Uncover the very important food and drink to not omit whilst you shuttle to the scenic Portuguese island of Madeira. This tasty record comprises conventional Madeira delicacies, candy cakes and engaging tipples.
Madeira is known for having surprising seashores and rugged terrain.
Solar worshippers fly to its capital, Funchal, however they don’t all keep there. Essentially the most intrepid vacationers force in the course of the island’s maze of recent tunnels to swim in herbal swimming swimming pools, traipse on black volcanic seashores and hike to towering vistas.
We did all of the ones actions plus extra throughout two journeys to Madeira. We additionally sailed to look dolphins dancing within the sea and watched an epic fireworks show that very same night time. Those studies have been nice as was once Madeira’s gentle local weather and impressive perspectives.
However let’s be genuine – our major commute function was once to consume all the meals in Madeira. And, in that regard, we have been extremely a hit.
5 days was once simply sufficient time for us to consume quite a lot of Madeira dishes and in finding our favorites.
Since we are living in Lisbon, we skipped consuming standard Portuguese dishes and as a substitute taken with consuming dishes explicit to Madeira. In spite of everything, we will be able to consume arroz de pato and pasteis de nata in Lisbon once we’re at house. Plus, we hardly ever say ‘no’ on the probability to consume super-fresh seafood plucked from the Atlantic Ocean.
Will have to-Devour Meals in Madeira
Madeira is also most renowned for its seashores and terrain however its native delicacies merits exploration too. It’s a reasonably small island with a bustling marketplace and 3 Michelin-starred eating places. It’s additionally an island with a singular meals set that’s outlined via its island geography, subtropical local weather and Portuguese traditions.
Should you’re visiting Madeira for the primary time, the island’s native dishes might be new to you Alternatively, in the event you’re like us, your first consult with received’t be your closing.
Learn on to find our alternatives for the Madeiran meals you should consume throughout your consult with. We’ve integrated a choice of cakes and beverages to spherical out your culinary revel in since that’s how we consume too.
Madeira Meals
Madeiran delicacies is outlined via simplicity, locality and unexpected culinary range.
Its Portuguese archipelago is positioned within the north Atlantic Ocean close to Africa. Vegetables and fruit, which develop within the island’s historical volcanic soil, thrive right here and brand new fish is to be had in ridiculous abundance.
However Madeirans love meat too – each served on skewers and within prego sandwiches. As for Madeiran bread, it’s now not restricted to the island and will now be discovered in every single place Portugal.
We recommend beginning your culinary adventure with the next vintage Madeira dishes:
1. Lapas (Limpets)
Making an attempt lapas, Madeira’s picturesque, backside feeding shellfish, is a should when exploring Madeiran delicacies. They’re generally grilled and served of their gorgeous silvery shells and served with butter and garlic on best. However what are they?
Merely said, lapas (i.e. limpets) are aquatic snails with weblike shells that reside in ocean waters close to each Madeira and the Azores. Their taste and texture evoke a mixture of clams and mussels. And, whilst they appear to be miniature abalone, the 2 species are unrelated even supposing they’re each backside feeders.
You’ll wish to method limpets the best way that Louisianans method crawfish. Imagine consuming them on a picket beachside desk, together with a lager or some poncha, with pals at sundown. Alternatively, they’ll nonetheless style excellent in the event you consume them within a cafe as a substitute.
The place We Ate Lapas in Madeira
Regional Flavours, Restaurante Cabrestante and Restaurante Marisqueira O Barqueiro
2. Espada (Black Scabbard Fish)
Black scabbard fish is also the ugliest fish within the ocean. Lengthy and black, they have got massive eyes and a mouth stuffed with pointy enamel. If seems to be may kill, this fish will be the most deadly fish within the sea. Sarcastically, those lengthy black creatures of the Atlantic style nice.
Professional Tip
Take a look at entire black scabbardfish at seafood stalls within Funchal’s Mercado dos Lavradores. Be warned – they’re an extended, freaky sight to behold.
When grilled and served because the Madeiran dish referred to as filete de espada, black scabbard is a meaty white fish that’s a pleasure to consume with an aspect or two. Including a squirt or two of lemon juice complements the fish’s taste. Alternatively, the folks of Madeira steadily best their favourite fish with banana in a dish referred to as… you guessed it – espada com banana.
