This cuisine
Day trip · 4 hours
Private Swing Special place w/ Wine and Fruits 4x4 jipe tour
Create Unforgettable Memories: Private Swing Special Place with Wine and Fruits in a 4x4 Jeep Tour
from€320 Check dates
What to order at H.M. Borges
- Must order
- A Colheita or Frasqueira poured in the guided cellar tasting, booked in advance.
- Editor tip
- The house publishes no fixed tasting-room schedule. Visits are customised, so email or call ahead rather than turning up.
Why locals love it: A fourth-generation 1924 adega in the middle of Funchal that still ages in cask, and that most visitors walk past on the way to the bigger lodges.
Wine bar tastings, classes and tours in Funchal
This cuisine
Day trip · 8 hours
From Funchal: Full-Day Madeira Wine Tour with Lunch
Sample the fine wines of Madeira on a full-day tasting tour from Funchal and learn about the island's wine industry and delicious food. Stop at a selection of wineries...
from€210 Check dates
This cuisine
Guided tour · 4 hours
Toboggan Ride & Madeira Wine Tasting Tour
Sample some local Madeira fortified wine. Visit Funchal market with all its colors. Head to Monte for the toboggan ride. Visit Câmara de Lobos, the fishing village.
from€115 Check dates
Location
Address: Rua 31 de Janeiro 83, 9050-401 Funchal
Also in Sé
A Gruta ★ 4.1
A Gruta reopened in 2019 above the Funchal port, cooking clay-pot Portuguese food and staying open past midnight when most kitchens have shut.
OrderA clay-pot dish finished at the table, which is the house method.
Why locals goLocals treat the Parque da Cidade room as the late kitchen, but almost no visitor guide lists it.
TipOne of the few Funchal kitchens still serving after midnight, and later again at weekends.
Loja do Chá ★ 4.4
Loja do Chá pours tea off Praça do Colombo in Funchal from a list of more than 300, with an own-label Tea 1419 line blended from organic Madeira ingredients.
OrderA pot from the Tea 1419 line with a scone from the counter.
Why locals goA list of more than 300 teas and infusions behind an unmarked door off Praça do Colombo, still mostly a Funchal habit.
TipThe upstairs tea room is quieter than the shop floor. The operator publishes no schedule online, so check before a late-afternoon visit.
More hidden gems in Funchal
Casa Portuguesa ★ 4.2
Casa Portuguesa lines its Funchal old town rooms with hand-painted cobalt tiles and cooks a traditional Portuguese carte, with fado by prior reservation.
OrderA traditional Portuguese main, booked with the fado sitting if you want music.
Why locals goCobalt tiled rooms up a stepped lane, and the fado sittings are booked by Madeirans not tour desks.
TipFado nights need reserving in advance rather than asking for on the door.
A Gruta ★ 4.1
A Gruta reopened in 2019 above the Funchal port, cooking clay-pot Portuguese food and staying open past midnight when most kitchens have shut.
OrderA clay-pot dish finished at the table, which is the house method.
Why locals goLocals treat the Parque da Cidade room as the late kitchen, but almost no visitor guide lists it.
TipOne of the few Funchal kitchens still serving after midnight, and later again at weekends.
Loja do Chá ★ 4.4
Loja do Chá pours tea off Praça do Colombo in Funchal from a list of more than 300, with an own-label Tea 1419 line blended from organic Madeira ingredients.
OrderA pot from the Tea 1419 line with a scone from the counter.
Why locals goA list of more than 300 teas and infusions behind an unmarked door off Praça do Colombo, still mostly a Funchal habit.
TipThe upstairs tea room is quieter than the shop floor. The operator publishes no schedule online, so check before a late-afternoon visit.
Lá ao Fundo ★ 4.3
Lá ao Fundo sits at the fortress end of the Funchal old town, where chef-owner Jaime Cruz pulls Portuguese, African and Indian threads into one short menu.
OrderThe daily author dish, rewritten each morning around the market delivery.
Why locals goThe fortress end of the old town empties after the cruise crowd leaves, and this kitchen keeps cooking.
TipLunch and dinner run as two separate services with the kitchen shut between them. Book the terrace.
Doca do Cavacas ★ 4.4
Doca do Cavacas is built on the rock above the Ponta da Cruz sea pools in Funchal, serving grilled fish, shellfish and espetada by the water.
OrderGrilled fish of the day, with the natural pools below the terrace.
Why locals goBuilt on a rock above the Ponta da Cruz sea pools, well past where the promenade walkers stop.
TipClosed Mondays. Lunch on the terrace catches the sun over Praia Formosa.