Casa das Espetadas is a portuguese (grill) restaurant in Lido, Funchal.
Editorially verified August 3, 2026 by Lewis Vaughan, TableJourney editor. Source.
Signature dishes: Espetada, Bolo do caco, Wood-oven plates
Must order: Beef espetada on the bay-laurel skewer, hung at the table.
Tip: Closed Wednesday and Thursday, and the terrace runs folklore and fado on some evenings.
Address: Estrada Monumental 175-177, 9000-100 Funchal
Villa Cipriani serves Italian cooking on the clifftop terrace at Reid's Palace in Funchal, revisiting Italian classics with the Atlantic below the balustrade.
Signature: Italian carte, Terrace dining
Order: A dish from the constantly renewed Italian carte, on the terrace.
Tip: The terrace tables at the seaward rail are the ones to ask for when booking. Last orders are at 22:30.
Chalet Vicente reopened on 28 July 2026 in a late-19th-century Estrada Monumental chalet, cooking regional Madeiran and Portuguese food in Funchal.
Signature: Regional Madeiran cooking, Portuguese petiscos
Order: Portuguese petiscos in the adega, which the reopened house runs alongside the dining rooms.
Tip: The rebuild added a ten-seat cigar room and a Portuguese adega. Schedules published before July 2026 predate it, so call before turning up.
Restaurante dos Combatentes is a plain central Funchal dining room with a garden, cooking regional Madeiran plates at everyday weekday prices.
Signature: Regional Madeiran plates, Bacalhau
Order: The regional plate of the day, which is what the room is built around.
Tip: Lunch is the busy service with local office trade. Both services run Saturday too, and it is closed Sunday.
A Gruta reopened in 2019 above the Funchal port, cooking clay-pot Portuguese food and staying open past midnight when most kitchens have shut.
Signature: Clay-pot dishes, Grilled meats, Madeiran desserts
Order: A clay-pot dish finished at the table, which is the house method.
Tip: One of the few Funchal kitchens still serving after midnight, and later again at weekends.
Villa Cipriani serves Italian cooking on the clifftop terrace at Reid's Palace in Funchal, revisiting Italian classics with the Atlantic below the balustrade.
Signature: Italian carte, Terrace dining
Order: A dish from the constantly renewed Italian carte, on the terrace.
Tip: The terrace tables at the seaward rail are the ones to ask for when booking. Last orders are at 22:30.
Chalet Vicente reopened on 28 July 2026 in a late-19th-century Estrada Monumental chalet, cooking regional Madeiran and Portuguese food in Funchal.
Signature: Regional Madeiran cooking, Portuguese petiscos
Order: Portuguese petiscos in the adega, which the reopened house runs alongside the dining rooms.
Tip: The rebuild added a ten-seat cigar room and a Portuguese adega. Schedules published before July 2026 predate it, so call before turning up.
Gavião Novo grills fish off the Funchal coast on Rua de Santa Maria, the old town street where the day boat rather than the menu decides dinner.
Signature: Grilled fish of the day, Atlantic seafood
Order: Fish from the Funchal coast, grilled whole off the day boat.
Tip: Book ahead for dinner. The dining room is small and the pavement tables on Rua de Santa Maria go first.
Ákua is chef Júlio Pereira's fish counter in central Funchal, opened in 2019, working the Atlantic catch against produce grown on the island.
Signature: Atlantic fish of the day, Limpets, Island vegetables
Order: Whatever the counter lists off the day boat, cooked simply over fire.
Tip: The room is small and popular with locals at lunch, so reserve. The operator publishes no schedule online.
