Jardins do Porto

Worth getting out of bed for

When in Porto, do as the Portuenses do. This golden rule will lead you to low-key, unpresuming places favoured by locals, as at Confeitaria do Bolhão, where your fuel for the day will come in the form of the perennially popular pastéis de nata (we also recommend you pig out on the piglet ball). For those who know their tannins from their terroir, it’d take some serious Iberian irreverence to forgo a tasting tour of the city’s famed fortified wine. Set aside an afternoon to swap the pleasures of Jardins do Porto for the pleasures of Jardins do Palácio de Cristal, where at onsite Antiqvvm you can sample some of the most coveted bottles on the continent; then dock at waterside Kopke, the city’s oldest cellar which produces perhaps the best tawny that euros can buy. During days when you have a thirst for something beyond the barrels, head to Fundação de Serralves, one of the country’s finest collections of contemporary art – a series of works by Joan Miró are among the highlights – all housed across a cluster of buildings, the main one of which has a millennial pink facade that belies its near century-old standing. If, then, you’ve been inspired to seek out something to showcase on your own walls (but are after an item that’s a little easier on the Amex than an original Warhol), try artisanal rug maker Gur whose vibrant, often whimsical designs can be used as either hangings or hallway runners. Depending on whether space in your Rimowa allows, fill your boots at the Feeting Room, where you can try some Portuguese footwear brands on for size (Auprès deals in pared-back, premium heels; sunseeking tastemakers favour +351’s sliders), and clean out what’s left of your wallet at soap and beauty shop Claus Porto, where the fine fragrances and grooming gems are handmade and encased in the type of Art Deco-style packaging you’d likely find on Jay Gatsby’s vanity.

Local restaurants

It used to be the case that the best places to catch a bite were closer to the coast – but, in recent years, Porto’s current crop of flagship chefs have gone inland to Baixa. Although tweezers and squirt bottles have become the rule in some of the city’s contemporary kitchens, Elemento chef Ricardo Dias Ferreira still makes a case for Flintstone-style, primitive cooking by flavouring dishes with smoke from his brutish fire pit – try the lamb loin with nettles and morels, or the roasted goat and carbonara sauce. Traça pays homage to its roots as a one-time grocer’s: the stewed wild partridge can tame any famished carnivore’s cravings. And for minimum-fuss, maximum-carbs, seek out a francesinha, a multi-tiered sandwich comprising layers of meat topped with cheese and covered with a sinister beer sauce, the type of thing that should come with its own disclaimer – the best version of this heart-drubbing delicacy can be found at O Afonso. 

Local bars

For nights when you’re after a sip of something other than fortified wine, head to the Royal Cocktail Club, a speakeasy-style hangout within a 10-minute walk from – and a 20-minute stumble back to – the hotel. Pull up a stool at the marble-topped bar and order in a few of the innovative mixes: you’ll find salvation in A Treasure Named Holy Grail (Martin Miller’s gin, Martini vermouth), and the Hemingway (Tanqueray No. Ten, Grand Marnier) may not be novel, but it’s still a work of genius. For a final nightcap, stream along to Flow, where the On The Rocks’s name belies its steadying mix of tequila, lime juice, Angostura bitters and Cointreau.