After a long visit to the monastery in Alcobaça recently, we decided we needed something to eat and drink. Right in front, on the other side of the square, I spotted a place that caught my attention and peeked inside. It looked traditional and the walls were lined with posters and photos. I walked in saying to hub 'this looks perfect'. A young woman appeared and gave us rather a strange look when we asked if they were still serving lunches (it was well gone three in the afternoon but a large breakfast had kept us going for hours) and called the waiter. We were shown to a table in the back, away from the front part of the tavern where folks were getting their coffee or cold beer fix and the television was showing the live broadcast of the religious ceremonies in Fatima.
He seemed less surprised we wanted lunch and said that he could rustle up a large salad of black-eyed peas, tuna and egg for each of us; hub and I thought that would be great washed down with a couple of' imperiais' (cold beer from the pump). Whilst we waited, I got the camera out.
I made some sort of remark to hub about the amount of posters of horse fairs and that the decor in general created a great atmosphere. He wondered if I knew what the name of the tavern meant. I said I didn't have a clue. He informed me the name meant 'the castrator'. Ah! I wondered at his hesitation when I waltzed in - if I'd ever guessed at the name, perhaps I wouldn't have walked through the door.
Really, I'm glad we did venture in - service was great, the food and beer just what we needed. And it's a family run business:
So if you ever visit the monastery in Alcobaça on a hot day, stop off at 'O Capador' for food and an 'imperial'. We highly recommend it.
