Name: Loco
Address: R. Navegantes nº53-B, 1200-731 Lisboa, Portugal, Lisbon
Telephone: +351213951861

At a glance

#31 of 107 Restaurants in Lisbon #5 of 6 Fine dining restaurants in Lisbon

LocalGuideWorld score: 4.69

1.8 km from the center of Lisbon

Rating breakdown

5 ★85%
4 ★7%
3 ★3%
2 ★2%
1 ★3%

R. Navegantes nº53-B, 1200-731 Lisboa, Portugal

loco.pt

+351 21 395 1861

Quick facts

What is the rating of Loco?: Loco is rated 4.7 out of 5 based on 438 reviews.
How does Loco rank in Lisbon?: Loco is #31 of 107 Restaurants in Lisbon by LocalGuideWorld score (rating weighted by number of reviews).
Where is Loco located?: R. Navegantes nº53-B, 1200-731 Lisboa, Portugal — 1.8 km from the center of Lisbon.
How can I contact Loco?: Phone: +351 21 395 1861 · Website: loco.pt

When we want to make a review on a Michelin restaurant I believe we should take our time. If not for any another reason, because you just paid 200 Eur per person :-) and you are supposed to experience something not ordinary.
I’ll start with the environment and decoration. It’s a nice simple restaurant, nothing too fancy or surprising in terms of decoration. But I believe people are not looking for fancy stuff when they come here. They have one really nice detail, and that is the kitchen open to the room, so you get to see all-time the staff running around to prepare the food. That brings a nice dynamics to the place, so for me definitely a plus. Also this allows the customer to understand how much work these guys put on the preparation. Cooking people also brings food to the table, explaining what we are about to taste (makes sense, because there is no menu).
On the staff, I must say they are really nice, friendly and available. The service I may say is excellent. Most of the staff are just young “kids”, but that is not necessary a bad thing. My only note on the staff is, due to a very demanding level of service, these “poor” guys are basically running all night to make the necessary. When I say running, it is literally running some times :-). In my opinion, despite the staff never allows the clients to realize their stress level when interacting with us, I felt that the stress was a little in the air. You feel it around you (as I said despite all efforts from the people not to show it), so it does not contribute for your comfort during the meal. In such place it would be expected to have a more calm atmosphere around you. The other thing I notice, on the down side, was the noise. The noise was really loud and in the end, after more than 2 hours, my head was exploding. Maybe I was unlucky.
Now, coming to the most important part: the food. When I come to such places I expect to be surprised with different food experience, exotic dishes, outside the usual, etc. etc. Well, in that perspective LOCO achieve the goal. We actually eat different exotic food, or at least very different food preparation of some common goods. The only problem is… different is not necessarily good, and I must confess, from the around 20 things I tried (between starters, main, desserts, sides, etc.) I did not dislike anything (except one, because I don’t like Oysters, but that is a personal thing), I really liked 4 or 5, but the majority I found totally indifferent… meaning it did not bring me any especial feeling or sensations. Also, the type of goods used are not especially "noble", I mean, they are never using some super XPTO caviar, Black Diamond Truffles, shell fish from Alaska or Kobe meat :-)… I say this as a joke, but my point is that when we come to such places, it is also part of the experience to taste some unusual stuff. I know the LOCO philosophy is based precisely on that concept of using the season regional goods, etc etc, but I do not find this a plus, considering the expectations on the meal. So, when it comes to the food (and that is the major part in a restaurant) it is quiet disappointing and that’s the major reason for my lower classification (3/5). To finalize few things I must say in favor. They manage to keep a great pace on the meal, where during 2 hours there is not a single boring moment. Basically during two hours there is always something happening. So it is a “fun” entertainment experience and that is a plus. Also the wine list, for the restaurant level, does not “burn” your wallet with crazy prices, and that is respectable. Because I was driving, I could not take the wine menu experience, and that was a pity. To conclude I’m sorry for not giving more positive feedback. Please note it was not a frustrating experience, I did not regret to come, but honestly I expected more, mainly on the food part!

