I did – and grab a couple of leitão sandwiches to go. When they ask if you want the peppery gravy in your suckling pig bun, you say sim, por favor.
💰 Price: €
🍴 Food: Leitão (suckling pig)
📍 Address: R. da Gala 45, Coimbra
Website
🗓️ Reservations: Generally not needed
Porreiro
Food influencer Jorge Ferreira – better known as Gastropiço – grew tired of having to travel to Lisbon or Porto for a good, artisanal burger. And so at the end of 2025, he launched Porreiro. I’d usually be a bit suspicious of a YouTuber launching a food business, but my unbiased opinion is Porreiro is really good. We dropped by the take-away window one sunny, spring Saturday and took ours to the nearby Jardim de Seraia to enjoy on a tiled bench under a blooming tree.
These burgers use 100% Portuguese beef from Minho. The thick patties, cooked until still blushing in the centre, are sandwiched into locally-made potato bread, along with melted cheese, onion, pickles and secret sauce. Porreiro keeps it simple. You have the option of a single patty or double, and you can make it “fit” by adding tomato and lettuce.
The hand-cut chips? Fantastic crunch. Maybe the best I’ve had in recent years. Gastropiço is a food nerd, and he’s clearly done his research.
💰 Price: €
🍴 Food: Hamburgers
📍 Address: Centro Comercial Golden, Av. Sá da Bandeira 115 Loja 30, Coimbra
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🗓️ Reservations: It’s a takeaway window, but they do have seats in the commercial centre it’s attached to.
Read next… Tile of the day: Step inside Capela de São Miguel in Coimbra
Best cafés, sweets & desserts in Coimbra
Every single town in Portugal seems to have a local sweet, and they always relate back to the church. Coimbra is filled with ancient convents and monasteries, and – surprise, surprise – there are half a dozen traditional confections or convent sweets to try, some whose recipes date back hundreds of years. Look for:
- Pastéis de Santa Clara
- Arrufadas
- Pudim das Clarissas
- Crúzios
- Bolo de Santo António
- Biscoitos Académicos
In the city, you can also find pastries from the greater Coimbra region, including:
- Pastéis and queijadas from Tentúgal
- Nevadas de Penacova
- Queijadas de Pereira
Cafe Santa Cruz
Legend has it that this cafe, located next to the namesake monastery, opened in 1530 as the “church of the poor”, so patrons didn’t bother the monks or aristocracy. After the 1822 revolution, the smaller building wasn’t needed, and so it became a cafe. That said, Café Santa Cruz only officially opened in 1923 and has been a meeting place for writers, journalists and literary types since then.
The space feels distinctly medieval inside, with vaulted ceilings and dark wood features. Drop by for a bica (espresso) and try the Crúzios sweet inside the cafe or on the terrace, and return for fado music later on. On my last visit to Coimbra, dozens of students in black capes had taken over the large terrace on a Friday night, singing traditional songs as they drank beer and socialised.
💰 Price: €
🍴 Food: Coffee, pastries, light snacks
📍 Address: Praça 8 de Maio, Coimbra
Website
Fidalgo da Baixa
Coimbra has at least a dozen old-school pastelarias in the historic centre, but they all offer much the same menu. In 2024, restaurateur Luís Martins opened Fidalgo da Baixa next door to his popular restaurant Notes Bar & Kitchen, and it has added something different in a good way.
As far as bakeries go, Fidalgo still feels distinctly Portuguese and unpretentious; but here you’ll find delicious cakes, cookies, pastéis de nata and stuffed croissants alongside a selection of bread and classic savoury and sweet pastries. Everything is made in the open-style bakery behind the coffee machine, and you can order to take away, or sit inside or on the large terrace.
💰 Price: €
🍴 Food: Coffee, bread, pastries, sandwiches
📍 Address: Rua Simões de Castro 150, Coimbra
Website
Pastelaria O Alfonso
Connected to the family-run Tentúgal bakery of the same name, O Alfonso is the place to try the famous pastel de Tentúgal. I stepped behind the scenes at the main bakery in Tentúgal to capture the magic of making the thinner-than-paper pastry for the special convent sweet.
Drop into this bakery for coffee and sweets – besides the pastel de Tentúgal, try the queijada (little baked cheese sweet) and espiga if they have it. Apparently, the elderly mother – now retired and in her 80s – still makes the daily pot of soup for the bakery, which has a bit of a following.
💰 Price: €
🍴 Food: Traditional sweets – pastel de Tentúgal, queijada
📍 Address: R. Gen. Humberto Delgado 412, Coimbra
Website
Pastelaria Briosa
Where to eat local sweets in Coimbra? Briosa is a great choice! This bakery has served the population of Coimbra since 1955. Order a Pastel de Tentúgal, Queijada de Coimbra, Pastel de Santa Clara or Suspiro Briosa to taste some of the award-winning sweets this classic pastelaria turns out. It’s on the main road by the bridge that connects Santa Clara with Coimbra Baixa, so you’ll likely pass by.
💰 Price: €
🍴 Food: Traditional sweets
📍 Address: Largo da Portagem, Coimbra
Website
Gelataria COSÌ
For really damn good gelato, stop by COSI, just near the Torre de Almedina in the old town. This Italian-style gelato shop, at the hands of Pedro Baptista, offers a selection of scoops from the classics to creative flavours.
I went for chocolate hazelnut, my usual favourite, as a way to check the quality and holy wow, COSÌ is goooooood. Think rich, smooth with a perfect texture, served in a nice wafer cone. There are tables soaking in the sunshine to complete the experience – or use your scoop as motivation to continue uphill.