The place We Ate Espada in Madeira
Snack-Bar Bela 5
3. Espada com Banana (Black Scabbard Fish With Banana)
Whilst Madeiran folks had been fishing and consuming black scabbard fish for hundreds of years, we’re no longer positive who had the inventive thought to bread those eel-like fish, fry them and put a banana on best. We additionally ponder whether the similar particular person had the bright thought for the dish referred to as espada com banana com maracujá which provides pastime fruit sauce for excellent measure.
This culinary advent is superb – a stability of candy and savory native parts that create unity on a plate.
The place We Ate Espada com Banana in Madeira
Regional Flavours
4. Espetada Madeirense (Red meat Skewer)
Whilst it’s conceivable to consume skewers referred to as espetada made with all kinds of protein on mainland Portugal, it’s extra particular to consume espetada Madeirense. That includes giant chunks of marinated meat cooked on bay wooden skewers, Madeira’s model is little short of a showstopper.
That is the dish we gobbled first, mere hours after our arrival. Cooked on scorching coals and served dangling from an enormous steel contraption, the carnivorous dish was once a vegan’s worst nightmare. We beloved it.
The place We Ate Espetada Madeirense in Madeira
Abrigo do Pastor
5. Bolo de Caco (Signature Madeira Bread)
Chances are you’ll suppose that bolo de caco is a few type of chocolate cake however you could be flawed. Whilst bolo does certainly translate to cake, caco actually interprets to shard, no longer chocolate. And the namesake caco is in fact a basalt stone slab.
Baked with candy potatoes along with wheat flour, bolo de caco is leavened bread that’s historically baked over coal on caco slabs. The spherical, caramelized, thick, frisbee-like bread reminds us of English desserts.
Amusing Reality
You’ll be able to consume Madeira’s iconic bread at the mainland. Now not simplest do supermarkets promote the spherical bread, however Lisbon’s Cervejaria Ramiro serves garlic bread that eerily resembles bolo de caco.
Bolo de caco is normally slathered with garlic butter and served as a starter or as an aspect with espetada Madeirense. Alternatively, the neatest vacationers know to reserve prego no bolo de caco, the island’s model of Portugal’s prego sandwich, served at the island’s well-known bread.
The place We Ate Bolo de Caco in Madeira
Bakeries and Eating places together with Abrigo do Pastor and Restaurante Ribeiro Frio
6. Prego no Bolo de Caco
The prego no bolo de caco sandwich isn’t simply one of the most best possible sandwiches to consume in Madeira. It’s one of the most best possible sandwiches to consume in Portugal.
Uncover extra nice sandwiches to consume around the globe.
The sandwich megastar options thinly sliced pork layered within bolo de caco, the island’s iconic bread. Added components like ham, cheese, fried eggs and veggies turn into the sandwich right into a meal.
The place We Ate Prego no Bolo de Caco Sandwiches in Madeira
Pub Quantity Two, Snack-Bar Bar and Ocean Front room Eating place & Bar
7. Sopa do Tomate (Tomato Soup)
Madeira’s model of tomato soup is a long way from a clear-cut starter or sandwich facet dish. As a substitute, it’s a flavorful soup made with ripe tomatoes, garlic cloves and a beneficiant quantity of onions.
Uncover extra nice soups to consume around the globe.
Madeiran chefs historically best sopa do tomate with a poached egg and serve the not-so-simple soup with brand new bread. The ensuing tomato and onion soup is hearty sufficient to consume as a primary path in the event you’re no longer too hungry.
The place We Ate Sopa do Tomate in Madeira
MadMarket Restaurante
8. Picado à Madeirense (Red meat Cubes)
Very similar to pica-pau eaten in Portuguese towns like Lisbon and Porto, picado à Madeirense is a savory starter that’s amusing to percentage with meat loving pals. Often known as picadinho, ppcado cubes are normally made with pork.
Professional Tip
You’re in good fortune in the event you’re a pescatarian or just partial to brand new fish. Some Madeira eating places make picado dishes with octopus (polvo), squid (lula) and tuna (atum) as a substitute of pork.
