Porto Food and Travel Guide: Francesinha, Bacalhau and Port Wine

Porto, Portugal's gritty and gorgeous northern city, eats with conviction. This is a place of rich sauces, salt cod and fortified wine, where the signature dish, the francesinha, is a towering sandwich of cured meats smothered in melted cheese and a beer-and-tomato sauce. It is not subtle, and that is the point.

What to eat

• Francesinha — the legendary meat-and-cheese sandwich, often crowned with a fried egg.
• Bacalhau — salt cod, prepared in countless ways; try bacalhau à Brás or à Gomes de Sá.
• Tripas à moda do Porto — tripe stew with white beans, the dish that gave locals the nickname tripeiros.
• Bifana — a simple, garlicky pork sandwich, ideal for a quick lunch.
• Port wine — the fortified wine aged in the cellars across the river in Vila Nova de Gaia.

Where to go

Wander down to Ribeira, the riverside district of tiled facades and narrow lanes, for atmospheric (if touristy) tascas. For something more local, the area around the Mercado do Bolhão rewards you with traditional restaurants and grocers. Cross the Dom Luís I bridge to the Gaia waterfront to tour the port wine lodges and taste tawny and vintage styles side by side.

A practical ordering tip: portions in Porto are generous, so ask for a meia dose (half portion) when you see it offered, and a couvert of bread, olives or cheese put on your table is charged, so decline it if you don't want it.

One thing to keep in mind: many family-run tascas list their daily specials only in Portuguese, often handwritten on a board, so photographing the menu to translate it helps you find the real bacalhau dish instead of the tourist-menu version.

Eat slowly, drink a glass of port, and let Porto's old-world rhythm carry you.