The capital of Portugal is home to some of the best African restaurants around, and offers great options for African immigrants who live and work there. But they are also a treat for those who are visiting the city and want to taste the flavor of some African nations.
The Portuguese-speaking African countries, also known as Lusophone Africa, consist of: Angola, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique, São Tomé and Príncipe and, since 2011, Equatorial Guinea.
The six countries are former colonies of the Portuguese Empire, and they formed an interstate organization called PALOP, a colloquial acronym that translates to African Countries of Portuguese Official Language. For this reason, it’s not difficult to find good African restaurants in Lisbon, mainly dishes of Angola, Mozambique and Cape Verde.
Fish, seafood, chicken, and dishes like cachupa, muamba, and fried banana found throughout the African restaurants in Lisbon.
Travel Noire has compiled some of the best African restaurants in Lisbon you should try while there. Here they are.
1. Cantinho do Aziz
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Cantinho do Aziz offers Mozambican cuisine, in a Tavern-style restaurant. Opened 30 years ago, Cantinho do Aziz is known for serving shrimp, samosas, crab curries and chicken swamps. You can also try less popular, but still delicious Mozambican foods such as ikala, makoufe or bakra piripiri.
2. Associação Cabo-Verdeana Restaurant
Associação Caboverdeana is a private, non-profit institution that seeks to keep alive Cape Verdean culture in Lisbon. It offers a multicultural space where music, gastronomy, debates, conferences, seminars take place.
The restaurant is located on the top of the building, which is the perfect place to taste a cachupa or other foods from Cape Verde.
Cachupa is a rich stew from Cape Verde that’s made with hominy, beans, vegetables and seasoned meat
Besided Cachupa, the menu also offers muamba, tuna steak, chicken curry.
3. Casa de Angola
Opened in 1970, Casa de Angola Restaurant is a special place in Lisbon for those who want to try the best of Angolan cuisine.
There, the menu offers chicken moamba with funge, a white maize flour or cassava purée. On Fridays and Saturdays, mufete, grilled fish with palm oil beans, banana bread and manioc are the stars of Casa de Angola’s menu.
4. Roda Viva Restaurant
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Southern Mozambique food is Roda Viva’s specialty. Crab and shrimp curry, chicken with peanuts and other typical food from Mozambique such as makofo or matapa are very popular.
5. Casa Mocambo Restaurant
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Open since 2016, Casa Mocambo is a restaurant, bar and art gallery. It celebrates the African spirit and miscegenation of different cultures of Africa.
In terms of food, this translates into a menu where pan-African dishes interact with Portuguese cuisine.
6. Ibo Restaurant
Ibo restaurant is a Mozambican restaurant for those who love curry. Among other things, there’s lamb chacuti, wild prawns like Laurentina, chicken Zambeziana and even some good sirloin steaks.
It’s not cheap, but the view of the Tejo river from the restaurant is worth it.