On this full day tour, we’ll explore Matosinhos, a fascinating seaside town on the outskirts of Porto, and its fishing traditions, visiting bustling markets, neighborhood grill spots, and a spectacular sardine cannery which has been in business since 1920.
Sardine City: Fish Tales and Tradition in the Porto Docks
Summary Description
Highlights
- Culinary walking tour
- Market Visit - Mercado de Matosinhos
- Harborside lunch
- Visit to residential neighborhoods
- Local fish auction
Description
To refer to Matosinhos as “Sardine City” is not a stretch. For part of the 20th century, this small municipality – essentially a suburb of Porto – was the largest sardine fishing port in the world and home to 54 canneries working around the clock. While only three remain open, Matosinhos is still deep in the fishing business and even seeing a revival. Thanks to its access to some of the best fish and seafood to be had worldwide, the town is packed with restaurants, making for one of the liveliest and rewarding dining scenes in Portugal.
On this full day tour, we’ll use the local connection to the sea – past, present, and future – as the backdrop for exploring a unique town whose motto seems to be “Yes, we (still) can.” We’ll begin our day as the locals do, with coffee and a sweet breakfast pastry at an old-school bakery, before making our way to the boisterous local fish auction, where we’ll be competing for space with early birds looking for a deal and seagulls looking for a steal. After taking a peek at some of the fishing boats moored in the harbor, we’ll stop into one of the living links to Matosinhos’s golden past, the workshop of craftsmen devoted to the art of mending sardine nets. Continuing through town, we’ll sit down with local workers at a neighborhood tasca for a fortifying late breakfast of salt cod fritters paired with a sparking vinho verde, and then get a taste of what’s new in Matosinhos by visiting a bakery where a former architect is now turning out spectacular sourdough breads using strictly Portuguese ingredients. Our next stop is one of Matosinhos’s most important landmarks, its municipal market, which along with its aisles of impeccably fresh fish and local produce, is also known for its stunning modernist architecture. Having worked our way through the market, the time has come for, what else, a taste of grilled fish. We’ll do this at a tiny restaurant run by a former stevedore who worked on the local docks, where we’ll dine on the seasonal catch of the day accompanied by boiled potatoes and a salad – a classic Matosinhos harborside lunch. For a sweet note, we’ll next visit a beloved local pastry shop for a taste of Jesuita, an exceptionally crunchy traditional local sweet made of custard-filled puff pastry. We’ll end our day, appropriately, with an epic tour and tasting at one of the last remaining canneries in town – open since 1920 – where the thrilling nautical tale of Matosinhos continues to be written.
Included / Excluded
- Culinary Backstreets Guide
- All food consumed on the walk – almost a dozen different edible specialties
- Markets visit
- Selected wine
- Transportation to and from the meeting point
Important Information
Know Before You Book
- Food Tasting - Let us know if you have any allergies
- Wear comfortable shoes
Cancellation
Cancellation Cutoff: 72 hours
Cancellation Notes: 90% refund if given 1 week notice prior to walk. 50% refund if given 72 hours notice or more. Less than 72 hours before the beginning of the activity or no-show: no refund
Options and Pricing
| Food Tour - Backstreet Porto | RETAIL PRICE |
|---|---|
| Adult (13 - years) | $140.00 |
| Child (6 - 12 years) | $70.00 |
Points of interest
- Matosinhos Beach, Praia de Matosinhos, Av. Gen. Norton de Matos, 4450-208 Matosinhos, Portugal
- Passadiço das Ondas, Timor, 4150-516 Porto, Portugal
- Castelo do Queijo, Praça de Gonçalves Zarco 20, 4100-274 Porto, Portugal
- Piscina das Marés, Av. Liberdade, 4450-716 Leça da Palmeira, Portugal
- Sanctuary of Bom Jesus de Matosinhos, Praça do Santuário, S/n - Centro, Congonhas - MG, 36415-000, Brazil
- Casa Museu Abel Salazar, 4465 São Mamede de Infesta, Portugal
- Tragedy at Sea, Av. da República 47, 4450-208 Matosinhos, Portugal
- Casa de Chá da Boa Nova, Av. Liberdade 1681, 4450-718 Leça da Palmeira, Portugal
- Farol de Leça Faro, R. Cel. Helder Ribeiro, 4450-686 Matosinhos, Portugal
- Porto Leixões Cruise Terminal, 57GW+XF, 4450 Matosinhos, Portugal
Terms and Conditions
Liability Waiver
By completing the reservation you acknowledge the following:
If you have food allergies, you are ultimately responsible to ensure your own health and safety. If you share information about your allergies, we can provide you with some guidance about the food purveyors on your tour, but we are not responsible for any allergic reactions that you may have. We are not responsible for any damages or losses incurred as result of acts by entities beyond our control, including but not limited to restaurants, shops, market stalls, eateries and food carts. We are not responsible for acts beyond our control, including but not limited to acts of God, act of nature, acts of war, or other unrest caused by state or non-state actors. If you are disruptive, we have the right to ask you to leave the tour without refunding you or providing you with a credit for your tour. You are aware of and responsible for all damages or losses that may arise during the course of the tour resulting from:
