Vegetarian Tourist in Lisbon, Portugal? Vegetarian meals. Vegetarian, vegan and kosher wine.

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Vegetarian Tourist in Lisbon, Portugal? Vegetarian meals. Vegetarian, vegan and kosher wine.

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WHAT ABOUT WINE?

DO YOU SERVE VEGETARIAN, VEGAN OR KOSHER WINE?

We dedicate this site and all the work done in the restaurant Terra to the benefit of all sentient beings. That they may all be happy!

Whether you’re on holiday or working, it’s always best (no surprise here), to go to vegetarian restaurants. They understand what you want and since no meat or fish is processed in the restaurant, you don’t have to worry about such ingredients ending up in your supposedly “vegetarian” meal.

But vegetarian restaurants can be difficult to find, especially if you’re not in one of the main cities. And in non-vegetarian restaurants, even though Portuguese people are very hospitable and, if they can, they will usually go out of their way to accommodate requests — will they understand your request?

The tricky part is that it´s not uncommon for soup or vegetables to be cooked in fish or chicken stock and most pastries have animal fat (traditionally lard, now sometimes butter or margerine). To explain what we do and don’t eat can be difficult even for Portuguese people (yes, we’ve had some bad experiences).

To help you avoid most of the language pitfalls we’ve compiled this basic English/Portuguese Vegetarian Dictionary that you can print and take with you when dining out. We hope your stay in Portugal will allow you to try a little of the varied Portuguese Gastronomy, traditionally mediterranean, today even richer with all its influences from India, Africa and South America. And, of course, if you’re in Lisbon, we also hope you come to Terra: we delight in welcoming new friends!

A VEGETARIAN TOURIST IN PORTUGAL?

You are here: Restaurante Vegetariano e Vegan Terra >> English Welcome Page >> A Vegetarian in Portugal?

Vegetarian wine?! Vegan wine?!? Isn’t wine just grapes? What can possibly be the problem with wine?
If this is your first reaction, know that it is also the first reaction of most Portuguese (vegetarians included). Truth is, the production of wines is not just grapes and (for vegetarians) there are potentially several problems with wine, mainly in the fining process.

Animal derived finings can be isinglass (made from the bladders of tropical fish), chitin (from the shells of crustacean), gelatin, egg and others... Cochineal (E-120) is a (widely used in food) red colorant that’s made from crushed insects and is sometimes used to deepen the colour of red wine.

The problem...
And when you think that the wine may also have been passed through a bone charcoal filter… and that what remains from all this in the end is in such minute quantities that it’s legal not to have it included in the label and... really, when we go into all this we may never want to drink wine again!

The solution...
Good news is that these ingredients and procedures are not used by most organic wine producers, be it because a large part of its clients are vegetarian or because it’s just not needed: for example, Portuguese wine producers tell us that the many hours of strong Sun our grapes receive is colorant enough!

Enjoy...
We have a small selection of the very best Portuguese and French organic wines and, from the talks we have with our suppliers, we believe that all wines served in the restaurant are suitable to vegetarians. Additionally, those producers that have put in writing the assurance of using absolutely no animal derived ingredient in the whole process have their wine clearly marked “vegan” in our list. So, relax, enjoy your meal… and have a drink!

Other than in the restaurant your best bet if you want to buy wine in Portugal is to try and find some Portuguese organic wine, which you’ll find mostly in natural or organic food stores.

More info about alcoholic beverages in the website of The Vegetarian Society of the UK (opens a new window).

Pictured above are two of our favourite wines. The brilliant ruby red is “Casa de Mouraz Rosé”, a bio-dynamically produced wine, perfect for a Summer lunch in our shaded terrace. Just above is “Casal dos Jordões” the only Organic Port produced in Portugal, also one of the best: try it with one of our desserts or on its own. Both wines are vegan.

AND WHAT ABOUT KOSHER WINES?

Yes! We do serve Kosher Wines (Mevushal and Non Mevushal, both Kosher for Passover), the first kosher wines to be produced in Portugal for more than 500 years. Under supervision of the Orthodox Union, these wines are OU P certified.

More about Kosher and other religious food restrictions and what we can (and can’t) do in the restaurant to help.

HOW TO ASK FOR A VEGETARIAN OR VEGAN MEAL IN PORTUGAL?

(Be patient and take Terra’s Dictionary with you. It is available in English, Dutch, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Italian, Norwegian, Spanish and Swedish.)

Terra’s Vegetarian Dictionary, available in English, Dutch, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Italian, Norwegian, Spanish and Swedish, can be downloaded here.

FOR THE OVO-LACTO, AN ADDITIONAL WORD ABOUT EGGS AND CHEESE…

Be aware that 98% of all eggs consumed in Portugal are battery eggs, the highest percentage in Europe. Unless you have assurance that the eggs used are free range organic, it’s perhaps best to avoid egg based dishes. We are proud to say that, even though we, in the restaurant Terra, use eggs sparingly, when we do, all eggs used are certified organic. We know personally our supplier and can vouch for their organic free-range production.

Traditionally, many Portuguese cheeses are vegetarian and do not use rennet. This is the case with the delectable “Serra da Estrela”, one of the oldest Portuguese cheeses (historical references go back two thousand years) and also one of the best cheeses in the world, that you should certainly try if you eat dairy. The “Serra da Estrela” is made only in the region of the Estrela mountain, with milk from the sheep that graze freely everywhere in the mountain and cardoon thistle, that grows wild in Portugal (flor do cardo, Cynara cardunculus).

If in doubt when buying Portuguese cheeses look for the label: it should mention “cardo” or “flor do cardo” and it should not mention “coalho” (this is a generic term that can be rennet or plant-based but the producers usually do not provide that information). Do not try to ask for “vegetarian cheese” (or, worse still, “vegan cheese”) because chances are no one will understand what you want, unless you’re in very specialized natural or organic food stores.

More info about free range eggs in the website of The Vegetarian Society of the UK (opens a new window).

More info about cheeses in the website of The Vegetarian Society of the UK (opens a new window).

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