In Porto... The Best Francesinha
I was in Porto slightly more than a week ago and we tried this "famous" dish over there. It's called Francesinha. Ooozing with cheese, stuffed with several types of meat (steak, sausage etc.), finished with a mix of portwine and tomato-ish gravy and served with piping hot fries, Francesinha is a favourite among tourists and locals alike. You HAVE to try it if you're in Porto and every shop sells it.
In Porto, I was on a hunt for the best Francesinha. In the two days that we were there, my mum and I tried the dish two nights in a row for dinner. Both were slightly different in taste, but nonetheless very good.
The first night was at Cafe Guarany near the city centre square. I would like to call it a tourist trap - The waiters are dressed formally in white and black and the cafe itself has an old majestic feel to it. It was also pricier than most cafes. The Francesinha we ordered made my mum very happy because to our delight, two prawns greeted us when the dish arrived and they kindly cut it into two for us (we were sharing, of course). The wine taste in the gravy was pretty strong but it was delicious, I couldn't help but drain it all up.
Cafe Guarany - See the prawn!
The next night was at "the best" Francesinha at a quite, no-frills cafe on a quiet end of the town - Capa Negra II. It was really "The Best", no kidding, there was a sign pasted on the cafe window boasting about the award it had won for the best Francesinha. And it didn't disappoint too. This one was a lot cheaper than Guarany, tasted more homely, less alcoholy and we were satisfied.
Capa Negra II - We were too excited we almost forgot to take a picture
I think someday I'd like to make my own Francesinha. It looks really easy doesn't it?