Le Jardin d'Eden
French for really, really, really good
- Campo De Ourique (get a taxi)
- €€€
- R. Correia Teles 107A, 1350-157
A small curiosity of the restaurant scene in Lisbon, is that there really aren't that many places which have private outdoor dining areas. Whether it's because of the packed in nature of the buildings, or simply because the only space is the sidewalk next to the road. Whilst not a problem for us directly, it causes issues when guests turn up and expect to only eat in restaurant gardens that they've dreamt up before arriving.
Campo De Ourique is a very popular neighbourhood up the hill on the west side of Lisbon. With no Metro station and too high up to walk, it gives the place a lovely village community feel, but the hot tip for anyone thinking of swinging by to check it out is, get yourself a taxi. With summer in full swing, and on a hot streak of finding such places, we decided to set off to the other side of town to try Le Jardin d'Eden to see if the name really told the true story.
Yes it does. This is a gorgeous and unassuming French restaurant, which opens up into a beautiful patio area, shaded and covered with trees and vines.
And what to eat in this classic French restaurant? Well, we played all the major hits; foie gras and beef carpaccio starters, duck l'orange and rack of lamb mains, with a crème brûlée dessert.
The starters delivered high grade ingredients, largely left to impress by the simple provenance of themselves, which they did with aplomb. The buttery, smooth pate paired so nicely with the sticky and sweet onion chutney. The delicate carpaccio elevated with the salty parmesan shavings.
Both the duck l'orange and lamb mains, demonstrated again that the kitchen knew exactly how to handle these fine ingredients. The mash potato delivered with the duck was so creamy and buttery it should be served alongside a defibrillator. The lamb chops wearing all charred smokey goodness of the grill you would have thought the animal had smoked 20 Gauloises a day in its life.
I don't need to describe the crème brûlée, I simply can't be objective about this dessert.
Campo De Ourique, with its upmarket residents and off the tourist track location is always a nicer slow down from the hecticness of Lisbon's centre. Now you can dial up the relaxation to 11 in the garden of Eden.
Don’t forget to order: The duck l'orange evoked many a happy memory of visiting France.