Porto's signature sandwich: bread layered with cured meats, sausage and steak, blanketed with melted cheese and a tomato-and-beer sauce poured hot at the table.
Where to eat it: 7 restaurants across 1 city.
Daniel David Silva, an emigrant returning from France and Belgium, joined the Regaleira on Rua do Bonjardim in 1952 and adapted the croque-monsieur for Portuguese palates. The francesinha (little French girl) traded ham and bechamel for cured sausages, steak and a hot tomato-beer sauce. The dish became Porto's lunch identity within a single decade, and the original Regaleira still trades on Rua do Bonjardim.
Common allergens: Gluten, Dairy
Tip from the editors. Use a strong lager (not a craft IPA) for the sauce; the bitterness can overpower the tomato. Cheese coverage matters: it seals the sandwich so sauce stays on top.
Cafe Santiago on Rua de Passos Manuel in Porto is the most-cited francesinha counter, layered with mortadella, sausage and steak under tomato-beer sauce.
Signature: Francesinha
Order: Francesinha especial with egg, side of fries to soak the sauce.
Tip: Closed Sundays. The original 226 site is the one locals defend; the second site up the street is overflow.
Bufete Fase on Rua de Santa Catarina in Porto is the locals' francesinha counter, an even-keeled sauce balanced by the same owner since the 1990s.
Signature: Francesinha
Order: Standard francesinha. No egg, no fries, just bread and sauce.
Tip: Cash only. Queue starts at 12:30; arrive earlier and you might get one of the eight tables.
Brasao Aliados in Porto opened in 2014 as the first Brasao Cervejaria, with the city's most-Instagrammed francesinha and a black-garlic mayo for rissoles.
Signature: Francesinha, Meat rissoles with mushrooms
Order: Francesinha with the egg on top, croquette flight to share.
Tip: Open daily. Queues from 12:30-14:00; book ahead or arrive at noon.
Lado B on Rua de Passos Manuel in Porto sits next door to Cafe Santiago and runs a fresher francesinha, plus a vegetarian build of mushrooms and tofu.
Signature: Vegetarian francesinha, Classic francesinha
Order: Classic francesinha with chips and a Super Bock. The veg version if you do not eat pork.
Tip: Open every day. The veg francesinha is a Porto rarity; arrive before 13:00 to avoid the queue.
O Afonso on Rua da Torrinha in Porto's Cedofeita is the dark-horse francesinha, a thinner sauce and a steady following of architecture students.
Signature: Francesinha
Order: Francesinha with egg, glass of red.
Tip: Closed Sunday. Counter seats turn over quickly; a 14:00 arrival usually works on weekdays.
Francesinha Cafe on Rua da Alegria in Porto turns out francesinhas with fries until midnight, the after-midnight refuge for the city's main late-night.
Try: Francesinha and fries
Yuko Tavern up on Rua de Costa Cabral in Porto stays open until 24:30 with francesinhas, bitoques and full plates for the post-club crowd north of the city.
Try: Francesinha and bitoque
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