Café Santiago

Very disappointed — over priced and the food was bland… such a shame as we had high expectations

Wahrscheinlich ein Pflichtbesuch wenn man in Porto ist und die Typische Francesinha essen möchte.
Die Portionen sind riesig und die Preise sind Porto-​typisch: recht günstig.
Qualitativ war alles super, nur im hinteren Teil des Ladens riecht es nach Fett. Wobei das bei den Speisen kaum zu verhindern ist.
Klare Empfehlung!

This was my first experience having Franceshina. I sat at the bar and people were watching soccer. The place was packed and the tables outside were packed as well. So it was a lively experience. The food isn’t for the faint of heart and would probably be best after some drinking. It was definitely an experience to try what the locals love.

You are in Porto and want to eat Franceshina? Then look no further, this is the place! Visited to eat this amazing dish and not only the meal was amazing, so was the staff. The meal is huge and super tasteful. I cant imagine how many Franceshina they serve a week, but it is certainly the most ordered meal. All the layers were perfect and the sauce was good. Not to blend and with som little spice to it. We even took the time to get some dessert and both the chocolate mousse and natas do céu where really nice!

Une bonne adresse pour manger une francesinha.
Service efficace nonobstant le monde, prix correcte (de mémoiré 9 € 50 la francesinha avec frites), francesinha très bonne et copieuse.
Bref, je recommande cette adresse à tous ceux qui veulent manger le plat typique de la région de Porto sans se ruiner et tout en ayant un plat de bonne qualité :-)

Fun place, and recommended as the best place to eat the famous Francesinha.
As it was my first time in Porto, I really wanted to try it. I do appreciate the charm of the dish, but it is not really what I would call ‘gastronomy’; I strongly suspect that anyone who eats this on a daily or weekly basis will suffer physical consequences for that later in life. I also believe that they probably have the best one in Porto, given that lots of the other ones I saw people eat throughout the city looked a lot more disgusting and unhealthy. If you feel (like I did) that you have to try this once, do it here.
The fries were rubbish.

We decided to try Franceshina in this place as it was highly recommended! My friends told me before that i probably I will not enjoy it! I loved it! Very heavy but it is the way I like lunch sometimes! Nice service and interior! I recommend !!

Service rapide et propre pour le reste très moyen. 16 € pour un francescina une petite salade une bière et un café.
Le rapport qualité prix est décevant.

Overall a great experience! We of course went for the Francesinha which was amazing as expected. It was the sort of dining experience where you go in expecting to stuff yourself to the point of near-​explosion and you see it as a welcome challenge rather than an unhealthy and impractical endeavor. I ALMOST finished mine. It’s just… so much meat. And cheese. And then add fries on top of that. Oh yeah and egg (that runny yolk was splendid). At 9 (or 9.50?) euros it was a little expensive compared to the same option at other restaurants in the area, but I like to think I got better bang for my buck. Let’s go with that, anyway.
The service was surprisingly quick. When we went there was a waitlist with 3 or 4 groups in front of us, but we weren’t waiting more than 10 minutes. Even once we got inside, we ordered and received our food also in less than 10 minutes. The place was PACKED with tourists, but you can expect nothing less when the restaurant has been extolled by so many Unilocal reviewers. And since people are traveling and everyone is on a different dining schedule, I imagine they stay about that packed all day long (at least on weekends).
If you want an authentic Portuguese dining experience, the high tourist quantity will ensure that this isn’t it. But if all you care about is quick service and a delicious, filling meal, go here.

It’s hard to believe that francesinha is a thing people love to eat in Porto. You even see billboards advertising the sandwich. IMO if you’ve never had one you aren’t missing out too much. But if you do have one apparently this is the place to be. Which surprises me because I didn’t think I was eating anything out of the ordinary. Bread. Ham. Steak. Special sauce. Cheese. Egg. Fries. What I was really thinking is that it tastes like a sandwich dumped in a poutine. The special sauce acts as gravy and it comes with fries. You’ll feel like having a heart attack at the end of it even if you don’t finish. It’s heavy and greasy.
I’m surprised this place has a lineup at peak hours. My wife and I came here around 3pm so there was barely anyone in there. At that time it just seems like an average diner that serves diner food. If this is what all francesinhas should strive to be, I guess it just isn’t for me, but I’m still glad to have the true Porto experience. It’d be a 2.5 star review because I haven’t had better since I’ve only had it once and I have nothing to compare it to.

