Maureen is a partner in Grape, Oliver, Pig —farm, cooperative, wine growers, event planners, ecologists…pretty amazing stuff. But that is not what she did for us: we arranged for the Lisbon half-day “Culinary Lisbon. // Food + Wine Tour”. Superb experience, in all five senses.
My sister knew Maureen as a restaurateur in Philadelphia, a foodie city. She knew her stuff. Now, she was doing many things in Portugal, one was expressing her superb gourmand sensibilities through “Gourmet Tours”. sharing what she has learned of Lisbon’s gourmet experiences. She went beyond what we expected to deliver a sense of a fuller context of living in Lisbon, of being Portuguese; for her it seemed the food and tastes were not about food, but more harbingers of what the culture and people were all about — or at least that slice of it.
So, in our minds, what was supposed to be a “gourmet tour” was richer, deeper, touching all the senses; what we call “life-tasting”.
Let me lay out the tour in the seemingly wandering way it went…
First, we met at Lisbon’s last family-owned coffee roasting businesses: Flor Del Selva. Here , among the roar of the roaster, the stifling heat, the crowded rooms, we met the man who stoked the fire, weighed the beans and scooped them with his hand to check if they were done.
As mentioned, the room was stifling hot, tiny, the walls lined with large bags of beans from around the world. It was hard to take your eyes away from the roaster as he stoked the fire, checked the thermometer, tousled his hands back and forth. To read all the country names on the beans sacks, stacked floor-to-ceiling, made us imagine them coming in by freighters from parts unknown.
Beside the roasting room was a small tasting room where we reviewed their labels, and minus the roaring of the roaster, learned of the family history from the current member running it. The espresso he made was strong, delicious and refreshing.
The visit was not long; but long enough for us to buy 2-3 pounds of beans to take home. We savored them for weeks.
After this, we took a good walk along the waterfront of the river Tejo. The famous TIME OUT Market, facing the water, down at the bottom of the Chiado district.
This TIME OUT Market was one of the best organized, dynamic, chaotic and fun places we have ever eaten at. In Philadelphia, they have the famous Reading Terminal; this was far better, though the Terminal’s purposeful chaos is part of its charm. At the center were rows and rows of sandalwood seats, tables and benches, interspersed with an occasional interactive digital signage for events, etc. On the outer lining, the outer ring, were what seems a hundred small stalls of stores from all over the city — like mini culinary outposts. Meals to chocolates to wine to…look it up. The energy in the air was electric.
Maureen sat us down and presented us with plate after plate of the different specialties of the Market. Yes, all the food was fantastic; but the best was the Portuguese custard tart. We had a similar one in Sintra, the outlandish royal palace outside Lisbon, but this was…a gift to the palate.
While we did eat a wide range of small portions, the point was not about quantity, but variety; by testing each taste bud, this was the best way for us to see the bouquet of tastes and delicacies.
Sea Me was a wonderful expression of all things fish. This was the final stop on our tour, and corresponded with lunchtime. Sea Me was atop a long hill, and like so much of the tour, Maureen’s effervescence and verbal acrobatics of telling random and meaningful tales — thrown over her shoulder as we walked — all told with casual authority and love.
To do justice to Maureen and her tour, below we have cut-and-pasted (and linked out) to their website description. It is well written but really does not capture the smells, site, sounds…the roaring of the roaster, the vertical nature of the streets and the tales she told thrown over her shoulder as we climbed…
If you have a half-day, and really it was 9:30 to 1ish…this is something you should not miss. And Maureen is someone worth meeting. Ask her anything about Portugal, Lisbon, anything, she will have a story to tell. What a delight.
From the Grape, Olive, Pig website:
maureen@grapeolivepig.com
CULINARY LISBON | food & wine walk
Together we’ll enjoy a half-day wandering through one of the most historic parts of Lisbon — eating, drinking and soaking in the history and beauty of the city. Our 4-hour tour will take us to an iconic food market, a favorite family-run gourmet store, the oldest coffee roaster in Lisbon, traditional bakeries and a tasting of several wines made from Portugal’s more than 300 indigenous grapes. We’ll walk through the neighborhoods, chat with vendors & restaurant owners, and catch a glimpse of a traditional way of life that is disappearing. While we walk, it will be a great pleasure for me to share some of my
favorite addresses and insights into life in Lisbon.
Outspoken Traveler 
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