Meet
Filipe
Filipe is a chef based in Porto who has dedicated himself to the culinary arts since 2004. A former photographer, he went on to open Porto’s first sourdough bakery in 2013. Together with his wife Andrea, a communication designer, he welcomes travelers into their home for intimate dining experiences that celebrate Portuguese history, culture, and hospitality. Filipe’s cuisine blends professional culinary expertise with traditional Portuguese comfort food drawing inspiration from 16th and 17th century manuscripts. Using seasonal, locally sourced ingredients, he revives forgotten techniques and recipes to create soulful, authentic meals paired with local wine meant to be shared around the family table.
What to expect
Please note menu might vary. If there are particular dishes you are interested in trying, please include your request in the booking form.
In-home meal:
(2-10 guests)
Join Filipe, Andrea, their children, and their dog for an authentic Portuguese dining experience in their charming 1940s townhouse with a private garden in Porto. This intimate meal brings together traditional Portuguese food, thoughtfully paired wines, fascinating history, and conversation, offering a unique opportunity to experience Porto through the table of a local family.
Over a multi-course meal with thoughtfully paired Portuguese wines, discover the fascinating stories behind Portugal’s culinary heritage, from Islamic influences and the Age of Discoveries to recipes from royal and convent kitchens. Filipe believes that in Portuguese culture, a meal loses its essence without wine, so each course is paired accordingly. Begin with a Port wine cocktail, followed by an Alvarinho from Minho with the appetizer and a Douro wine with the main course.
Your menu takes you on a journey through Portuguese history. Taste alheira, sometimes called the “secret Jewish sausage,” whose origins date to the Portuguese Inquisition; pataniscas de bacalhau, traditional codfish fritters; and arroz carolino com favas e chouriço, rice with broad beans and chouriço. You may also enjoy petingas em escabeche, marinated baby sardines, and boldroegas da Infanta Dona Maria, a 16th-century royal meatball recipe preserved in the oldest known Portuguese cookbook. Finish with a traditional Portuguese dessert.
Throughout the meal, Filipe brings each dish to life through stories about its origins and the people and events that shaped Portuguese cuisine. This private dining experience in Porto invites you to share food and wine with a local family while discovering centuries of Portuguese culture, history, and tradition around their table.
Cooking experience:
(2-10 guests)
Join chef Filipe in his home kitchen in the heart of Porto for a private Portuguese cooking class inspired by forgotten recipes and centuries of culinary history. During this 2-hour, hands-on Porto cooking class, prepare a traditional appetizer or dessert and a main course while learning the techniques, ingredients and stories behind each dish.
More than a typical Porto cooking class, this experience explores how history shaped Portuguese cuisine. Discover culinary influences from Portugal’s Age of Discoveries and Al-Andalus (Moorish) heritage to ingenious cooking traditions that emerged during the 15th-century Inquisition and the closely guarded recipes of Portuguese convent kitchens.
Depending on the season and menu, you might prepare tibórnia de lagar on pão sovado, a densely kneaded bread traditionally made to last for weeks in the mountains; pão de ló de Ovar, a rich sponge cake with roots in Portuguese convent kitchens; or fish prepared with vinha d’alhos and an escabeche infusion, inspired by preservation techniques used during Portugal’s Age of Discoveries, when vinegar, garlic and spices helped preserve food during long sea voyages.
Throughout your cooking class in Porto, Filipe shares the stories, traditions and historical influences behind the recipes, offering a fascinating introduction to Portuguese food and culture. After cooking, sit down together to enjoy the meal you prepared, paired with Portuguese wine.
By the end of this private cooking experience, you’ll leave with new cooking skills, authentic Portuguese recipes and a deeper understanding of Portugal’s rich culinary heritage.
Notes:
1. Filipe and his family share their home with their small, super friendly, and loving dog.
2. Filipe can accommodate a lactose free, gluten free, vegetarian, or vegan diet, if informed in advance.
Languages spoken:
Portuguese, English, and Spanish
Sample menu
