Zunzum Gastrobar in Lisbon offers a contemporary Portuguese-inspired menu, nice dishes and beautiful cocktail creations. Not really gastronomic for my taste but almost, it allows nevertheless to indulge ourself at affordable prices.
For this long stay in Lisbon I tried to alternate different types of restaurants, from gastronomic to small traditional restaurants. For this first evening I aimed between the two: Zunzum Gastrobar proposes dishes of Portuguese inspiration but revisited in a contemporary and international mode. More than a restaurant, it is also a bar that puts forward its creations in terms of cocktails. It seemed like a good compromise to start with.
The property is classified “Bib Gourmand” by Michelin which means that the Guide finds qualities and a specific interest without putting it at the level of the gastronomic restaurants and I think that it is largely justified.
You will find all the articles about this trip to Portugal at the bottom of the page.
The concept of the restaurant
It is a modern cuisine restaurant with a Portuguese base. As the name suggests, great attention is also paid to cocktails and one goes to the Zunzum Gastrobar for one, the other or both.
It is owned by chef Marlene Vieira who also owns the Marlene restaurant next door.
The setting of the restaurant
The restaurant is in a modern building near the cruise terminal, so its style is in line with that.
As soon as you enter, you’ll find the bar where you can eat, unless you prefer the dining room.
Then we find the dining room with a modern and warm style, a rather streamlined decoration.
The Menu
The restaurant offers a nice cocktail menu to start.
Then the hot and cold starters.
The main courses and the current set menu.
There is finally a tasting menu, that will be my choice.
It’s quite promising: there is a local base but revisited in a very modern way. Let’s see if the promise is kept.
Dinner and service
I arrive at the beginning of the evening, I had a reservation at 8pm.
The welcome is warm, they ask me if I prefer to dine at the bar or in the dining room, I will choose the room.
I will start with a cocktail: the delichioso. Correct but for me who prefers short drinks it is a little too liquid.
As said before I chose the tasting menu and will trust the waiter for a red wine by the glass.
The first course arrives quickly.
Avocado toast, crab and roe
Nice presentation. Fresh and good but the fish eggs cover the taste of the rest.
Tuna tartar tartlet with bearnaise sauce and mustard pickle
Again a beautiful presentation.
Good and fresh and I like the spicy side of the mustard. But the béarnaise/mustard pickle duo makes the tuna completely disappear. Shame.
Since my arrival the light has been dimmed a little and it is more pleasant, less cold.
Octopus with romesco sauce
Perfectly cooked but once again the sauce is a little too present.
So far, in all the dishes, there is an imbalance in the mouth between the main and secondary ingredients.
Creamy rice with shellfish and coriander
Good but once again the coriander is omnipresent and eats the taste of the other ingredients.
Black pig from the Alentejo fed with acorn and fried corn
Excellent meat and sauce, and perfectly cooked. But the vegetables on it had to be seasoned and marinated and they were too dominant. Too sour. But if I take them off it’s great.
The polenta with which it is served is too salty and its presentation not very engaging: either there is not enough polenta or the dish is too big.
Sweet rice parfait, rice cookie, lemon and cinnamon cream
Light, not stuffy, very good.
I will finish with a coffee.
In the end, this meal leaves me with a mixed feeling: it is very well presented, there are ideas and research but it remains unfinished. There is a problem in the assembly of the flavors and almost all the dishes are unbalanced with an ingredient which imposes itself and makes disappear the taste of the others.
It’s good, but there’s not much missing to make it really fine. For me it is not yet possible to speak of a gourmet restaurant, just a good creative table.
The atmosphere
The music is quite present, varied (electro, 80s, 90s) but very bearable and even rather nice.
The service
Well-paced and very nice staff.
Bottom line
A good meal but leaves a slight frustration because, taken individually, each dish was almost very good but it’s the almost that you remember at the end.
If it was as good as it is beautiful it would be perfect…
The Michelin was nice: yes it’s interesting but it can be improved.
Articles about this trip to Portugal
Review | Type | Post |
#1 | Diary | Preparing my birthday trip to Portugal |
#2 | Flight | Paris Orly-Lisbon – TAP – Business Class – Embraer 195 |
#3 | Hotel | Sheraton Lisbon |
#4 | Restaurant | Zunzum Gastrobar, Lisbon |
#5 | Restaurant | Solar Dos Bicos, Lisbon |
#6 | Restaurant | Cura, Lisbon |
#7 | Restaurant | O Frade, Lisbon |
#8 | Restaurant | 100 Maneiras, Lisbon |
#9 | Restaurant | Nomada, Lisbon |
#10 | Diary | Lisbon day #1: downtown |
#11 | Diary | Lisbon day #2: Belem and beyond |
#12 | Hotel | Four Points by Sheraton Sesimbra |
#13 | Restaurant | O Batel Sesimbra |
#14 | Restaurant | Espadarte Sesimbra |
#15 | Lounge | TAP Premium lounge Lisbon |
#16 | Flight | Lisbon-Paris Orly, TAP, Business Class, Airbus A330Neo. |
#17 | Diary | Debriefing of the trip to Lisbon and Sesimbra |