Lisbon's literary heart and the home of its fine-dining boom. Belcanto, Bairro do Avillez and the Manteigaria flagship are all walkable here.
Bairro do Avillez in Chiado, Lisbon: Jose Avillez's 1000 sqm complex housing the Taberna, Pateo, Mini Bar and Pizzaria Lisboa under one roof.
Signature: Octopus a lagareiro, Bairro suckling pig
Order: The Taberna's exploding olives and a glass of Esporao branco.
Cantinho do Avillez in Chiado, Lisbon: Jose Avillez's longest-running room, open since 2011, small plates that travel from Portugal to South America.
Signature: Black pork Alentejo style, Scallops with avocado
Order: The deep-fried green beans alongside Alentejo-style black pork.
Taberna da Rua das Flores in Chiado, Lisbon: Andre Magalhaes cooks Portugal's colonial-route flavours from a blackboard menu, cash only, no bookings.
Signature: Daily blackboard
Order: Whatever Magalhaes has chalked on the board for the day.
Boa-Bao in Chiado, Lisbon: pan-Asian street food from Thailand, Vietnam, Korea, Malaysia and Japan, served in a 1920s Asian-market themed room since 2017.
Signature: Pad thai, Bao buns, Penang curry
Order: Two bao buns then the kao soi, soup-fried noodle hybrid.
Sea Me Peixaria Moderna in Chiado, Lisbon: a fishmonger that doubles as a restaurant, Portuguese seafood with a Japanese twist on Rua do Loreto.
Signature: Tuna tataki, Whole fish grilled
Order: Pick a fish from the counter, ask them to grill it whole.
Mini Bar Teatro in Chiado, Lisbon: Jose Avillez's gastrobar in the Sao Luiz theatre, dishes named after stage terms, open from 7pm to 1am daily.
Signature: Ferrero Rocher foie gras bonbon, Liquid olive
Order: The Now On tasting menu, eight theatrical small plates.
Cervejaria Trindade in Chiado, Lisbon: an 1836 beer hall in the old Trinitarian convent, blue azulejos walls, prawns, steaks and Sagres on tap.
Signature: Steak Trindade, Tiger prawns
Order: Steak Trindade in beer sauce and a Sagres on tap.
Jose Avillez's two-Michelin-star Belcanto in Lisbon's Chiado: a single tasting menu of new Portuguese cooking, on Rua Serpa Pinto since 2012.
Vincent Farges's one-Michelin-star Epur in Chiado, Lisbon: Inspiracoes and Epurismo tasting menus rooted in French technique and Portuguese ingredients.
Jose Avillez's vegetarian Encanto in Chiado, Lisbon: one Michelin star, a Green Star for sustainability, and the first vegetarian Michelin in Iberia.
Pateo at Bairro do Avillez in Chiado, Lisbon: the glass-roofed centre court of Jose Avillez's complex, modern Portuguese mains served at long tables.
Signature: Acorda real, Roast suckling pig
Order: Acorda real, bread-and-shellfish stew with prawns and lobster.
Bistro 100 Maneiras on Largo da Trindade in Chiado: the casual sister of 100 Maneiras in Bairro Alto, opened by Ljubomir Stanisic with late hours and a noted.
Signature: Steak tartare, Roasted bone marrow, Russian-style salad
Order: The tartare bar selection, two cuts compared side by side.
A Brasileira on Lisbon's Rua Garrett: a 1905 cafe where Fernando Pessoa drank his bica, still pouring under the same wood and brass, terrace open daily.
Signature drink: Bica, the small black Lisbon espresso
Pastelaria Benard on Rua Garrett, Chiado: a Lisbon institution since 1868, croissants from a secret recipe and pavement tables on Lisbon's busiest street.
Signature drink: Hot croissant from a secret 1868 recipe with a bica
Fabulas in Lisbon's Chiado: a stone-vaulted cafe tucked off Largo do Carmo, fairy-tale interiors, brunches all day and a small library wall, quiet Wifi.
