It’s summer 2022, and aficionados of traditional Portuguese cuisine have somewhere new to add to their list of must visits: Pica-Pau in Príncipe Real. The restaurant is the brainchild of Chef Luís Gaspar, who has long wanted to lead a project in which the chef takes a back seat and there are no reinterpretations but, rather, everyday, honest food that hark back to the flavours anybody who grew up in Portugal will know to identify.

The menu boasts dishes from every region of the country, including the islands. There are snacks to share (alentejo cured ham, octopus salad, fried liver and onions, and suckling pig rissoles, among others) and dishes to choose from (including cod á la brás, steak, and green asparagus panada, to name but a few). There is also a dish of the day, which will remain on the menu for several weeks. For example, on Tuesdays it will always be mão de vaca com grão (cow’s hoof with chickpeas), and on fridays arroz de cabidela (jugged chicken and rice).