Now on our way home from wintering in Spain… several more articles to come about that though … we are having a little vacation time in another great European city, Lisbon. And when we are in Lisbon, we always tear off to a favourite eatery, the Time Out Market. It is a great place to have a bit of good food, feel the vibe of the city, and rub elbows with some locals or people from other parts of the world.
Yes, it is a tourist destination, but a very worthy one. Basically, the way it operates is, you find yourselves a spot to sit… this is challenge number one of a few that you will face. Challenge number two is, decide where amongst all the fabulous eateries you will select your meal. The next challenge is lining up and waiting patiently to order. Normally you will need to do this one person at a time so that one person is continuously guarding your seats. 🙂
“In the Camera’s Eye” presents fast and furious snippets of things that have grabbed my attention… for whatever reason. I will be attempting to capture the essence of what I am sharing in no more than two paragraphs and in 10 or less photos with captions.”
This was at lunchtime on a Saturday. Probably not the best time to come, but there was no way we weren’t going to get there before heading home. As you can see, not an empty seat in the place. But if you wander around spots will become vacated. You just have to be prepared to pounce. 🙂 It’s actually part of the fun of going there.
After we found a spot to sit I went and got us a couple of beers and then the Love-goddess went and picked out her lunch. When it was my turn to head out, I walked by a woman carry these two dishes and I could not resist asking her if I could take a picture of them. Octopus at its finest.
I chose this place because it was offering traditional Portuguese meals. My selection is circled in red, Francesinha de Carne Assada (braised meat, toast with cheese and egg, spicy sauce). If you zoom in on the pictures you can read about most of the items available.
All payment is done with a credit card or a local debit card that you have loaded funds onto. No one takes cash. After you pay, they gave give you this little device to take back to your table with you. When your meal is ready…
… The device starts flashing lights. It’s a very good system. You have probably seen similar devices used in North America to let you know a table is available for you while you were waiting in a busy restaurant.
And there we have it! My lunch cost €13.30. I am a sucker for any food product that’s got it fried egg slapped on top of it. 🙂
As I said, rubbing elbows and chatting, is one of the many good reasons to eat here. This young couple were vacationing Ukrainian citizens who have been working in Prague in the Czech Republic for the last six years… not recent refugees.
There are lots of places in the centre of the facility just to grab a quick drink if that’s all you are there for. Most, normally just serve one thing, beer or wine.
I noticed on this visit that they were a few places that actually have seating areas on the backside of their businesses for people who know where they want to eat and just need a quiet place to sit and enjoy it. Probably regular customers I am thinking.
We were there! Really, add Time Out Market I to your must visit list the next time you are in Lisbon.
