After the great visit at the Sikh temple I decided to try another one: the Portuguese neighborhood. It was raining and cold, not a good day for a walking tour…but having given my name I went nonetheless.
This is not an exclusive or very defined area, but it is loosely located around the Rachel and St Laurent intersection. We gathered in a park off boulevard St Laurent. It has a definite Portuguese flavor, with the red tile roof kiosk adorned with azuleros and the tiled watering fountain.
There is a second park nearby also dedicated to the Portuguese community but done in a more eclectic style. In each case the trees in the parks are numerous and varied.
Although this is the area where the first Portuguese immigrants settled, the architecture is not significantly different than other parts of the city. What does set it apart are the restaurants. The first one we stopped at “Portus” is a new one, very elegant and refined. We were offered several dishes to sample, all seafood or fish.
Next we stopped at a take out rotisserie on Rachel street near Hotel de Ville. You can watch the chicken roasting through the basement window…this is not a fancy place but the chicken was delicious.
We stopped in yet another restaurant that is somewhat of a hole in the wall on St Laurent, that is famous for its pork and chicken…
We had dessert in a tiny pastry shop where we ate wonderful egg tarts (or at least that is how I call them) small tarts filled with sweet egg custard halfway between crème caramel and crème brûlée.
As if all this was not enough we finished the day off in one last restaurant. One I had been to before…also on Rachel street. We had several main courses to choose from but by that time…I was not very hungry…
All in all an interesting day. Portuguese food is simple and hearty nothing snobby here…