I’ll remember Portugal for a lot of things. The coastal vibe of Nazaré. The beauty of Lisbon, especially as seen from atop one of its many hills. The old world charm of Coimbra. But most of all, I’ll remember Portugal for its food and drink. This trip ended up being one of the best in terms of eating that my wife and I have ever taken.

The three days we spent in Porto at the end of the trip capped off our eating adventures in a wonderful fashion. On night one, we saddled up to the bar at Cantinho do Avillez and let the bartender do his magic with cocktail creations through the evening. This was a very wise choice.

Leaving the drink selections up to an accomplished bartender is a great way to have a memorable evening. It also helps when those drinks are paired with amazing dishes like this scallop risotto.

My menu selection here was decidedly lowbrow – the famous Porto sandwich, the francesinha. At this restaurant, it was elevated with premium cuts of meat and a luscious dark gravy.

That sandwich was so good, it made me crave the “real thing”. Consistently rated as the city’s best francesinha, I knew I had to head to Santiago f. A very good sign was I was the eighth person in line waiting for them to open at 11:00am. This was an epic sandwich and well worth the walk across the city. I’m sure it took a year off my life and as I was devouring it, it took my mind back to the eerily similar Primanti Bros. sandwiches in Pittsburgh.

Continuing on the topic of downmarket eating, a number of McDonalds in Porto offer gluten-free hamburgers, so of course this was a stop for my wife. A treat she can only get in Europe (for now), the burger hit some historical taste memories for her. For me, I had a regular burger and a beer, because in Portugal, even McDonalds knows burgers and beer go together.

No trip to Porto would be complete without some port tastings. To kill an hour during an afternoon downpour, I popped into a tasting hall where they give you an electronic card that allows you to pour as many samples as you would like. Dangerous thing, but I was mature and sampled only three delicious ports.

And finally, on our last day in Porto, we did a tour of Cálem where we learned of the history of port, the traditions and types of port, as well as the connection between port and the city of Porto. Of course, the tour was the opening act for a tasting that we thoroughly enjoyed. There are now a couple of bottles of their port sitting proudly with our other bottles at home in Saskatoon.