Risks associated with food, water or other drinks, including alcoholic beverages; physical accidents during the tour or at any of the locations visited; transportation failures; forces of nature; criminal activity; damage, loss or misplaced property; or accident or illness without means of rapid evacuation or availability of medical supplies or services. You agree that any claims that may arise will first go to arbitration and only if not resolved in that manner shall be heard in court. In both cases, grievances shall be heard in the jurisdiction of Washington, DC. You further agree to be responsible for your own welfare and property and accept any and all risks of delay, unanticipated events, inconvenience, illness, injury, emotional trauma or death. You further acknowledge that participation in Culinary Backstreets tours is based upon execution of this Liability Waiver. By completing the reservation process you release and discharge forever Culinary Backstreets, its employees, owners, affiliates, officers, directors, successors, agents, and assigns, from and against any liability arising from participating in this tour. You further agree that this release shall be legally binding upon you personally, all members of your family, all minors traveling with you, your heirs, successors, assigns, and legal representatives, to the maximum extent of the law.
I am aware that while on or traveling to or from my activity with Culinary Backstreets, I might be exposed to COVID-19 from other people, animals or objects. I assume all risk of any such contacts, including sickness, incapacity or death and agree to hold harmless Culinary Backstreets from any such developments. In addition, I recognize that the World Health Organization, U.S. Department of State as well as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention may have warnings concerning same and am choosing to travel and assume all risk myself.
About operator:
We got our start in 2009, reporting from a borderless urban zone we like to think of as the “Culinary Backstreets” because we believed that there were countless stories of a city’s foodways that needed to be told. We wanted to focus on a more traditional side of urban culinary life – the workings of simple family-run restaurants, the masters passing their craft on to an apprentice, the banter of regulars gathered around an open table, the rhythm of a life committed to meatballs and nothing else. We were enthralled by all of the tiny epics we encountered while eating our way through the city and set out to share as many of them as we could. From the start, we vowed to go slow and collect these stories one-by-one, giving equal measure to the culinary side as the human element of the story. This way, we expected a deeper understanding of the city and its daily life to emerge with every bite. For us, it’s never just about the best meatball in town; it’s always about all of the meatballs.
We tell the stories of our subjects – unsung heroes who are sometimes forgotten or taken for granted at home – through weekly restaurant reviews published on CB, culinary walking tours, books, web design and smartphone applications. When we see the need, CB also acts as a fundraiser for causes connected to protecting and promoting traditional culinary culture.
By publishing the stories of our local heroes, visiting them on culinary tours, or directly fundraising for them when they are in need, we attempt to honor their work and their essential role in maintaining the fabric of the city. Our purpose is twofold. Yes, we want to get travelers to some good places to eat. But we also want to make sure that some of these spots and the artisans making food there find a new audience and get the recognition and support they deserve. They are holding back the tide of globalized sameness, which is not easy work – even if it’s done unknowingly. But we believe that every meal counts and, with the help of our audience, they will add up. We are committed to their perseverance and hope that our modest efforts encourage them to keep at it. Our work is also guided by a belief in: Honest Tourism: The places where we eat and craftsmen that we feature on our culinary tours are all selected with this purpose in mind. We’d never accept a free lunch or consider a discount for our tour groups, because that would contradict our central goal, to support them. Nor do our guides receive any commissions from shopkeepers. Honest Journalism: The same principal is applied to the publishing of stories. There are no sponsored posts or even advertising on CB. The writers and photographers are paid fairly for their work on stories that we all believe in.