💰 Price: €
🍴 Food: Gelato, coffee
📍 Address: Rua do Quebra Costas 1, Coimbra
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Gelatarias Doppo
Doppo is a double threat, peddling both excellent specialty coffee and artisanal Italian gelato in Coimbra. We stopped for a great (and cheap, compared to Lisbon) flat white and returned later in the afternoon to try classic and fun gelato flavours. I had the chocolate, fig and almond gelato, and Jorge tried the banoffee rum. Both had an excellent texture and consistency.
There are now two locations – the original in Coimbra’s old town, and a second in Bairro Norton de Matos, where you can also enjoy a spritz or negroni on the terrace. Expect to find classic gelato flavours like chocolate and pistachio alongside more creative ones like black sesame and plum.
💰 Price: €
🍴 Food: Gelato, coffee
📍 Address: Praça do Comércio 9 (Baixa) & R. Macau 24 (Bairro), Coimbra
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Where to drink in Coimbra
Winebar Baga
For a little wine bar and shop with a lot of heart, try Baga at the edge of the old town. Since 2022, Bruna Maria and Abel Almeida have been pouring bottles from small and unusual producers across Portugal in the small and moody space with a handful of tables and a skylight for sunny afternoons.
The concept is that you can drop in and drink wine, or use Baga a little like a bottle shop – but note the opening hours. Baga opens more like a store than a bar, but feels more like a bar than a store!
We went for the four-wine tasting and opted for reds, receiving a glass from the Dão, Bairrada, Douro and Alentejo regions. I wouldn’t say I’m the deepest wine nerd, but living here, I try to explore smaller producers, and I’d never had any of the four. The tasting was €16 and was served alongside a generous cheese and charcuterie board made up of super high-quality Portuguese produce, with a bread basket of excellent sourdough. Highly recommended! One to repeat.
💰 Price: €/€€ (wines from €3.50/glass, tasting €16)
🍴 Food: Cheeseboard, simple Portuguese snacks (petiscos!)
📍 Address: Rua Simões de Castro 169, Coimbra
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LARGO
Fill your soul with a walk around the gorgeous Botanic Garden of the University of Coimbra, one of Portugal’s best city parks, then head around the corner to Largo. This sizable cocktail bar fills a corner spot that was once a grocery store and a tavern. Young owners Gonçalo and Mariana have restored the space beautifully, highlighting the vintage grocery shelves by painting them terracotta and keeping the rest quite minimalist.
If you drop in before dinner, as we did, you’ll get to take advantage of a generous happy hour that brings all cocktails down to €7 between 6-9pm.
💰 Price: €/€€ (cocktails €7 at happy hour, up to €10 otherwise)
🍴 Food: Snacks like crisps and dips
📍 Address: Largo de Santana 14, Coimbra
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Loggia
For brilliant views over Coimbra as the sun sets, venture to this little cafe for a beer or drink. Loggia is set on an ultra-modern terrace within the former Bishop’s Palace and the Machado de Castro Museum.
Alternatively, grab a takeaway beer from a small bar and join the students at the miradouro viewpoint next door.
💰 Price: €
🍴 Food: It’s a full restaurant too, so there are plenty of options
📍 Address: Largo Dr. José Rodrigues, Coimbra
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Passaporte
Another killer spot for drinks with a view in Coimbra, Passaporte’s location is unbeatable. This very cool ‘lounge bar” is set in a historic manor where sunset drinks could turn into a special dinner date.
💰 Price: €€
🍴 Food: Snack menu at the bar with everything from batatas bravas to veal tataki.
📍 Address: R. da Couraça Estrela 13, Coimbra
Website
More top restaurants, tascas and bars to try in Coimbra
I can’t eat everywhere, but it’s on my list. Here’s where else I’d love to eat at in Coimbra:
- Arcadas: Coimbra’s top fine-dining restaurant
- MA: Creative omakase restaurant
- O Palco: Kilometre-zero that opened early 2023
- Solar do Bacalhau: This is a Coimbra institution with high-quality, low-price salted cod. Great lunch menu.
- Sete: modern Portuguese food
- O Mimo: a cheap, traditional tasca (tavern)
- Tapas nas Costas: petiscos and drinks
- Fangas Veg: Vegetarian and vegan petiscos in Coimbra
- Izakaya Oni: Casual spot for Japanese snacks
- Bresca: Italian spot with a dedicated gluten-free menu of pizza and pasta, plus good vegan and vegetarian options.
- X-Cake: For locally roasted coffee and cake.
- Mijacão: casual snack bar for bifanas
- Casa das Bifanas: casual snack bar for bifanas.
- Noster Taberna & Wine Bar: wine bar
- SOMM: wine bar
That’s my guide on where to eat and drink in Coimbra. If you have more suggestions, leave me a comment below…
And… if you want that late-night kebab you’ll find half-a-dozen spots along Avenida Sá da Bandeira.
More Coimbra: 36 hours in Coimbra and inside Capela de São Miguel
Where to stay in Coimbra
- Best for first-timers: Hotels in Baixa area – try Hotel Astória for vintage charm. It’s a stunning 3-star historic hotel and timecapsule set in one of Coimbra’s architectural landmarks. I’ve stayed in the corner room! Alternatively in Baixa, try CBR Boutique Hotel, Pharmacia GuestHouse or Hotel Oslo.
- Best for luxury: Hotel Quinta das Lágrimas – Coimbra’s only 5-star stay is a small luxury hotel and historic estate complete with a 9-hole golf course and driving range, spa and urban legend.
- Best for families: Vila Gale Coimbra has a huge outdoor pool, playground and two restaurants. The 4-star hotel brand is ideally suited for families.
- Best for views: Sapientia Boutique Hotel is 4-star hotel in Alta Coimbra with a roof terrace taking advantage of the views.
