Almeja

The story

Almeja Porto: Contemporary Casual Fine Dining by Chef João Cura

A Desire to Cook Differently

In Porto, Almeja is a restaurant built on a simple yet profound idea: to aspire, to desire, to want more. The name itself, derived from the Portuguese verb “almejar,” captures this ambition. Chef João Cura, a Coimbra native who trained at the Escola de Hotelaria e Turismo de Coimbra, honed his craft in celebrated Spanish kitchens, including the Michelin-starred Dos Cielos Hermanos Torres and Cinc Sentits in Barcelona. He returned to Portugal in late 2016, first reviving a private dining project before opening his first author’s kitchen restaurant in Porto.

A Philosophy of Seasonality

Almeja operates on a “casual fine dining” concept, but the philosophy runs deeper than the label. The kitchen works in reverse to the norm: instead of writing a menu and sourcing ingredients, they first ask their small producers what is available and only then plan the dishes. This commitment to market-driven, seasonal cooking means the menu is a direct reflection of Portuguese terroir and heritage. The team, led by Chef Cura and his wife Sofia Amaral Gomes—who brings a pharmacist’s precision and genuine warmth to the dining room—focuses on what is local, sustainable, and at its peak.

A Michelin-Recommended Experience

This meticulous, ingredient-first approach has earned Almeja a place among the Michelin Recommended restaurants for 2026. The dining experience is one of genuine discovery, where the excitement comes not from the dish alone, but from the story of how it was cooked and where the ingredients came from. It is contemporary cuisine in the truest sense: rooted in Portuguese tradition, guided by the seasons, and served with an unpretentious elegance that makes the essential visible.