Reviews - Mesa de Frades - Casa de Fados
Mesa de Frades - Casa de Fados
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What diners said about this restaurant:
ioannis a. • 1 review
April 4, 2024
7/10The place is atmospheric but the food was just acceptable. The music very good- the musicians excellent , very skilled. The signers very good , especially a young lady with a deep feeling , exactly as must be for Fado. However the intervals were long breaking the concentration of the audience. Maybe , a piece of paper with the lyrics should help the non Portuguese to understand the meaning of the poems.
Hayley L. • 1 review
January 29, 2024
10/10What an amazing experience of Portuguese culture! The staff were super friendly and the food was great. The Fado show has left me in awe and you can really see and feel the guitarists and singers passion for Fado. 110% recommend!
See 2 photos
Sumedh H. • 1 review
January 8, 2024
8/10This is a small and intimate venue. Dinner reservations start at 8.30 pm. The fado music performance starts at 10.45 pm and goes on until 2 am. There it a vegan option for the main course but the bread rolls aren't served with a vegan butter alternative and the desserts don't have a vegan option other than a cut fruit. For €65 a vegan diner really gets overcharged. However, the music was outstanding and well worth the money which is why I gave it 4 stars overall. Of note: the credit card machine was not working the day I went and many diners had to go out and get cash, which was certainly not convenient because the ATM right outside the restaurant is terrible and grossly overcharges.
Michael C. • 4 reviews
December 29, 2023
8/10Really wonderful space, with live music around 2230. Service was a bit rushed. Paid €65 per person for all inclusive food and wine. Unfortunately credit card machines were not working.
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Arlyn N. • 1 review
December 19, 2023
10/10The setting was incredible. A hole in the wall opening up into an arena of history, culinary excellence and service which is not only friendly, personable but also amazingly attentive. Three generations of our family completely enjoyed the experience.
Andy R. • 5 reviews
November 4, 2023
6/10I hate to say this, but this was the worst meal that I have ever in Portugal and also the priciest. The appetizers were subpar. One was just tuna mixed with mayo. The fried veg were cold and tasted like they’d been left out to sit for hours and the mains although hot, lack of personality. The service was good, the atmosphere was nice, but the only sang 6 songs in total and completely distracting, since people kept going in and out of the front door, where they performed in between songs. The main reason we went was because Madonna used to go to this restaurant and other celebrities as well and now it seems it has just gone through their head. I don’t know what more I can say to warn you. If you choose to go anyways… you are throwing your money away. I am sure there are other better Fado venues than this one.
Sergio P. • 2 reviews
November 9, 2023
4.5/10This was the worst food I had in Portugal. But the music is very good. My advice: come after 11 pm just for drinks
Tamara R. • 1 review
November 7, 2023
7/10Music and performers were extraordinary! Seriously good. The ambience and the place too. The music really touched our heart. Food was between average and “bellow average“ quality unfortunately. Desert was really poor. If food could be fixed, this place would be magical!
Assi K. • 1 review
October 28, 2023
2/10My experience was really bad! The food was bad and the performance below average! They didn’t even use POS, so we need to have cash to pay! We were 9 persons, 4 mothers with 5 kids. Due to malfunction of THEFORK the deposit that we had made was forwarded to another fado restaurant. Therefore they asked for a bodyguard to prevent us from exiting the restaurant! WE DEFINITELY SHOULD HAVE CALLED THE POLICE!
Thomas J. • 1 review
October 10, 2023
10/10The food was excellent and the music superb! We loved it and will go back again when we come back to Lisbon!
See 2 photos
João B. • 2 reviews
August 31, 2023
8/10The best fado house in Lisbon. Stay until 2 am and have a chat with the singers.
Kevin O. • 1 review
September 2, 2023
10/10Lovely service from Gabriel.... Enjoyable dinner and fantastic fado
Caterina F. • 1 review
August 25, 2023
8/10The food was delicious and the service was excellent. I am disappointed about the fact that I paid €55 for the Fado concert but anyone could enter during the concert and listen the same music without paying that amount of money.
David S. • 1 review
August 12, 2023
8/10Exceeded expectations. Friendly staff, incredible music and ambiance. Food is totally fine, but don't go expecting a gourmet meal, that's not the point. It's dinner and a show. The show starts at 10:30 and goes until 2AM, but you can leave whenever.
