Review: Canalha

After departing from a Michelin-starred restaurant Feitoria, and partnering with food group Paradigma, chef João Rodrigues returned to Lisbon to establish a casual restaurant that honors his hometown’s heritage. Canalha is a quintessential “neighborhood restaurant”—increasingly rare in a city gentrified by overtourism. Everything here exudes a sense of nostalgia: the yellow tram gliding past on the street, the extensive counter for meal service, the sturdy dark wooden tables adorned with marble tops, and a menu brimming with culinary delights, such as line-caught squid with sheep butter sauce, open-face omelets prawns and onions, and traditional Portuguese bitoque (steak crowned with a fried egg and signature pan sauce). But Canalha is also a haven for exceptional local produce and charcuterie. An imposing green charcoal oven nestled in the kitchen serves as a shrine where Rodrigues and his team grill to perfection fresh red-scarlet prawns, clams, and fish sourced from Portugal’s bountiful coast.