Cavalariça Évora, Inventive Alentejo Cuisine at Palácio Cadaval

The original Cavalariça, in Comporta, has something of a cult following among Portuguese foodies, so it was big news when partners Bruno Caseiro, Filipa Gonçalves, and Christopher Morrell opened Cavalariça Évora. It’s worth a day trip from Lisbon for so many reasons.

First, there’s the food—a lengthy, inventive menu that’s heavy on vegetables and fermentation for flavor, but also creatively prepared proteins. Caseiro says this restaurant is influenced by its location, both in terms of ingredients and in terms of ideas. Interestingly, the team is unusually international, with Chilean Catalina Viveros (former head of the kitchen in Comporta) as sous-chef, with Japanese Tomoe Hayase and chefs from all over Portugal at her side.

The result is unusual dishes like cured dogfish “punheta,” a fusion of a traditional preparation of Portuguese raw salted cod dish with Alentejo dogfish soup—the fish is cured and soaked and served with vinegary onion, coriander, sliced garlic and lardo—and a modern take on pigs’ ears, fried with celery, apple and roast garlic mayo. While the menu is divided into snacks, starters, and mains, everything is meant to be shared.

cavalariça évora polvo — Grilled octopus, red shrimp and garbanzo beans

cavalariça évora dessert — Citrino torte, chamomile ice cream and honey

It’s also worth a trip for the location and interior design. It’s in the courtyard of the Palace of the Dukes of Cadaval, in the center of the city near the Temple of Diana (and a joint venture with Alexandra de Cadaval). The space was refurbished with new interior design by Jacques Grange and an Andalusian-style courtyard by Louis Benech. Both wanted to highlight the panels created by South-African artist Esther Mahlangu who, in 2018 at the age of 82, painted the columns, arch and wall of the courtyard with her boldly colored and compelling Ndebele tribal forms for Cadaval’s “African Passions” art exhibition.