Lisbon wasn’t a new destination for me, I’ve visited twice before – for a work football tournament(?!) and a friend’s wedding. This was my first visit where I got to explore the city with absolutely zero plans, but also the first since adopting a plant-based diet and reigning in my spending habits. Fortunately for Harry, my holidays no longer involve hours spent in Zara because holiday spending “doesn’t count”…

We stayed for four nights, more than enough time to see the city although our agenda was to do not much other than wander the steep streets, chatting and stopping for drinks and food as opposed to focused sight-seeing. 

I found Lyzi’s post and this Refinery29 travel diary super helpful for finding tips on where to eat and drink, and used the Happy Cow app
for finding vegan eats as Lisbon’s traditional cuisine is not the easiest for plant-eaters… 

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Our airbnb was in the cute Alfama district and was very on-budget. The skylight in the bedroom was the best spot for watching the sunrise and sunset over the rooftops of the neighbourhood, being just below the Alfama viewing terrace. We walked pretty much everywhere in the city clocking up over 15,000 steps each day. Comfortable, flat sandals are a must as the streets are so steep and cobbled with tiny, shiny tiles, I went skidding more than once…

Our first evening after arriving from The Algarve was slightly cut short by a pigeon pooping in my hair (apparently it’s good luck?!) while wandering around Alfama. At least the early night meant that we left the apartment before 8am the following day in search of avocado toast and freshly squeezed orange juice (a world away from anything coming out of a carton) for breakfast at Fabrica, a small cafe filled with old type-writers and bric-a-brac.

Our next stop was Copenhagen Coffee Lab, a minimalist Scandi-style coffee shop and bakery. We ended up popping in every day as Harry really liked their batch brew and, as a non-coffee drinker, I enjoyed the people watching opportunities (and free water and bathrooms).

Lunch was at Time Out Market, we arrived just before midday when it was pretty quiet, it’s definitely a touristy spot but the atmosphere is fun with food stalls around the edge, a bar in the middle and communal seating. Harry grabbed a traditional Portuguese lunch and I had a soy matcha latte from the coffee counter and picked up some dark chocolate with orange oil for the road (an accidentally expensive purchase). The only vegan options I spotted were curries and pad Thai at Asian Lab but there’s a chance some of the local food counters could adapt some dishes, and there’s a smoothie bar in the centre too. 

The afternoon was spent listening to buskers play under a giant tree in the Jardim Principe Real, grabbing a vegan gelato from Mu and checking out the locally made items in Embaixada. The building is a former palace and I wish we’d been here at a sensible time to visit the gin bar in the back garden. We walked a little further to a bigger park, Parque Eduardo VII to spent the afternoon taking in the late summer sunshine until we were hungry (I realised that I’d forgotten to eat lunch which actually never happens to me). We headed to Coyo Taco for dinner, it’s a casual spot with a fun atmosphere, great (generous-sized) margaritas and addictive guacamole. We stayed for a few hours chatting and it was a nice surprise when the bill was only €55.

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Our second morning took us on a longer walk to breakfast at Cafe Janis. A few steps from the Time Out Market, this was definitely my favourite Lisbon cafe.  We both loved our breakfasts (vegan granola bowl for me and a Mediterranean veggie breakfast plate for Harry) and I had a soy matcha latte, declining the optional addition of CBD drops.

After a quick detour to Copenhagen Coffee Lab (there are a couple of branches across the city) we hopped on a bus to Lx Factory, a collection of cafes and stores on the outskirts of the city. We headed for lunch at Therapist, a super healthy spot with lots of vegan options and kombucha, followed by coffee and an oat milk matcha latte at Wish Slow Coffee House. I am still annoyed that Harry refused to share a giant vegan brownie with me and that I went without. 

We spent the rest of the afternoon back at Parque Eduardo VII, reading in the sunshine and enjoying the greenery Dubai lacks. Once it started to get a little chilly we headed for the Red Frog Speakeasy, arriving just before it opened at 6pm (unfashionably early in this city). The cocktail menu is so unusual that we bought a copy of it (they sell copies of the menu for €2 to discourage patrons from stealing) and even though it was pretty quiet at 6pm it was a fun venue with amazingly creative drinks. After an hour or so, my child-like eating schedule got the better of me and we left in search of pizza, ending up at Dama E Vagabundo. 

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The following morning, we visited Manjerica for breakfast. The menu all looked so good, I was spoilt for choice with vegan options and ended up ordering a small acai bowl, a beetroot oat milk latte and a kombucha for the road. We stumbled across the famous “pink street” on our way to Copenhagen Coffee Lab and then walked on to Pasterlaria Batalha where we picked up some items for a picnic lunch, including vegan egg custard tarts (so good with a sprinkle of cinnamon).

Our afternoon was spent back at the Jardim Principe Real listening to the buskers and, once it had cooled down a little, walking to Castelo De Sao Jorge (we just wandered around the perimeter rather than pay the entry fee) via Manjerica for vegan gelato. We ended up at Audrey’s at the Santiago de Alfama boutique hotel for dinner and sat outside people watching with olives and rosemary fries.

Our final morning took us to Dear Breakfast in Chiado, a venue we’d spotted on our first morning. I loved sitting in the upstairs window of this cafe watching the trams and traffic go by, oddly soothing. I had a vegan yogurt bowl and an almond milk matcha latte and grabbed another kombucha to go. One last wander through Lisbon’s cobbled streets and it was back to the apartment to pack up and Uber to the airport.

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