A Taberna do Mar: The Most Reasonable Tasting Menu in Lisbon

As you may know, Dan and I have spent a lot of time in Portugal, including getting married there in 2017! We tried a fantastic and inexpensive seafood tasting menu on our last trip, and it was one of our best finds yet! Yes, I’m talking about A Taberna do Mar or, in English, The Sea Tavern. It really just sounds much better in Portuguese. This is my review of Taberna do Mar!

A Taberna do Mar is a tiiiiiiny restaurant in Graça are of Lisbon (think Alfama). The chef, Filipe Rodrigues, learned to cook from family in the Algarve and has worked at a number of Japanese restaurants in Lisbon. As a result, A Taberna do Mar offers a small menu of local seafood prepared in a cross between Portuguese and Japanese technique. The menu changes regularly, but often features similar things, and offers ordering a la carte and a tasting menu. The tasting menu was only 25 euro per person during our visit (yes, you read that correctly!) so we opted for that! Everything was fantastic, but the menu is almost exclusively seafood, FYI for non-seafood eaters.

Continue reading

Quinta do Arneiro, Gradil, Portugal – A Great Place For A Party (Or Lunch) In Gradil, Portugal!

Dan and I hosted our “rehearsal dinner” the night before our wedding at Quinta do Arneiro in Gradil, Portugal last summer! I have “rehearsal dinner” in quotes, because we did not actually have a wedding rehearsal (we winged it!); this was just a dinner the night before our wedding with all of our guests who were in town! The evening was fabulously fun, and Quinta do Arneiro was the most amazing venue that anyone can visit for a meal! Highly recommended!!

IMG_3691

Quinta do Arneiro!

Continue reading

Photo Essay: Ericeira, Portugal in the Summer.

Nope, that’s not a Gray Malin picture, that is a photograph of Ericeira, Portugal!! As you may know, Dan and I got married near the famous surfing destination of Ericeira, Portugal last summer! I was originally going to write a post about Ericeira in the Summer as a follow up to Ericeira in November, but Ericeira is really just a small Portuguese beach town that acts as a beach getaway for Lisboetas and serious surfers. Ericeira is also beautiful, so here are some of my favorite pictures from Ericeira!

20170903_161959

The colorful flowers in Ericeira are unreal and everywhere!

20170903_161930

Blue & white tiles everywhere.

Continue reading

Wareontheglobe’s Top 12 Tips for Planning A Destination Wedding!

If you read this blog, you know that I got married near Lisbon, Portugal nearly a year ago. Due to requests from a number of friends, colleagues, and acquaintances, here are my top 10 tips for planning a destination wedding! Side note – these are probably most applicable for those traveling to Europe (and particularly Portugal) from outside of Europe (I’m from New York).

# 1 – Get Married In A Destination That You Are  Somewhat Familiar With, i.e. You Have Visited Before Your Wedding.

To be clear, if you have never visited a destination, do not have your wedding there. Your wedding, which will take months to plan, cost a small fortune, and stress you out to no end, should not be held at some place that you *think* is magical, but to which you have never even visited in person. Save that for your honeymoon. For your wedding, you need a basic understanding as to what you are getting yourself into, the destination, and the culture.  We had visited Portugal 3 times before our wedding. 

IMG_5330.jpg

Dan & me visiting Lisbon to wedding plan!

Continue reading

Wedding Week: Day 8. A Group Day Trip To Sintra and Cabo da Roca!

02.09.17. Sintra, Cabo da Roca, and Ericeira, Portugal. 2 days married. Eighth full day in Europe.

Day 8. Wow, our final full day of our European wedding vacation! Since Day 7 was our day of rest (a la our Day at Sea circa 2010 – hello, Pryor!), I planned a full day excursion for everyone’s (everyone who was still in town, anyway) final day in Portugal! I used Tours by Jorge to plan a private day tour to Sintra, Portugal, with lunch and a stop at Cabo do Roca, all starting and ending at Hotel Vila Gale Ericeira! I was seriously the best bride… = ) 

0902171109_HDR.jpg

The beautiful Portuguese countryside that we toured!

Continue reading