Lisbon’s Fifty Seconds restaurant has been awarded a second Michelin star, a major achievement for chef Rui Silvestre. The announcement was met with enthusiastic applause at the third Michelin Guide Portugal Gala held in Funchal, Madeira, where nearly 500 people were in attendance on March 10, 2026.
Rui Silvestre, visibly moved, expressed his gratitude to the guide and to Sana, “a group that wants to grow and chose me,” as well as his team – “What we have is yours,” he said – and his wife, for her “unconditional support,” and his daughters. Fifty Seconds is located in Lisbon’s Torre Vasco da Gama, complementing the Myriad by Sana hotel.
Another significant development of the evening was the fact that a name and location change didn’t affect the two stars held by Henrique Sá Pessoa – formerly known as Alma, it now bears the chef’s name and has moved from the Chiado district to the Amoreiras Garden area. Michelin inspectors determined the restaurant should retain its distinction. While not unprecedented, this is a rare occurrence, especially considering the new Henrique Sá Pessoa (which maintains the menus from the Chiado location) opened just weeks before the gala in late February.
All restaurants with two stars maintained their status. They include: Antiqvvm (Vitor Matos, Porto), Alma (Henrique Sá Pessoa, Lisboa), Belcanto (José Avillez, Lisboa), Casa de Chá da Boa Nova (Rui Paula, Leça da Palmeira), Il Gallo d’Oro (Benoît Sinthon, Funchal), Ocean (Hans Neuner, Alporchinhos), The Yeatman (Ricardo Costa, Vila Nova de Gaia), and Vila Joya (Dieter Koschina, Albufeira).
The Michelin Guide Gala, held this year in Funchal at the Savoy Palace, resulted in ten new restaurants receiving one Michelin star, along with 34 new recommended restaurants and two Bib Gourmand awards, recognizing quality cuisine at moderate prices. The list of two-star establishments remains unchanged.
For the first time on the Iberian Peninsula, the “Opening of the Year” award was presented, announced gala host Daniela Ruah. It went to Table do JNcQuoi in Lisbon, with chef Filipe Carvalho also being added to the list of recommended restaurants.
There were also star losses to note: Al Sud in Lagos, and Eleven in Lisbon. In the case of Al Sud, the decision follows the departure of chef Louis Anjos and the temporary closure of the location. The loss of Eleven’s star, located high above Eduardo VII Park, came as a surprise, though not entirely unprecedented. The restaurant, headed by Joachim Koerper, opened in 2004 and initially received a star, later losing it in 2010 before regaining it.
New One-Star Restaurants
Ten new restaurants earned one star – with a notable increase in starred establishments in Porto (four new additions) and a particularly emotional moment as two chefs who are a couple, Tiago Bonito (Éon, Palacete Severo, Porto) and Angélica Salvador (InDiferente, Porto), both received the honor. “I’m happy squared,” said the chef as she took the stage, before shouting to her team, “everyone, we have our star!” She is only the third woman to head a restaurant in the country to earn a Michelin star.
The final list largely aligned with pre-gala speculation. Some of the most talked-about names were indeed Cozinha do Paço, Éon, Kappo, and Largo do Paço – with Francisco Quintas regaining a star for a restaurant that had lost it in 2023. The chef also had a successful night, being named Young Chef 2026.
The Special Service Award went to Adácio Ribeiro, Vila Foz, Porto. Carlos Monteiro (Casa de Chá da Boa Nova (Leça da Palmeira) received the Sommelier Award.