In Porto they don’t have only Porto! But.
It was the first time I tried Francesinha.
What an adventure! WOW WOW WOW! Bread + ham + cheese + meet + mortadella + egg + French fries + a sauce made with beer.
It wasn’t that bad and even pretty good. This place is supposed to be one of the best places in the city to try this specialty from Porto. Try it with a authentic Super Bock, that’s the tradition :)
People were quite welcoming even if the place don’t look like a cosy one. I think that come can come all day long since we had our «lunch» at 4:30 pm.
It’s around 9 euros for a HUGE plate. Actually we shared one Franceainha and we took two salads.
If you are visiting Porto, I would definitely recommend this place :)
PS: you can pay by credit card.

I had to try for it after all the reviews. :) I don’t regret the experience but also do not care to repeat it. The combination of ingredients just didn’t really work for me…

My husband and I came here the day we arrived in Porto and were looking for a bite to eat. After some online searching we came to Café Santiago to try out their famous francesinha. Coincidentally, a couple days later our walking tour guide also recommended Café Santiago as the go-​to place to try this dish. The restaurant is apparently super busy during peak hours, but when we went in the late afternoon, there were only two other tables eating. The server did not speak any English, but we were able to point our way through the menu. We ordered the classic francesinhas without the egg to share, and I’m glad we did. The thing is HEAVY. The best way I could describe it was like a Canadian poutine on steroids. A sandwich with steak and ham covered in a thick layer of cheese and orange gravy-​type sauce surrounded by fries. I’ve heard the dish is over 2000 calories and frankly I wouldn’t be surprised. I don’t know what the sauce was made of but I know traditionally it is a tomato and beer sauce. We tasted a spicy kick to the sauce which was kind of neat. I would never be able to finish a francesinha on my own but between my husband and I we were able to polish it off together. Kudos to anybody who can finish one on their own! It was an interesting experience although I probably don’t feel the need to try another Francesinha anytime soon.

Excelente Francesinha :)
O molho é muito saboroso e as batatas fritas caseiras não podiam faltar.

That sandwich lives up to the expectation. If you get it for lunch, don’t expect to eat dinner later. That baby will fill you up for days. It’s everything a sandwich should be. Tons of meat and cheese. The sauce is delicious too!

The iconic spot for francesinha. If you’re looking at this restaurant, it’s because you heard about this magical, heart-​stopping dish called the francesinha.
Please split it between 2 people. It’s that big. Between the beef & the sausage & the egg & the cheese & the vinegary sauce, the combination just works. You’ll feel like complete shit afterwards, but don’t all the best unhealthy foods make you feel that way?
Do yourself a favor & try it at least once during your trip! If you are a champ, do it twice!

Typical place for Francesinha in Porto! This place is very well-​known for the francesinhas. And I can tell certainly the restaurant was full of locals when I visited it. I cannot compare the francesinha I tried here with others because it was the first and last time I ever tried this traditional Porto dish. However, I enjoyed my experience! The francesinha was really good. The only ingredient that just so-​so was the cheeses. But definitely the sauce and the meat was great. We needed to wait for 30 minutes to get a table, but our waiter was friendly. About the price, definitely francesinhas are not cheap, but not expensive either. Worth to try!

Comme tous les touristes ou presque je suis allée goûté à la spécialité de la ville la fameuse Francesinha, ce croque monsieur revisité avec une tonne de viande, du fromage, un oeuf et une sauce à la bière épicée.
Le café Santiago propose une des plus connue c’est donc là que nous sommes allés, le midi en tout cas pas de queue pour manger.
Au vue de la bête on décide d’en prendre une pour deux car ça né m’attire pas des masses en plus c’est vrai que 9,5 € avec frites c’est un peu cher surtout si je n’aime pas.
On a bien fait de faire ça car je dirais que c’est spécial, une fois m’aura suffit, c’est pas mauvais mais juste pas à mon goût le truc qui m’a le plus marqué c’est que c’est archi salé: la charcuterie, la sauce bref prévoir de quoi boire pour faire passer le tout.
Il y a tellement de trucs dedans que c’est dur d’arriver à manger un morceau avec tout dedans.
Voilà j’ai testé mais j’en garderais pas un souvenir mémorable.

