Portuguese€€€Zona VelhaDaily 12:00-15:00 and 18:30-23:00
Restaurante do Forte has cooked inside the São Tiago fortress in Funchal since 2001, with terrace tables above the bay and a Portuguese carte.
Signature: Atlantic fish, Portuguese classics
Order: Fish from the Madeiran boats, cooked in the fortress kitchen.
Tip: Ask for a terrace table at sunset. The fortress walls block the wind that hits the promenade below.
Portuguese€€LidoMon-Sat 11:00-22:30, closed Sunday
Casal da Penha is a family-run Funchal restaurant just off the hotel strip, with a classic dining room, a Madeiran terrace and a grilled fish carte.
Signature: Espetada, Grilled codfish, Bolo do caco
Order: Espetada on the laurel skewer, or the grilled codfish that fills most tables here.
Tip: The terrace is the reason to come. Ask for it when you book rather than on arrival.
Contemporary Portuguese€€€Sé
Armazém do Sal works a Mediterranean and contemporary Portuguese carte on Rua da Alfândega, billing itself as a warehouse of flavours in central Funchal.
Signature: Grilled squid with beetroot mayonnaise, Pork belly with sweet potato puree, Salmon pappardelle nero
Order: Grilled squid with mashed potato and beetroot mayonnaise, off the chef's selection.
Tip: The house publishes no schedule online, so call ahead for lunch. Reservations go through the site or by phone.
Portuguese€€Zona VelhaDaily 11:00-23:00
Taberna Ruel works a Madeiran and Portuguese kitchen on Rua de Santa Maria, named for chef Ricardo Ruel and built on island produce and modern technique.
Signature: Madeiran daily plates, Portuguese wine list
Order: A Madeiran plate from the daily list, with a bottle from the Portuguese cellar.
Tip: It runs straight through from 11:00 to 23:00 every day, so it catches both the late lunch and the early dinner.
Contemporary Portuguese€€Zona VelhaDaily 12:30-15:00 and 18:30-23:00
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.
Signature: Author dishes, Vegetarian plates
Order: The daily author dish, rewritten each morning around the market delivery.
Tip: Lunch and dinner run as two separate services with the kitchen shut between them. Book the terrace.
Contemporary Portuguese€€€SéRestaurant daily 12:30-15:30 and 18:30-22:30; gastrobar Sun-Thu 11:00-23:00, Fri-Sat 11:00-00:00
Terreiro Concept is a zero-waste Funchal gastrobar and dining room cooking and mixing from its own kitchen-garden plantings and island growers.
Signature: Garden-led plates, Madeiran fish, Garden cocktails
Order: A cocktail built from the kitchen garden, then the daily fish.
Tip: The gastrobar runs straight through from 11:00 while the restaurant works lunch and dinner services. Friday and Saturday it stays open to midnight.