August 8, 2021
Tavira, Portugal
Left our cute place and headed east along the coast to Tavira. Our places wasn't ready yet so we went to the nearby town of Santa Luzia and got out to find a place for lunch. Lots of cute restaurants in a row, all with outdoor dining. First menu we looked at and it was nothing but octopus. Went to the next and the same! Realizing the trend we nicknamed this Octopus Row. Definitely sea to table eating.
The area has a definite Outer Banks look to it which was unexpected. Not knowing what to expect we caught the next ferry and hoped off at the island. Still looking very Outer Banks, you walk up a small boardwalk about 200 yards, up and over a small sand dune and it opens up. A beautiful beach with palapas and more turquoise water. We tried to rent a palapa and got lucky. Someone just released theirs. After speaking with the guy who works here he explained that people rent them for 2-3 weeks and come and go as they please. He said the best tip he could give me was to not come in August. Not the best tip given our current situation, but still a good one for someone. Boys took out a Hobie Cat and had a blast!
Now at our little Airbnb for our checkin. The hosts met us here which is not the normal experience for us. I thought that was a nice touch, but turns out it wasn't so nice. Before they let us in they wanted the results of our negative Covid test that was taken in the last 24 hours....ummm, what test? It is 6:00 pm on a Sunday evening in a small fishing town. The gentlemen ran out and got us 4 Covid tests from a local farmacia. Thankfully they were open. So here we set with our hosts telling us to push it up further into our nose and everyone waiting for a negative line to appear. Reminds of waiting for a pregnancy test.
A quick change and run out to find dinner. A two minute walk and we are in the center of town. Walls are covered in beautiful tiles.
There is a little oval park 20 feet by 75 feet where restaurants surrounded it, tables spilling over into the streets. A very charming, lively atmosphere. Going out in the evenings, watching the families at dinner, playing a game of cards with the family while waiting for our dinner, eating the food of the locals, taking an evening stroll, listening to a street musician all of it together is one of my favorite things to do on vacation.
We found one of the restaurants that our host suggested, Zeca Da Bica and got lucky because we got their last table. So interesting to me that they charge a fee of $1.50 a person just to sit at the table. We ordered some bread and butter and it comes with olives, tasty wheel of cheese and some really amazing carrots. They were slightly cooked with some fresh garlic and I think parsley, served room temperature. Sounds like a weird combination but they were really good and reaching out to our host to see if she knows exactly what goes into them. Normally I'm never adventurous with my eating, I like to stick with what I basically know. The rest of the family tries it all so tonight I am all about team Lemke. We ordered octopus salad (don't love things that have suction cups on them usually), black pork which according to the waiter you can only get in Portugal and Spain (sounds a bit scary to me and no idea how it is prepared or how the "black" portion comes in. My mind immediately goes to blood) and catablana which does not scare me, but definitely different. I saw the pots that have the lid connected to the base of the pot being sold in the last town and it intrigued me.
Salad arrived and wow, just wow! I don't usually eat octopus because it seems a bit rubbery to me and then there is the whole suction cup thing again, but it was one of the best things I've ever had. So tender, light and fresh tasting. Secretly I did pick around any really big suction cup pieces though. :-)
Main course time. Catablana was incredible. It was a mild stew with prawns, clams, sausage and pork. Almost chippino like but yet not at all. The pork was tender and moist. The kind of meal that will make you travel to Europe for.
A quick stop to get some gelato and a stroll home. A great evening out!
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