The cities we are drawn to all have a culinary tradition of untold richness as well as a certain tension, be it political instability, the tug between East and West, the clash between modern and ancient identities, migration, rapid gentrification, bankruptcy, or a post-colonial hangover. Our decision to get started in a city is always the result of a trip filled with many meals where we are given in intimate view of that tension, right there on the table. By getting lost in this warren of independent food purveyors struggling to preserve or adapt tradition in fast-paced urban life, we start to discover the deep complexity and true flavor of the city. At present, you’ll find our regular dispatches from Athens, Barcelona, Istanbul, Lisbon, Los Angeles, Marseille, Mexico City, Naples, Porto, Queens (NY), Shanghai, Tbilisi and Tokyo.
CB’s work was started in 2009 by Ansel Mullins and Yigal Schleifer as a humble food blog called Istanbul Eats. The following year we published a book of our reviews, now in its fifth edition. That year we also launched our first culinary walk in Istanbul, a route we are still using today. In 2012, we realized that what we built in Istanbul was needed in other cities we knew and loved. We started CB that year with Athens, Barcelona, Mexico City and Shanghai as pioneering members of our network. In 2013, we added Rio and also launched our iPhone application in Istanbul. In 2015, Tokyo and Tbilisi came into the fold. That year we published mini-guides to Barcelona and Athens and also launched an iPhone application in those cities. Our Eatinerary service, which provides travelers with tailor-made culinary travel itineraries, was also launched in 2015. In 2016, Lisbon – the latest city to kindle our curiosity – joined the CB network. In 2017 we added Naples and Queens, NY – two places with very compelling stories to tell – to our roster and also published full-size eating guides to Athens and Barcelona. In 2018, Porto joined the list of cities we cover.
By publishing the stories of our local heroes, visiting them on culinary tours, or directly fundraising for them when they are in need, we attempt to honor their work and their essential role in maintaining the fabric of the city. Our purpose is twofold. Yes, we want to get travelers to some good places to eat. But we also want to make sure that some of these spots and the artisans making food there find a new audience and get the recognition and support they deserve. They are holding back the tide of globalized sameness, which is not easy work – even if it’s done unknowingly. But we believe that every meal counts and, with the help of our audience, they will add up. We are committed to their perseverance and hope that our modest efforts encourage them to keep at it. Our work is also guided by a belief in: Honest Tourism: The places where we eat and craftsmen that we feature on our culinary tours are all selected with this purpose in mind. We’d never accept a free lunch or consider a discount for our tour groups, because that would contradict our central goal, to support them. Nor do our guides receive any commissions from shopkeepers. Honest Journalism: The same principal is applied to the publishing of stories. There are no sponsored posts or even advertising on CB. The writers and photographers are paid fairly for their work on stories that we all believe in.
The cities we are drawn to all have a culinary tradition of untold richness as well as a certain tension, be it political instability, the tug between East and West, the clash between modern and ancient identities, migration, rapid gentrification, bankruptcy, or a post-colonial hangover. Our decision to get started in a city is always the result of a trip filled with many meals where we are given in intimate view of that tension, right there on the table. By getting lost in this warren of independent food purveyors struggling to preserve or adapt tradition in fast-paced urban life, we start to discover the deep complexity and true flavor of the city. At present, you’ll find our regular dispatches from Athens, Barcelona, Istanbul, Lisbon, Los Angeles, Marseille, Mexico City, Naples, Porto, Queens (NY), Shanghai, Tbilisi and Tokyo.
CB’s work was started in 2009 by Ansel Mullins and Yigal Schleifer as a humble food blog called Istanbul Eats. The following year we published a book of our reviews, now in its fifth edition. That year we also launched our first culinary walk in Istanbul, a route we are still using today. In 2012, we realized that what we built in Istanbul was needed in other cities we knew and loved. We started CB that year with Athens, Barcelona, Mexico City and Shanghai as pioneering members of our network. In 2013, we added Rio and also launched our iPhone application in Istanbul. In 2015, Tokyo and Tbilisi came into the fold. That year we published mini-guides to Barcelona and Athens and also launched an iPhone application in those cities. Our Eatinerary service, which provides travelers with tailor-made culinary travel itineraries, was also launched in 2015. In 2016, Lisbon – the latest city to kindle our curiosity – joined the CB network. In 2017 we added Naples and Queens, NY – two places with very compelling stories to tell – to our roster and also published full-size eating guides to Athens and Barcelona. In 2018, Porto joined the list of cities we cover.
Basic Information
- Duration: 5.5 hours
- Trip difficulty: Easy
- Max Group Size: 7
- Category: Food & Drink
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