John Emmert 2024 Feb 18

Best meal by far in Lisbon. Visited a 2 star Michelin and other similar rated places and Loco was far and above the best.

Daniel Villalobos Zuñiga 2024 Jan 30

Incredible experience at Loco. First of all, the service given at the restaurant is superb, everyone gave a lot of attention to detail, and help us understand the flow of the night with every dish on our tables. Then, the food was incredible, specially the snacks, those were mind-blown. I cant stress how good of an experience this was and I highly recommend it!

Nicoleta Loredana 2023 Dec 23

Went to Loco for a surprise birthday meal, and honestly it has been one of the best birthday meals I have had so far. The atmosphere was fabulous and so was the service, been offered complimentary wine and also birthday cake. The food itself was great and the favours will dance in your mouth, with each dish we had a beautiful presentation. With each course we been told about what it contains and its origin. Recomand it 10/10!

Daniel Tay 2023 Nov 05

Let’s start with what was good… the service was fantastic and the atmosphere and decor were great. The staff do go above and beyond and did salvage our experience to a certain extent.

However we were massively let down by the food. It wasn’t bad by any means but I guess our expectations were high (as I think they should be) at €156 per head. Firstly, the portion sizes were not substantial, and after 16 “courses” we felt as hungry as we were coming into the restaurant. Only 2/3 of the mains we would consider to be proper mains, the rest were all snacks/ bite sized servings. The food itself looked good visually and it did seem like a lot of effort was put into making it, but flavour wise, nothing completely blew us away. Again nothing was outright bad per se, but for €156 per head you’d expect a few dishes to really stand out and be very memorable. We were also surprised that there weren’t any “high value” ingredients used, out of the 16 courses we had. The most expensive thing served to us (that we could tell) was probably the octopus. To give you an idea, there was a main course just serving broccoli but 4 different ways. It felt like they were using cheap ingredients and adding a spin to it to justify the prices charged. We have had degustation before, and have always left with memorable experiences with the food and with a full stomach, whereas we left hungry and dissatisfied with the food.

Overall based on our experience, we felt like what you got didn’t really justify the cost of the meal.

Philip DePalo 2023 Nov 02

This is my 11th experience at a Michelin 1 Star or higher restaurant and this was on the lower end of those experiences. It's important to understand my rating is not in comparison to the pizza shop down the street, but to others in this category. I felt like they were trying too hard on plating and presentation, but not enough on the tastes. We were disappointed with a few courses, but the Service was a 9/10. The service could have been improved with a bit more elegance and coordination. I think this is where it fell short. The price was also not on par with other experiences and the "begging" at the end for a gratuity was necessary and guilted us into donating an additional €75 on an already ¢635 Euro bill for three people, one with no alcohol. The atmosphere was plain and bland. This place, like the tree in the entrance, has died. Overall I would not return.

Olexandra Tupalo 2023 Sep 19

This was my first time at a Michelin star restaurant and boy it did not disappoint! I made this reservation 3 months in advance for our wedding anniversary. This was the coolest and craziest culinary experience. The menu consisted of 16 “moments” that are based on seasonal offerings and are inspired by Portuguese flavors. The food was incredible and the service simply impeccable. They also offer wine pairings or you can order by the glass.
This was a very special experience that we will never forget! They even added another “moment” for us because of our special occasion. Compliments to the chef and the entire Loco team for making our night so very special.

Marios Taramides 2023 May 25

A culinary gem of this great city. Behind the Church of Stars, only Michelin stars can shine. An absolutely impeccable service. The waiters move in the space like ballerinas of one of Tchaikovsky's ballets. The kitchen clean and tighty, where the chefs work with the precision of a Swiss watch. The 17 course experience is a real culinary trip of the senses. The presentation, the taste and the explanations given for each course like a magical fairytale. A trip to Lisbon is not completed without a visit to this culinary institution, if you can afford it. Bravo for the excellence.