FASHION Magazine

By Ceri Marsh

Photography by Ben Rahn/aframestudio.com

With designer hotels popping up on their tram-lined, cobblestoned streets, Portugal’s two largest cities—Lisbon and Porto—are caught in a delicious moment between old and new worlds. Rem Koolhaas may be designing their cultural facades, Wallpaper* magazine pronouncing their retro Musgo Real products the last word in skin care, and sommeliers deeming vinho verde this summer’s wine of choice, but the always-gracious Portuguese seem surprised to find themselves on the edge of hip. Two of the few European cities not to have spent decades as fashionable, both Lisbon and Porto have so far managed to retain their quiet charms while becoming destinations for reasonably priced chic.

We encounter the old-new mash-up immediately. Set by the Tagus River, Lisbon is a city that rests on seven hills, making each neighbourhood distinct, and the drive from airport to hotel is full of sharp bends along narrow streets lined with beautiful, blooming jacaranda trees. The elegant Lapa Palace Hotel is home to La Prairie treatments, water-misting pool boys and, when we arrive, Smashing Pumpkins singer Billy Corgan, slouched lazily in the lobby. (The Lapa is apparently the place to stay for touring rock stars.)

A half-day outing arranged by the hotel sees our guide, Miguel, leading us from the moneyed embassy district, in which the Lapa is nestled, to the quaint blue and white tiled Pastéis de Belém, a café famed for its pastries. Finding it as packed with tourists as tarts, we press Miguel for the places he would go. He offers a list of more insidery spots, including the sleek Bica do Sapato, set on a strip of modern decor, music and sneaker shops. Co-owned by actor John Malkovich, also the co-owner of popular nearby bar Lux, the café is staffed by cutely T-shirted waiters who serve local and international cuisine on a terrace overlooking giant container ships on the Tagus.

Later that evening in riverside Doca de Alcântara, a district known for its nightlife, we drop by Alcântara Café, a converted factory fancied up with chandeliers and velvet banquettes, for swish cocktails but find the overpriced, oversalted dining is best left to the flash Euros who flood the place by 9 p.m. Grabbing a taxi, we briefly pass by the area’s glow-stick-and-thumping-bass club scene, heading instead for Bairro Alto.

By day a great zone for vintage shops and funky fashion, the narrow cobblestoned streets of Bairro Alto become a happy, low-key party destination at night, dotted with tapas bars, martini lounges and gay spots. We opt for the eccentric Pavilhão Chinês Bar, where a red and gold bar is ornamented with toy soldiers, paper fans, Victorian dolls, lounge chairs and sofas. On another night, we revisit Bairro Alto for a restaurant that both conservative and young locals insist is a must. At Olivier, the restaurant’s cocky young namesake offers just a single nightly 12-course menu of local cuisine, rendered with a contemporary light touch. Olivier stops by our table with a list of spots to try—Cometa, Lusitano, Cafeína—when we head to Porto the next day, flipping open one of his two ever-present mobiles to make our reservations.

The layer cake of eras is even more pronounced in Porto, a rambling city whose centre is a 12th-century cathedral. Most of Porto’s architecture (and, charmingly, the signs) is art nouveau, but more recently it has become home to several celebrity architecture projects. The sleek Sheraton Porto was opened in 2003 and marks a shift in the city’s design focus. Rem Koolhaas’ long-awaited Casa da Música is fronted by a hilly plaza that local skateboarders make excellent use of, and Museu de Arte Contemporânea, designed by Álvaro Siza, Portugal’s best-known architect, has become the country’s pre-eminent art and cultural space. Since its debut in 1999, exhibits have included such art and style stars as Richard Serra, Nan Goldin and Irving Penn.

Although they afford a gorgeous view, skip the cafés serving bland fish and anemic salads by Porto’s Douro River. Instead, hop a tram for a riverside ride to the suburb of Foz do Douro, with its rich beach-town vibe. Cute boutiques like Clube Chocolate (lots of great Brazilian lines) stay open late in case you want to do a little shopping after dinner at one of the area’s trendy restaurants. Cafeína, set in a 19th-century villa, sits in the centre of the action, its modern yet warm room filled with elegant young Portuguese. Or head deeper into the old city of Porto itself. At Lusitano, a gorgeous art nouveau bank recast as a bustling bar, you place your order at what looks to be a teller’s cage. It’s easy to miss Maus Hábitos, on the fourth floor of an unexceptional building. Local hipsters come to the gallery/bar for “happenings” or to hear the cute DJ playing ’80s new wave. But the old-town renaissance’s loveliest spot is Cometa. Tucked in a maze of curving streets, the simple, stylish restaurant focused on fresh food is owned by a former waitress, who treats us to a taste of illegally procured port. We’re entirely smitten.

The moderate price of hotels and restaurants and the scarcity of international chains—whether fashion or food—give Lisbon and Porto a rare combination of charm and accessibility. It’s hard to say how long either city will provide travellers with the feeling that they’re stumbling on to secret addresses. Best to heed the advice we received: Go now.

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