Generally surrounded via fried potatoes, picado à Madeirense is a well-liked starter at Madeira eating places. It’s once in a while served with toothpicks at snack bars.
The place We Ate Picado à Madeirense in Madeira
MadMarket Restaurante
9. Milho Frito (Fried Maize)
Very similar to fried polenta in Italy, milho frito are deep fried corn meal cubes. They’re steadily eaten as an aspect dish with espetada and different major dishes. It’s additionally a petisco that pairs effectively with beer.Professional Tip
Order milho frito whilst you’re feeling peckish. The fried cornmeal petisco pairs effectively with beer.
Milho frito’s components come with minced kale and garlic. Some chefs upload caldo verde (Portuguese kale soup) to the combination. The result is an addictive deal with that’s a delightful selection to fried potatoes.
The place We Ate Milho Frito in Madeira
Abrigo do Pastor
10. Leitão Assado (Roasted Suckling Pig)
Similar to in the remainder of Portugal, beef is a meals staple in Madeira. And there’s no higher beef dish to consume in Madeira than leitão assado.
Suckling pigs are steadily sourced from the area of Bairrada at the Portuguese mainland, however the animals are sourced in the neighborhood in Madeira. As soon as the pigs are sourced, cooks roast them with clear-cut components like garlic, salt and pepper. They later serve leitão assado with the crunchy, crackly pores and skin connected.
The place We Ate Leitão Assado in Madeira
Abrigo do Pastor
11. Sopa de Trigo (Wheat Soup)
Sopa de trigo is a hearty dish that actually interprets to wheat soup. It’s a thick soup that’s supreme for the island’s cool wintry weather nights.
Ready with native components like potatoes, pumpkin, beans and wheat berries, the common-or-garden dish can both be cooked with a melange of greens or with bacon added. Should you occur to be at the best of a mountain on a January night time in Madeira, this dish will without a doubt hit the spot.
The place We Ate Sopa de Trigo in Madeira
Abrigo do Pastor
12. Polvo (Octopus)
Octopus fanatics received’t be disillusioned in Madeira the place the eight-legged cephalopod takes heart degree in quite a lot of arrangements. Some chefs grill the mollusk and serve it with rice whilst others chop it up and serve it picado taste or with French dressing.
Exhausting core meals vacationers will need to check out the native dish referred to as polvo de escabeche wherein octopus is marinated in a tangy French dressing. Alternatively, there’s no proper or flawed solution to consume octopus in Madeira. It’s all tasty.
The place We Ate Polvo in Madeira
MadMarket Restaurante
13. Bife De Atum (Tuna Steak)
Whilst black scabbard is also Madeira’s signature fish, it’s no longer the one fish in Madeira’s sea, each actually and figuratively. Fisherman have get entry to to a bounty that incorporates mackerel, sea bream, trout and our non-public favourite – tuna.
Tuna is considerable within the Atlantic waters that encompass Madeira and, because of this, tuna steak is straightforward to search out each on the bustling Mercado dos Lavradores and at Funchal’s outdated the city eating places.
The commonest eating place preparation comes to marinating tuna steaks in a French dressing made with garlic, olive oil, oregano and salt. Some Madeira cooks serve entire tuna steaks whilst others serve it picado taste.
The place We Ate Atum in Madeira
Bela 5 Snack Bar
14. Truta Arco-Íris (Rainbow Trout)
Mountain climbing alongside Madeira’s levadas (i.e. irrigation channels) is among the best possible actions to do in Madeira. That is very true in Ribeiro Frio because the the Leavda do Ribeira do Janela has an added enchantment – a multi-tiered rainbow trout farm.
Taking into consideration that it’s unlawful to catch fish on Madeira levados, your only option for consuming brand new rainbow trout on Madeira is to reserve the fish at a cafe close to Ribeira Frio. Whether or not you order it grilled or pan-fried is as much as you.
The place We Ate Rainbow Trout in Madeira
Restaurante Ribeiro Frio
Madeira Muffins
Honey cake, referred to as bolo de mel, is essentially the most well-known dessert in Madeira however it’s a long way from the island’s simplest candy deal with. A few of best possible native cakes, together with that iconic cake, are baked with in the neighborhood grown sugarcane. Others are ready with tropical fruit.
