It's not the first time that I say this... but Gadanha Mercearia is, without a doubt, one of my favorite restaurants... in fact top 3 for sure.
I go there every time I can.
Since I already know the restaurant I go there just for the amazing and delicious food ... and this time was no exception on the contrary ... the food is getting better.
The restaurant was closed recently for remodeling works... and usually when this happens, the restaurants choose to enlarge the dining room (meaning more places) ... but it was not what happened! Gadanha Mercearia chose to expand the kitchen ... exactly! The kitchen ... where the magic happens .... and the results speak for themselves ... Food better than ever! I dare say that it is up with the best of this country. 
The space itself is quite small, if I did not count with the terrace, because with the terrace we can say that is medium... in fact it has the ideal size to make it possible to provide a personalized and very welcoming service to all customers .
Now here comes the best part! the food and drink ...
I leave here some advice to all of you! whenever you go to a restaurant always ask the chef or employees opinion about wines, even if you know a lot about wine... the chef always knows what goes better with their own dishes.
To go along with the meal the suggestion was the white wine ALENTO 2014 reserve... So good and so light! perfect to accompany the chosen dishes.
We begin with "Peixinhos da Horta"... crispy, delicious and nothing greasy. Great to start the meal. We then go to a goat cheese gratin with pear, honey and nuts!... and if the first one was good ... this one was out of this world! the perfect combination of flavors... and even better with the Alentejo bread... with the entries come a little treat from the chef a traditional salad of veal.
Oh! by the way and for those who do not know! The chef of this Alentejo Pearl is the spectacular Michele Marques, who has the gift of the kitchen and sympathy.
Continuing... for main courses we chose the Iberian Black Pork cheeks, Lamb chops with "migas" of asparagus, "Mil Folhas" of cod and puff pastry of Partridge.
From all the dishes it is very hard to pick a favorite, so choose two! the puff pastry of partridge and codfish "Mil Folhas" (who knew that cod and ham matched so well). The puff pastry was like going to heaven and back (and stay there until it ended). Regarding the "Mil Folhas" I don't even know what to say! The dish is so simple but yet so complex and intriguing (with the surprise factor of the poached egg).
And of course! The other dishes are also a great choice. Pork cheeks are so tender and the lamb chops are a complete lust.
Something that I had already noticed the first time I went there, it was the quality of all the ingredients and above all, the fact that the chef uses local products.
Turning to the desserts... again! hard to choose... it seems that the fewer the choices more difficult it becomes to chose...
Well! we chose the crispy Farófias and the 1000 sheets of white chocolate ... YUMMY YUMMY ...
The Farófias were accompanied with strawberries and custard ... And yes it was crunchy! the happiness of cracking the crystallized sugar.
In the end the chef surprised us with her new dessert (still a work in progress)... and I have to say that this dessert is a "killer" one... so good! Outstanding.
Once again, the food and the chef did not disappoint.
Food:
http://merceariagadanha.pt/index.html
https://www.facebook.com/gadanhamercearia
Address:
Eat Drink Live Enjoy...
I leave here some advice to all of you! whenever you go to a restaurant always ask the chef or employees opinion about wines, even if you know a lot about wine... the chef always knows what goes better with their own dishes.
To go along with the meal the suggestion was the white wine ALENTO 2014 reserve... So good and so light! perfect to accompany the chosen dishes.
We begin with "Peixinhos da Horta"... crispy, delicious and nothing greasy. Great to start the meal. We then go to a goat cheese gratin with pear, honey and nuts!... and if the first one was good ... this one was out of this world! the perfect combination of flavors... and even better with the Alentejo bread... with the entries come a little treat from the chef a traditional salad of veal.
Continuing... for main courses we chose the Iberian Black Pork cheeks, Lamb chops with "migas" of asparagus, "Mil Folhas" of cod and puff pastry of Partridge.
 |
| Iberian Pork Cheeks |
 |
| Lamb Chops with "migas" of asparagus |
From all the dishes it is very hard to pick a favorite, so choose two! the puff pastry of partridge and codfish "Mil Folhas" (who knew that cod and ham matched so well). The puff pastry was like going to heaven and back (and stay there until it ended). Regarding the "Mil Folhas" I don't even know what to say! The dish is so simple but yet so complex and intriguing (with the surprise factor of the poached egg).
And of course! The other dishes are also a great choice. Pork cheeks are so tender and the lamb chops are a complete lust.
 |
| "Mil Folhas" of Codfish with black pork prosciutto |
 |
| Puff Pastry of Partridge with sautéed mushrooms |
Something that I had already noticed the first time I went there, it was the quality of all the ingredients and above all, the fact that the chef uses local products.
Turning to the desserts... again! hard to choose... it seems that the fewer the choices more difficult it becomes to chose...
Well! we chose the crispy Farófias and the 1000 sheets of white chocolate ... YUMMY YUMMY ...
The Farófias were accompanied with strawberries and custard ... And yes it was crunchy! the happiness of cracking the crystallized sugar.
The 1,000-sheet, as the name implies, consists of puff pastry layers and in the between white chocolate cream with red raspberries and homemade jam and served with a raspberry sorbet.
In the end the chef surprised us with her new dessert (still a work in progress)... and I have to say that this dessert is a "killer" one... so good! Outstanding.
Once again, the food and the chef did not disappoint.
 |
| Chef Michele Marques |
Food:
http://merceariagadanha.pt/index.html
https://www.facebook.com/gadanhamercearia
Address:
Largo Dragões de Olivença - 84 A
Estremoz
Eat Drink Live Enjoy...
