Black Trumpet, Lisbon – It’s All about Mushrooms

Very few people seem to be “meh” on mushrooms. We love them or we hate them. And for those who love them, there’s a new fungus paradise in one of Lisbon’s trendiest neighborhoods.

Black Trumpet is one of the latest projects from the Reia Collective, the creative team that brought us Casa Reia beach club on the Costa Caparica. Here in the city, they’ve narrowed their scope, focusing their attention on mushrooms and other nourishing, earth-based ingredients.

The menu, overseen by corporate chef Pedro Henrique Lima, head chef Carolina Pires Ramos, and sous-chef Rafael Sousa, ranges across cultures and cuisines to create a varied array of mushroom-forward dishes. The products come from some of Portugal’s top sustainable producers, including the Lisbon-based zero-waste initiative Nam, and Cogumelos do Alentejo from the south of Portugal.

Starters include a delicate chawanmushi (Japanese custard) with a dashi base and brown shimeji, and a vegetable carpaccio with lambs’ foot mushrooms and Serra da Estrela cheese. Even the optional bread plate at the beginning of the meal includes mushrooms in the form of fermented shiitake broth and black trumpet and hazelnut butter.

mushroom restaurant lisbon — Chuwanmushi ©Mariana Alegra

black trumpet lisboa — Gnocci. ©Luisa Bravo

The mains are more substantial, ranging from expected dishes like braised portobello with a sweet onion glaze to more unusual fare like “Black on Black”—spaghetti with squid ink, black trumpet mushrooms and optional (but highly recommended) truffles. The gnocchi is highly recommended for its lack of flour and deliciousness of airy cheese. Most plates are vegetarian, but there is currently one fish and one meat dish on the menu.

black trumpet lisbon — Portobello. ©Mariana Alegra

This being in Santos and part of the Reia Collective, there’s a serious music program, with DJs spinning many nights and plans for workshops with experts, mushroom tastings, foraging expeditions, and screenings such as the documentary Fantastic Funghi by Louie Schwartzberg.