Emile L. • 1 review
August 15, 2023
3.5/10The place is nice and the fado music is good, though it only starts at 10:30pm. The food was below average: heavy, salty and dry (I had the cod) starters were basic and the dessert was so sweet I didn’t touch it. The house wine was bad (very acid, no aromas) m, it’s free flow… The server did not know the dishes well and not a professional so little help on that front. Price was 130 euros for two: not worth it.
Joe V. • 1 review
July 11, 2023
8.5/10Ambiance was amazing. The appetizers and entree was good. The wine was good. The service was good. The desserts were sub par for a nice establishment like this. If it is the last thing I put in my mouth I want my dessert to be wonderful. This was not. I had the chocolate salami and my wife had the almond pie. Both left a dry taste in my mouth. It was our wedding anniversary, hoping to get some recognition for celebrating it here, but nothing. The entertainment was awesome. For my first visit to Lisbon, this was a good place to listen and experience Fado. Thanks.
See 2 photos
Robert L. • 1 review
July 1, 2023
6.5/10The music was really nice but the food is very average and they don’t accept credit cards (which would be fine if they told you at the beginning instead of at the very end of the meal). I would never return here or recommend anyone else go.
Farah C. • 1 review
June 27, 2023
4/10Very pricey for quality of food. Music started much later than expected so had dinner for 830pm and music only started after 1030pm. This was not clear when I booked.
Frida C. • 2 reviews
June 23, 2023
6.5/10The Fado shows don't start until 10:30 or 11pm and the shows go on till 2am. They should've provided that information on their website. A lot of diners started dinner at 8:30p, and they felt exhausted after the first show and left by 11pm!
Will G. • 1 review
May 8, 2023
8/10Really great restaurant food wise, steaks were great. Service a little slow but overall still really good. Recommend the chimichurri or honey and mustard sauces
Mark D. • 9 reviews
May 9, 2023
10/10A great combination of food and authentic Fado music. The place was packed with happy people. Highly recommend!
Jennifer W. • 1 review
April 14, 2023
4/10Terrible food. Inedible. Overpriced. Seated in a grim upstairs room with no view. Dinner served with an hour left to wait for fado. We didn’t wait.
Deborah F. • 2 reviews
April 10, 2023
7/10The food was okay. Adequate. The venue, however, was amazing. The fado singer and musicians were so talented. If I could review the whole experience, I'd give it 5 stars, because I came for the fado, not the food. I'd come here again. I wish there were more fresh vegetables on the menu.
Stephany R. • 1 review
April 7, 2023
8/10You come here for the show. The food is fine but will not be your best meal in town. They do keep the wine and beer flowing so that's nice. The performer on Friday night is marvelous and so very talented. The show starts after everyone has had dinner so don't expect the music to start until later.
Lori B. • 1 review
March 13, 2023
10/10The Mesa de Grades exceeded our expectations. The food, service, and music was just amazing. There was a chemistry among the artists that made the show magical and the staff made us feel welcome and well taken care of. Highly recommend going to the dinner and fado, to anyone in the area.
Nia P. • 1 review
March 1, 2023
4.5/10The food is average and expensive. The fados does not begin until 10.30-11pm.. you are probably better off finding somewhere less expensive and less touristy
Jeff K. • 1 review
February 27, 2023
8/10The physical space, the service, and the fado were all excellent. The food was a little disappointing. Very bland and one note. Needs a lot of seasoning.
Nejal C. • 10 reviews
February 27, 2023
8/10Food could have been better but the show was spectacular! The location is stunning, the decor is very original and the staff was super attentive and nice!