Café Santiago m’a tuée… ou plutôt leur Francesinha !
Lors de mon séjour à Porto, il fallait absolument que l’on teste un de leurs plats typiques et on hésitait pas mal entre les plats à base de poissons et la fameuse Francesinha, une espèce de Welsh portugais où l’on trouve près de 5 différentes viandes entourées de pain, d’oeufs au plat et de fromage fondant (rien qu’à l’écrire, j’ai mal au ventre).
Je vous laisse deviner mon choix.
Un portugais rencontré dans un bar nous a suggéré de nous tourner vers ce restaurant, qui apparemment cuisine les meilleures de la ville. Pas de badge Unilocal mais beaucoup d’autres montrant l’obtention de premiers prix.
On remarque que ce restaurant né sert que ce plat, en différentes façons. Nous avons pris la Francesinha Santiago, entourée de frites et comment dire… C’était super bon, on sent vraiment une viande de qualité, une sauce super bonne mais j’ai lâché l’affaire au bout de 5 coups de fourchette tellement c’était copieux !
Mon copain a réussi à tout finir mais je vous laisse imaginer l’état dans lequel on était en rentrant chez nous!
L’addition n’est pas du tout salée: à peine 10 € pour ce plat et une boisson.
Allez les yeux fermés dans ce resto et né mangez surtout pas avant !

Bien. Sans plus.
S’il n’y a rien à redire sur la qualité du plat qui vous est servis. Le rapport qualité/​prix n’y est pas.
Pour 9,50 € on vous sert une francesinha avec une poignée de frites…
Hier, à Braga, on a mangé une francesinha plus imposante, d’excellente qualité, avec des fritess avec 2 s, et une boisson au choix (en bouteille, pas au verre !) pour 6,50 € !

El personal muy agradable y atento. El atún bueniiiisimo, los dados de pluma tb y el queso de Trujillo con trufa (fuera de carta). Pero me ha encantado el helado de leche merengada y el coulant con helado de menta!!!

Francesinha. That’s all you need to know how to order if you come here. Also leave all diets at the door… you will be eating a lot fat and calories.
Anyone in town will know what a Francesinha is. You will have seen it on many menus. Buy where do the locals tell you to go for one– this place! There has been a rumor that when they are super busy that the quality goes down… good thing I beat the rush.
There are several varieties of Francesinha. Order one. With or without fries. With or without runny egg…
Its basically many layers of meat — many of which are pork products-​ham, sausage, meat! In a sandwich. Covered in cheese. With an egg. With fries. Covered in special sauce that has a little tang and bite to it. You eat this. Like it. And need to work out… so dense…
Its an experience. Not an everyday thing but a must try. Also the story of it origination is hilarious… so ask a local… local chef-​goes to France to learn etc– comes back– wants to make something to make people sweat… hence the reason for the spiciness in the sauce… basically a play on the croque monsieur… but Porto style…

Uma das melhores francesinhas do porto e do mundo!
O atendimento é eficaz e rápido mesmo em horas de afluência, pode ser no entanto necessário reservar com antecedência para não esperar por mesa.
O preço tem vindo a subir mas vão ao encontro do que habitualmente se paga.

Óptima francesinha. Aconselho a passarem por lá. Só tenham atenção que podem ter de esperar até ter mesa, porque é muito concorrido.

Yup. It is exactly as the other enthusiastic reviewers said it. There are two Café Santiago’s on the same street. We went to the one that is a bit further from the Rua Santa Catarina. We sat at the bar in the back. The bartenders were nice, patient with our questions, and informative. The francesinha was very tasty and had a little bit of a bite (which we like). I also had a dessert that I think was called «tri» or something along those lines (tasted like rice pudding, with cinnamon, but for anyone who knows Northeastern Brazil, it looked and tasted even more like canjica). Beer is beer. Prices are as expected. It is worth it.

ohhh war das Essen Geil!
Kleines Restaurant mit super Francesinha, Käse, Fleisch, Spiegelei und viel Sauce einfach der Hammer. Kann ich nur jedem empfehlen.
Wer am Abend geht sollte etwas Zeit mitnehmen, da das Restaurant nicht das Grösste ist und viele Leute kommen.

Sí, están muy buenas! Y no se hacen de digestión imposible, aunque siempre recomendable de comida antes que cena. Buen lugar para degustar este plato típico de Oporto en pleno centro!

This place is fantastic for the the Fracesinha. It really is delicious and worth a visit to enjoy.

When over 90% of the customers in the restaurant eats the same thing, Francesinha, and the waitress looks bored (probably from everyone orders the same thing), then you know you found the place.
About 10 Euro for the plate. The meat is bit salty for me, but it was delicious.
Remember, if you are pro, eat Francesinha with beer, NOT wine (even though you are in Porto.

As everyone has mentioned already, the Francesinha. I ordered the Largest one called Top. It has double the amount of a couple of the meats as well as extra cheese around the fries. I was told the Francesinha has about 2000 calories in it, I have a feeling its much more than that. I devoured mine before my other friends finished their standard sized Francesinha and washed it all down with a large beer. If they used slightly better quality of meat I think this would have been a 5 star joint. But for now it’s, I came, I saw, I conquered… and siesta’ed.

