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Home > Restaurants > Alfama

Alfama

Critic's Pick Critics' Pick

551 Hudson St., New York, NY 10014
at Perry St.  See Map | Subway Directions Hopstop Popup
212-645-2500 Send to Phone

Photo by Rafael d'Alo

Hours

Mon-Thu, 6pm-11pm; Fri, 6pm-midnight; Sat, noon-3pm and 6pm-midnight; Sun, noon-3pm and 5pm-11pm

Nearby Subway Stops

1 at Christopher St.-Sheridan Sq.

Prices

$21-$30

Payment Methods

American Express, Diners Club, Discover, MasterCard, Visa

Special Features

  • Brunch - Weekend
  • Good for Groups
  • Live Music
  • Lunch
  • Notable Wine List
  • Outdoor Dining
  • Private Dining/Party Space
  • Romantic
  • Take-Out

Alcohol

  • Full Bar

Reservations

Recommended

Profile

New Yorkers who venture beyond the boroughs know Portuguese food mainly from rustic paelha in Newark’s Ironbound District and roadside pork-and-clam stew in Rhode Island. Alfama’s mission is to showcase the maritime nation’s cuisine in all its refinement and variety. It is named for Lisbon’s oldest, artiest, and most-intimate quarter—its version of Greenwich Village. And like the Village, the restaurant has a neighborly air, drawing couples who murmur at window or sidewalk tables, friends who catch up in the buzzy main room, and expats who work through Alfama’s deep list of Portuguese wines and ports. The seasonal menus present classics like chouriço sausage, flambéed at the table on a traditional, pig-shaped ceramic brazier, and bacalhau, Portugal’s ubiquitous salt cod. Mingled with shrimp, cream, and garlic, blanketed with Azoran cheese, and baked in a crock, the dish resembles crème brulée not just in appearance but in irresistibility. The bistro-style dishes flaunt the flavors of Portuguese trade routes: piri-piri pepper from Angola, Brazilian farofa flour, and, accompanying rich duck confit, a petite potato galette that evokes Alsace. Scholarly diners will discern a millennium’s worth of global exploration on Alfama’s menu; the rest will just have a good time.

Brunch

Sat.–Sun., noon–3 p.m.

Live Music
Wed., 8 p.m.–10:30 p.m., fado; Thu. and Sun., 8 p.m.–10:30 p.m., jazz

Cocktails
Alfama co-owner and mixmaster Tarcisio Costa designs cocktails with surprising ingredients that work. A Tosta mixes Stoli, Frangelico, and Laphroaig single-malt Scotch; the effect is seductive and smoky. The addictive Doce Sonho combines Maker’s Mark bourbon, Drambuie, cream of cacao, and lemon juice.

9.2 "Highly Recommended"
Average Reader Rating
on a Scale of 10
Write Your Own Review

A Portuguese gem in New York City

VA from midtown | Posted on 11/5/04

Overall Reader Rating: 10 (Highly Recommended)
Food: 10
Service: 10
Décor: 9
Value: 10

Alfama is just one of those places where you want to keep on going!... Food is delicious (the steak on the stone, the cod dishes and lamb are to die for),authentic...and very well prepared! The wine selection couldn't...Read More

A little piece of Europe

nr from West Village | Posted on 10/8/04

Overall Reader Rating: 7 (Recommended)
Food: 6
Service: 7
Décor: 8
Value: 7

I go to Alfama quite often (though I take care to skip the Fado nights; 40 years of familiarity with Lisbon still haven't persuaded me...) The atmosphere is great: clean, well-lit, very much a European bistro feel. The food...Read More

Read All 5 Reviews >>