At JNcQUOI Fish, chef Filipe Carvalho has put together a beautifully designed presentation about the fish and seafood in Portuguese waters. The longtime chef, who previously held a Michelin star at Fifty Seconds, lovingly catalogued the species, their seasonality, and the precise cooking techniques to make their flavors sing.
This presentation exists in the literal sense—a digital file meant to be studied by the restaurant’s employees (and curious diners)—but also in a more metaphorical way. It’s fair to say that the long menu is also a clear and thorough introduction to the treasures of the Atlantic.
The stripped-down, largely white dining rooms lack the theatrics of JNcQUOI Avenida and JNcQUOI Asia across the street. Instead, the kitchen occupies a large windowed cube that’s visible from both eating areas. The day’s fresh fish rest atop a bed of ice in a front corner; a wood-burning oven cooks some of the heartier dishes in the back.
The chefs aren’t there in the center of things to show off as much as to prove that they have nothing to hide. Even though it’s part of Portugal’s most fashionable restaurant brand, this is a product-driven restaurant, emphasizing the best, freshest catch from Carvalho’s suppliers. (As the presentation notes, the eyes of those fish on display have a brilliant shine, and their scales glimmer with iridescence.)
Each day, about a dozen types of fish are available as main courses, priced by the kilo and prepared with an elegant simplicity. But the composed plates are where the chef’s talents really shine. Recent additions to the menu include braised tuna with a zingy escabeche, a creative seafood pizza, and anchovy fillets on buttered toast.
These share menu space with Carvalho’s instant classics, including a luxuriant Russian salad (potatoes and mayo) with king crab, sweet white Algarve prawns, and tuna tartare, and an indulgent oven dish of paccheri pasta with lobster and tomatoes. This is not a restaurant for vegetarians, but the fish-avoidant can find a chicken option (cordon bleu) and a sirloin steak with noisette butter and vintage port vinegar.
JNcQUOI Fish occupies the ground floor of the long-anticipated JNcQUOI House hotel, which is set to open in September. A sexy subterranean room below Fish’s dining rooms houses JNcQUOI Table, a ten-seat dining counter for gastronomic dinners. And the team has taken over the kiosk on the wide boulevard of Avenida da Liberdade in front of the building, offering an abbreviated version of the Fish menu, along with small plates and drinks in an upscale take on Lisbon’s casual outdoor snacking tradition.
For more information, visit the JNcQUOI Fish website.
JNcQUOI Fish
Avenida da Liberdade 189
Lisbon
Phone: +351 215 931 000
Email: book.fish@jncquoi.com
Hours: Daily – 12:00 to 24:00