Um café bastante agradável e com umas refeições bastante boas e para todos os bolsos. A típica francesinha é bastante boa, tendo sido considerada pela revista ‘Time Out’ do Porto, como a melhor! Não sei se é a melhor, mas que é muito boa é. A tradicional alheira também é especialmente boa. Recomendo um almoço neste estabelecimento.

This is THE place to go to in Porto if you are looking for Francesinha. About 95% of the customers order the Francesinha so practically everyone in the restaurant is eating the same dish when you look around! The dish is big & heavy, so I’d recommend sharing. For € 9, it’s definitely better than the tourist traps.
I also ordered the Caldo Verde (cabbage soup, I think), which is another Portuguese specialty. For € 1.40, the soup is definitely worth it!
It starts getting busy around 8 – 8:30pm (around dinner time in Porto), so I went around 7:30 to beat the rush. Really glad I did because there was a really long line once it hit 8:30.

Come here when you are really, really hungry. The service is quick and the Francesinha is very filling. I think this may very well be my last meal in Porto. We shall see :)

On avait repéré des avis en ligne sur d’autres sites sur ce resto (il parait qu’ils font les meilleures francesinha de la ville), et c’était juste à côté de notre logement alors on a voulu tester quand on a vu qu’il y avait une quinzaine de personnes qui attendait sur le trottoir le soir. Et on n’a pas été déçus ! Ambiance garantie.
D’abord on donne son nom à celui qui gère la salle, nous n’étions que 2 et nous avons attendu environ 20min avant d’être placés au comptoir. Mais pas de problème, le rythme est frénétique à l’intérieur, on regarde les cuistots, les serveurs, les clients s’activer. Du coup on a bien le temps de repérer les francesinha, de comprendre comment elles sont cuisinées, puisque les cuistots les font par série de 9 (le maximum a rentrer dans leur toasteur). Ca nous ouvre l’appétit.
Et finalement on est contents d’êtres installés au comptoir, parce qu’on né quitte pas des yeux les cuistots et les serveurs. Le serveur le plus proche s’occupe de nous, il nous passé nos couverts par dessus le comptoir, personne né semble réellement parler anglais mais peu importe, on nous fait des sourires timides mais on né perd pas de temps à nous faire des courbettes.
On attend encore une bonne vingtaine de minutes avant d’avoir nos 2 francesinhas: sorte de croque monsieur, recouvert de fromage et d’un oeuf au plat, le tout réchauffé/​fondu par un jus de viande/​tomates/​épices versé dessus au dernier moment, même sur les frites qui bordent l’assiette (façon poutine, un peu). Miam, c’est si gras ! A l’intérieur, une tranche de jambon, mais pas que: un steak et de la saucisse aussi ! Pour moi c’est un challenge de terminer l’assiette, mais pour mon ami pas de problème.
En résumé, prix correcte, spécialité culinaire à né pas rater même si une fois ça suffit, mais surtout, l’ambiance bistrot bondé, avec beaucoup de locaux. Il né faut pas être pressé, et si les francesinhas sont probablement les plus typiques de Porto, selon les goûts ce né sont pas forcément les meilleures (on en a mangé une autre fois au marché couvert proche de casa de musica, j’ai trouvé ça meilleur personnellement car un peu plus fin ou un peu moins gras…).
Pour comprendre une partie de la culture portugaise, il né faut pas manquer ce lieu !

Berühmt für die Francesinha und zur Mittagszeit unglaublich voll.
Die Leute standen sogar vor dem Lokal und warteten. Die Tische werden zum Glück relativ zügig frei, da viele Angestellte dort nur schnell was essen möchten.
Neben besagten Angestellten sind viele Einheimische da und noch mehr Touristen!
Wir haben nix anderes außer der Francesinha probiert. Sie ist schmackhaft. Sehr deftig!!! Mit Pommes serviert.
Ist vergleichsweise teuer, aber angeblich das Geld wert, da viele andere Francesinhas nicht gut sein sollen.
Eine ganze (d.h. aus ganzen Toastscheiben) macht unglaublich satt! Man kann auch nur eine halbe Francesinha bestellen. Für Frauen die bessere Alternative bzw. für alle, die nur mal probieren möchten.
Ambiente ist sehr schlicht. Man fühlt sich wie in einer WG-​Küche, klein, viel Gewusel, hin und her.
Kahle Fliesenwände, schlichte und rein funktionelle Stühle und Tische.
Irgendwie lieblos und gleichzeitig charmant.
Bedienung: Nett, wie alle Portugiesen!!! Ehrlich!