The new one-star restaurants are:
- Cozinha do Paço, Afonso Dantas, Évora
- Alameda, Rui Sequeira, Faro
- DOP, Rui Paula, Porto
- Eon, Tiago Bonito, Porto
- Gastro by Elemento, Ricardo Dias Ferreira, Porto
- InDiferente, Angélica Salvador, Porto
- Kappo, Tiago Penão, Cascais
- Largo do Paço, Francisco Quintas, Amarante (Casa da Calçada)
- Mapa, David Jesus, Montemor-o-novo (L’And)
- Schistó, Vítor Matos with Vítor Gomes, Régua
2 Stars
- Fifty Seconds, Rui Silvestre, Lisboa (Myriad by Sana, Torre Vasco da Gama)
- Antiqvvm, Vitor Matos, Porto
- Henrique Sá Pessoa (the chef closed Alma to open a new restaurant at Páteo Bagatela)
- Belcanto, José Avillez, Lisboa
- Casa de Chá da Boa Nova, Rui Paula, Leça da Palmeira
- Il Gallo d’Oro, Benoît Sinthon, Funchal
- Ocean, Hans Neuner, Alporchinhos
- The Yeatman, Ricardo Costa, Vila Nova de Gaia
- Vila Joya, Dieter Koschina, Albufeira
New Recommended Restaurants
The Bib Gourmand selections, recognizing restaurants offering “quality cuisine at moderate prices,” were modest, with only two additions: Mesa 15 de Petr Kiss (Leiria) and Taberna Sakra, by Hugo China Ferreira (Alverca do Alentejo). The new Recommended restaurants total 34 (compared to 35 in 2025), spread throughout mainland Portugal, but excluding the islands, with significant representation from the Algarve.
- 1638 restaurante by Nacho Manzano (Vila Nova de Gaia)
- Atrevo, by Rita Magro (Porto)
- Austa, by David Barata (Almancil)
- Authentic, by Ricardo Luz (Almancil)
- Broto, by Pedro Pena Bastos (Lisboa)
- Bistrô Severo, Tiago Bonito, Porto
- Cafezique, by Leandro Araújo (Loulé)
- Camilo, by Diogo Manuel Ribeiro Coimbra (Porto)
- Coral, by Diogo Pereira (Porches)
- Cozinha das Flores, by Nuno Mendes (Porto)
- Cozinha do Douro, by José Maria Gomes (Lamego)
- DeRaiz, by Nuno Fontes (Rebordinho)
- Duo Gastro Theater, by Catarina Lonteiro and Leandro Silva (Portimão)
- Essences, by Ferran Arnau (Lousã)
- Forno da Telha, by Miguel Rocha Vieira (Évora)
- Intemporal, by António Simões (Paço de Arcos)
- Izakaya Japanese Cuisine, by Rubem Mesquita (Porto)
- JcCQuoi Fish, Filipe Carvalho (Lisboa)
- JncQuoi Table, Filipe Carvalho (Lisboa)
- Liz, Daniel Carvalheira (Porto)
- Manjar dos Leitões, Evaristo Martins (Póvoa do Varzim)
- Maré, by José Avillez and Filipe Pina (Cascais)
- Mercantel, by Cristiano Barata (Aveiro)
- Mesa Farta, by João Viegas (Tavira)
- Mitsu Shinyu Koike e Kshetri Raju (Lisboa)
- O Manel, by Manuel de Oliveira (Nogueira)
- Omakase Wa, by Ashik Yonjan (Lisboa)
- Pearl, by João Silva and Domingos Câmara (Faro)
- Quinta do Quetzal, by João Mourato (Vidigueira)
- Refeitr, by João França (Coimbra)
- Salta, by Thomaz Salema Reis (Lisboa)
- Santa Joana, by Bruno Antunes, Maurício Varela and Nuno Mendes (Lisboa)
- Sult Cascais, by Nelson Soares (Cascais)
- Tasco da Ilda, by Madalena Dias (Azambuja)
The New Green Stars
With Cozinha do Paço, chef Afonso Dantas in Évora (a restaurant integrated into the Fita Preta project of wine producer António Maçanita), Portugal now has seven Green Stars. The Green Star “is not a distinction,” but “represents an impetus to promote dialogue between restaurants with the aim of inspiring each other,” explained Daniela Ruah, reading the Michelin’s explanation. The altered status of the Green Star – which took effect in 2025 – means that a physical statuette is not awarded to recipients.
To clarify that restaurants that already had a star are maintaining it, representatives from Encanto (Lisboa), Herdade do Esporão (Reguengos de Monsaraz), Il Gallo d’Oro (Funchal), Malhadinha Nova (Albernoa, Beja), Mesa de Lemos (Silgueiros) and Ó Balcão (Santarém) took the stage.