Pastel de Nata in Madeira
You will be questioning if you’ll in finding pastel de nata, Portugal’s most well liked pastry, in Madeira. The solution is sure at spots like A Confeitaria and Nata 7. Alternatively, the eggy cream tart, which isn’t an area strong point, is extra of a novelty merchandise designed for vacationers. So, whilst you’ll consume pasteis de nata in Madeira, the easier possibility is to consume native pastries as a substitute. Don’t fear, you’ll consume your weight in Natas whilst you’re in Lisbon the place the conventual pastry was once invented.
Now that we’ve addressed the elephant within the room, we recommend beginning your exploration of Madeira cakes with the next candy treats:
15. Bolo de Mel (Honey Cake)
Should you simplest have time to consume one dessert in Madeira, that dessert will have to be a bolo de mel, a cake that dates again to the fifteenth century when Portugal was once a big participant within the spice business. The candy cake is made with molasses in addition to spices like cinnamon and clove.
Uncover the most efficient cakes in each Portugal and the international.
Despite the fact that it’s thought to be to be a Christmas dessert, bolo de mel is to be had yr spherical at the island. You will have to have the ability to in finding it at native bakeries, markets and vacationer retail outlets.
Fábrica Santo Antonio, a ancient bakery in Funchal, sells bolo de mel de cana in addition to broas de mel (honey cookies), queijadas (cheese pastry) and doce de funcho (fennel sweet). Be certain to try the bakery’s antique scales throughout your necessary consult with.
The place We Purchased a Bolo de Mel in Madeira
Fábrica Santo Antonio
16. Broas de Mel (Honey Cookies)
Broas de mel are crunchy honey cookies that remind us of gingersnaps. Flavored with spices like nutmeg and cinnamon, the cookies are supreme vacation treats however are pleasant at any time of the yr. They’re particularly excellent when paired with Madeira wine.
Broa de mel actually interprets to honey bread. The complicated title was once impressed via the cookie’s form versus its taste or texture.
The place We Purchased Bros de Mel in Madeira
Fábrica Santo Antonio
17. Queijada (Cheese Pastry)
Madeira doesn’t produce Portugal’s simplest queijadas. Sintra has a model as does Évora. However Portugal’s quite a lot of queijadas aren’t the similar – they’re baked with other cheeses or, with regards to queijada feijão, no cheese in any respect.
Madeira’s queijadas are baked with in the neighborhood produced cottage cheese referred to as requeijão in addition to same old pastry components like butter, eggs, milk and sugar. The top product is good, creamy and scrumptious.
The place We Purchased a Queijada in Madeira
Fábrica Santo Antonio
18. Pudim de Maracujá (Pastime Fruit Pudding)
Not like maximum Portuguese goodies, pudim de maracujá doesn’t come with eggs. Whilst the dessert’s dominant taste comes from pastime fruit, the pudding will get its richness from cream and condensed milk.
Pastime fruit, now grown on Madeira soil for hundreds of years, isn’t indigenous to the island. Sailors introduced the tropical fruit to Madeira (and due to this fact Portugal) from Brazil.
The place We Ate Pudim de Maracujà in Madeira
Regional Flavours
19. Frutas Tropicais (Tropical Fruit)
Calorie counters are in good fortune in Madeira. Probably the most best possible cakes are the end result that fill markets like Funchal’s Mercado dos Lavradores.
Regardless of their tropical standing, native end result like mangos, pastime fruit and pineapples are acquainted. Others like tamarillo (tree tomatoes), tabaibo (prickly pear) and anona (custard apple) are extra unique.
Madeira’s end result have an eclectic previous which mirrors Portugal’s seafaring previous. Some end result have roots in South The us and others in Africa. Even its ubiquitous bananas, in spite of their world-class high quality, aren’t indigenous to the island.
The place We Ogled Tropical Fruit in Madeira
Mercado dos Lavradores
20. Bananas (Bananas)
After 500 years, give or take, of manufacturing, it’s truthful to offer Madeira kudos for rising one of the vital international’s best possible bananas.