Jorge C. • 1 review
February 11, 2023
3.5/10First, I would like to say that I am Portuguese, that I’m very keen on fado music, and that I have been to different Fado houses in Lisbon several times. So I really know fado houses and how it usually works. So last weekend, my husband and I booked at “Mesa dos Frades”, where we hadn’t been yet and always wanted to go. What a disappointment! Monstrous disappointment after all the articles and reviews we read about it. It is unfair for those who pay for the dinner: indeed you buy a 60-euro evening dinner with fado, but indeed you buy a 60-euro dinner that is not worth it (ok but not a 60 euro worth), followed by a fado night that anyone can attend. Explanation: We booked at 9:30 convinced that the dinner would continue during the fado interludes like in all fado houses, but instead the dinner took place at a quick pace, 40 minutes max. all tables more or less at the same time, until the concert started at 10:20. As soon as fado started some people who hadn’t had dinner came in, Portuguese people, tourists, and attended the concert having just a glass of wine or a bottle of water. On the other hand, our service completely stopped, no attention at all anymore. Conclusion: The service is friendly during the 40-minute dinner, non-existent afterward, the food is ok, and they gave you lots of cheap wine included, but we did feel cheated. Moreover, they placed us on the mezzanine without informing us in advance, which is very high and far away from the happening. You have to bend yourself to see something. To avoid!
Ralston S. • 1 review
January 31, 2023
10/10Lovely Fado experience. And very good service. Highly recommended if you like live cultural music in a classic ambience
P S. • 8 reviews
January 28, 2023
9/10Thankfully we booked in advance, there is limited places. A Fado night is a must when visiting Lisbon. It was a 2 minute walk from our location in Alfama. Cosy atmosphere in a chapel converted into a Fado house. We were warmly welcomed by the hosts. Food is traditional Portugese home style with limited choice but large portion sizes. Drinks included were good n free flowing...icing on the cake is the Fado performance which starts after dinner at 10.30 pm and goes on till late in the night...soulful performances, we stayed on for 3 rounds till midnight....
See 4 photos
Ivan P. • 1 review
January 28, 2023
9/10Lovely staff, atmosphere and music!
Rob Q. • 2 reviews
January 20, 2023
9/10Notwithstanding the handful of complainers ("no non-gluten," too loud, not Michelin food, only three wines, blah, blah -- I mean, really?? No bread in Portugal?? For $50 euros? Geez...) -- which led me to doubt my choice -- the evening was a highlight of our trip. We're foodies -- and the food was fine. Not brilliant, but fine and the steak and fish perfectly cooked. The service was fast for us, slower for the 25 people who all came in at the same time -- but overall attentive, particularly given the size of the crowd (about 40 downstairs). We particularly liked the first floor crew, one of the ladies of whom got us a cab at the end. The atmosphere was perfectly matched to the music. And the music? A fabulous and illustrative Portuguese experience. We were going to stay for only two sets as we had an early flight -- and ended up closing the house down at 1AM. Professional fado (opera voices) at the beginning, local singers -- some old and wobbly, some students, etc) were impressive and moving. And the young guitarist and his accompanist? Incredible. World class. We couldn't have been more pleased and better surprised and at the end several locals said this was the place to have been. Bravo! A first-class experience!!
Silvia C. • 2 reviews
December 5, 2022
5.5/10Overpriced
PANAGIOTIS T. • 1 review
November 10, 2022
7/10A unique experience. The ambience was very warm. The musicians and the singers were very touching, excellent! The service was very friendly and absolutely efficient. The food is the only part thar needs to be inproved.
Susan B. • 1 review
October 15, 2022
7.5/10We were very disappointed Ted after a great performance experience that they didn’t accept credit cards and we were having to rush around and figure out how to pay. The ATM across the street had a terrible exchange rate so the dinner and show cost us an additional $40.00.
Paul F. • 3 reviews
September 5, 2022
10/10Welcoming staff, simple and tasty food, great Fado performance
Lana L. • 3 reviews
August 12, 2022
8.5/10We listened to fado for 4 hours, it was such an amazing experience! The singers we amazing and the restaurant wasn't stingy with the free drinks included - we drank at least 3-4 large bottles of wine, moscatel and coffees included in the price. Halfway through they closed the doors and the singers were inside with us, creating an even stronger ambience. Would highly recommend!
Gerry M. • 1 review
July 20, 2022
10/10Beautiful restaurant with great ambiance. The Fado was outstanding. We had some trouble locating the place and arrived very late (1030. Our reservation was for 930) and they did everything to accommodate. Highly recommended
Francesco G • 1 review
July 9, 2022
10/10Awesome food and fado experience
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