Signature drink: Long coffee and a frangipane tart
Manteigaria's Chiado flagship in Lisbon: an Art Nouveau corner on Rua do Loreto where pastel de nata trays land hot every twenty minutes, 1.50 euros.
Worth the queue: Pastel de nata at 1.50 euros, eaten at the counter
Landeau Chocolate on Lisbon's Rua das Flores: one cake, dark chocolate mousse over moist sponge, dusted with cocoa, sliced to order behind a marble counter.
Worth the queue: Bolo de chocolate Landeau, dusted with cocoa
A Padaria Portuguesa's Chiado branch in Lisbon: the homegrown chain that revived the neighbourhood padaria model, croissants and breads to-go.
Worth the queue: Croissant misto, ham and cheese in a flaky shell
Alcoa's Chiado pastelaria in Lisbon: the canonical Alcobaca convent-sweets shop, cornucopias and pao de lo brought down from the cloister tradition.
Worth the queue: Cornucopia, Alcobaca's pine-nut and egg-cream pastry
Kaffeehaus in Lisbon's Chiado: a Viennese coffeehouse on Rua Anchieta beside Alma, single-origin espresso, melange Viennese and a wood-panelled reading room.
Sources from: Brazil, Honduras, Ethiopia
How they serve: Espresso, Filter, French press
By The Wine on Lisbon's Rua das Flores: Sogrape's tasting bar pouring its full Portuguese range glass by glass, vaulted ceiling, late hours daily.
Signature pour: Casa Ferreirinha Vinha Grande Douro tinto
Wine focus: Sogrape's full Portuguese portfolio by the glass
Food: Portuguese tapas
TOPO Chiado in Lisbon: a rooftop on top of the Terracos do Carmo car park, gin and tonic with a head-on view of Castelo de Sao Jorge across the valley.
Signature drink: Gin tonic with Castelo de Sao Jorge view
Food: Small plates and shareables
O Trevo on Lisbon's Praca Luis de Camoes: the local consensus pick for bifanas at 2.50 euros, served with a beer at a stand-up counter, fast service.
Try: Bifana, the Lisbon pork sandwich
Ginginha do Carmo near Lisbon's Rossio station: a stand-up window pouring sour-cherry liqueur in chocolate cups for 1.65 euros, two pours in each tiny cup.
Try: Ginjinha shot served in a chocolate cup, near Rossio station
Cervejaria Trindade in Chiado, Lisbon: Portugal's oldest beer hall, brewing on site since 1836, blue azulejos walls, Sagres draught and Trindade steaks.
O Trevo on Lisbon's Praca Luis de Camoes: 2.80-euro bifanas with cheese, a stand-up beer with each, the local consensus for cheap Lisbon eats.
Try: Bifana with cheese
Manteigaria on Lisbon's Rua do Loreto: pastel de nata at 1.50 euros, baked every 20 minutes, eaten at the marble counter with a bica espresso.
Try: Pastel de nata at the counter
Dear Breakfast's Chiado branch in Lisbon: a small wood-floor room on Rua Antonio Maria Cardoso, pancakes, eggs and cold-pressed juices, weekend queues.
Order: American-style pancake stack with bacon and maple.
Vegan Junkies in Lisbon's Chiado: a plant-only brunch and burger room on Rua das Flores, carrot-lox Benedicts, vegan pancakes and Portuguese natural wines.
Order: Vegan eggs Benedict with smoked carrot 'salmon'.
Boa-Bao in Chiado, Lisbon: pan-Asian noodles and bao until 00:30 on weekend nights, the Bairro-Alto pre-club spot that doesn't serve cliches.
Try: Pad thai or bao buns
Mini Bar Teatro in Chiado, Lisbon: Jose Avillez's gastrobar in the Sao Luiz theatre, theatre-named small plates until 01:00, drinks until 02:00.
Try: Theatre-named small plates
Topo Chiado on Terraços do Carmo opened in 2018 between the Convento do Carmo ruin and the Santa Justa lift, a rooftop bar with the city's most photographed.
Tip: Enter through the Armazéns do Chiado mall or the Carmo lift; the Santa Justa platform leans over the terrace. Daily from 11:00, late close 02:00 on weekends.