Excursion Thought
Discover a Madeira banana farm throughout a Funchal Agriculture Inexperienced Excursion.
Madeira bananas have a satisfying acidity that’s unusual in maximum bananas. We love consuming them for breakfast, as a snack and, sure, even for dessert. In addition they style nice when remodeled into smoothies and licor de banana da Madeira.
The place We Purchased Bananas in Madeira
Mercado dos Lavradores
21. Chocolate de Frutas (Fruit Flavored Goodies)
Funchal’s UauCacau resources chocolate from South The us and transforms it into colourful baubles which can be virtually too lovely to consume. The important thing phrase right here is sort of.
Guests on the compact store have a hard option to make from an array of colourful sweets full of end result like mango, pastime fruit and, after all, banana. Extra bold chocoholics can make a choice sweets full of poncha or Madeira wine.
The place We Ate Chocolate de Frutas in Madeira
UauCacau
22. Rebucados de Funcho (Fennel Sweet)
Consuming rebucados de funcho in Madeira is a should. The laborious sweet, which is called after the fennel that grows in Funchal, has a singular anise taste and pleasurable style.
After purchasing the fennel sweet on a whim, we later realized that it’s coveted via each locals and savvy vacationers. We additionally realized, thru real-life software, that the cylindrically-shaped candy sweet doubles as a calming sore throat treatment.
The place We Purchased Rebucados de Funcho in Madeira
Fábrica Santo Antonio
Madeira Beverages
Madeira wine is known around the globe however it’s no longer one thing you wish to have to drink all day each day. Doing so would most likely lead to a major headache. Thankfully, there’s no wish to take that bad consuming method throughout your consult with.
Whilst no different beverage is as well-known as its fortified wine, Madeira has a lot of beverages price sipping at least one time. Choices vary from brand new juices to crafted cocktails.
We recommend beginning your exploration of Madeira beverages with the next liquid libations:
23. Vinho Madeira (Madeira Wine)
Madeira wine has a historical past as attention-grabbing because the drink itself.
Legend has it that the island’s sailors would give a boost to wine with brandy ahead of lengthy voyages at sea so to prolong the wine’s shelf lifestyles. To everyone’s delightful marvel, the fortified wine in fact advanced throughout the ones voyages after publicity to lengthy sessions of warmth and humidity.
Greater than 5 centuries later, Madeira’s wine is a long way from a hidden gem. Obsessive oenophiles accumulate bottles of Madeira very similar to the best way that children accumulate baseball playing cards. Antique bottles are particular. We tasted a bottle in Philadelphia that dated again to the 1800s. Alternatively, more recent bottles have their charms too.
Tasting fortified wine in Madeira is a should, with maximum guests undertaking this bucket record merchandise on the Blandy’s wine resort in Funchal. We have been no exception, tasting each dry and candy varietals on the ancient cellar positioned in a repurposed monastery.
The place We Tasted Madeira Wine in Madeira
Blandy’s Wine Hotel
24. Poncha (Sugar Cane Cocktail)
Poncha delivers a punch with components that come with aguardente de cana (sugar cane brandy), honey and brand new juice. It’s the drink we encountered maximum incessantly in Madeira and the only accountable for giving us a hangover or two. To be truthful, bearing in mind poncha’s fruity taste and drinkability, the primary hangover wasn’t our fault.
You’ll wish to get started your poncha exploration with Pescador poncha, a fisherman’s punch crafted with aguardente de cana, lemon juice and sugar. Honey and orange juice are added to make regional poncha. Which poncha taste you drink after the ones two is between you, your bartender and your sense of right and wrong.
The place We Drank Poncha in Madeira
Maximum Bars We Visited in Madeira Plus Some Eating places
25. Nikita (Frothy Pineapple Cocktail)
Now not a standard Portuguese drink, the Nikita is a beer-based cocktail that’s crafted with brand new pineapple, pineapple juice and ice cream. Some bartenders cross a step additional via including white wine to the recipe.
Consuming a Nikita is a pleastant, much less potent trade of tempo when you wish to have to imbibe a Madeiran cocktail however don’t desire a assured hangover. We’re having a look at you, poncha! As an advantage, the candy, creamy cocktail doubles as dessert.
The place We Drank a Nikita in Madeira
Madeira Christmas Marketplace
26. Vinho Branco (White Wine)
Opposite to standard trust, no longer all wine in Madeira is fortified. And, whilst Madeira isn’t well-known for it’s non-fortified wine, the island is one among Portugal’s distinct wine areas together with the likes of Alentejo, Dão and the Douro.
Discover Madeira wine estates throughout a full-day wine excursion.
Many Madeiran white wines are produced with in the neighborhood grown Verdelho grapes. The crisp, dry wine pairs effectively with fish dishes which, as up to now famous, are each simple to search out and pleasant to consume in Madeira.
The place We Drank Vinho Branco in Madeira
More than a few Eating places and Bars
27. Cerveja (Beer)
Portugal’s two industrially produced beers, Sagres and Tremendous Bock, have a competitor in Madeira and that competitor is Coral. Locals had been consuming the native ale, brewed via the Madeira Brewery, each at house and in bars for greater than part a century.
Madeira’s greatest beer manufacturer began brewing lager and stout beers again in 1969 and later presented low-alcohol variations of each 24 years later. The brewery additionally produces non-alcoholic beverages together with Atlântida water (each nonetheless and glowing) and Brisa, the island’s most well liked comfortable drink.
The place We Drank Beer in Madeira
Funchal Taproom and Pub Quantity Two
28. Brisa Maracujá (Pastime Fruit Soda)
The Madeira Brewery sells quite a lot of Brisa comfortable beverages in flavors like cola, pastime fruit, lemon, mango, orange, pineapple in addition to non-carbonated comfortable beverages referred to as BriSol. Alternatively, its standard pastime fruit flavored Brisa Maracujá is the only to check out first.
Debuting in 1970, only one yr after the debut of Coral beer, Brisa Maracujá is a candy, rather carbonated comfortable drink made with genuine pastime fruit juice. The yellow soda tastes nice with ice on a scorching summer season’s day. Alternatively, we received’t pass judgement on you in the event you upload some gin or vodka on your glass.
The place We Drank Brisa Maracujá in Madeira
Bela 5 Snack Bar and Pub Quantity Two
29. Café (Espresso)
Madeira has a colourful espresso tradition at native cafes the place standard espresso beverages come with bica (coffee), garoto (small coffee with milk), chinesa (massive coffee with milk) and cortadinho (coffee with liquor). Unfortunately, we’re no longer fanatics of the ones beverages which might be normally produced with sour robusta beans.
We have been happy to search out espresso beverages crafted with arabica beans at 3 other Funchal cafes – Artwork Meals Heart, Maia Espresso Store and The Studio. We advise all 3 to fellow strong point espresso connoisseurs who like to reserve flat whites and pour overs anywhere they shuttle.
The place We Drank Strong point Espresso in Madeira
Artwork Meals Heart, Maia Espresso Store and The Studio Espresso Roasters
Helpful Madeira Details
Incessantly Requested Questions
Madeira’s most renowned meals is in fact a drink. Its wine, merely referred to as Madeira, traveled the globe centuries in the past with Portugal’s explorers. It’s to be had in every single place the arena however tastes best possible at the island the place it’s produced.
It is a trick query since Madeira isn’t a country. Alternatively, it’s truthful to mention that espada com banana is the Portuguese island’s maximum iconic fish dish.
Sure. Since a lot of the meals in Madeira is each native and seasonal, you’ll be expecting to consume effectively throughout your consult with.
Meals in Madeira levels from affordable eats to high quality eating. In different phrases, you’ll simply consume for effectively below 50€ an afternoon or blow it out and spend a lot more.
Madeira these days has 3 Michelin-starred eating places. Il Gallo d’Oro has two stars whilst Disarma and William have one megastar every.
Folks normally consume dinner between 7pm and 10pm in Madeira.
Anthony Bourdain by no means filmed an episode of The Layover, No Reservations or Portions Unknown in Madeira.
No. Tipping is non-compulsory in Portugal.
Reservations are important at best Madeira eating places.
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Authentic Newsletter Date: March 30, 2023
Republication Date: January 3, 2026
