Amêijoas à Bulhão Pato
Clams in garlic, coriander and white wine — the simplest, best shellfish of the Lisbon coast.
The quintessential taste of the Portuguese coast, where sea-brine meets the sharp bite of garlic. It is the ultimate expression of ingredient-driven simplicity.
It serves as the definitive companion to a chilled glass of Vinho Verde on a warm afternoon.
Where it comes from
Named after the 19th-century Portuguese poet Raimundo António de Bulhão Pato, who allegedly wrote about the recipe in his works, the dish became a fixture of Lisbon tavern culture. While Bulhão Pato was a poet, not a cook, his name became immortalized through his passion for this specific preparation. It evolved from humble fisherman fare into a standard appetizer in every respectable marisqueira across the capital.
The dish
Small, sweet clams steam in a bubbling bath of olive oil, white wine, garlic, and freshly chopped coriander. The experience hinges on tearing chunks of crusty bread to soak up every drop of the aromatic, saline broth.
Key ingredients
- 01Clams
- 02Garlic
- 03Coriander
- 04Olive oil
- 05White wine
When to eat it
It is an essential midday ritual during the warmer months when the clams are plumpest.
Why you might skip it
Those with an aversion to shellfish or the intense scent of raw garlic should seek sustenance elsewhere.
Good to know
Order this at any authentic seafood house in the Cais do Sodré or Alcântara districts where the shellfish is hauled in daily.
Serve with
Adega de Colares
The cooperative cellar preserving the near-extinct Colares denomination — ungrafted Ramisco vines on the sand dunes above the Sintra coast. Tastings are in a beautiful old Adega and the wines are rare and ageworthy.
Bucelas
A minuscule DOC north of Lisbon producing dry, high-acid whites almost entirely from the Arinto grape — the same grape that gives Champagne-style structure, and which the Duke of Wellington reportedly drank during the Peninsular War.
Eat
Bife à Marrare
A steak in a mustard-cream sauce — Lisbon's old café-era classic, rarely found elsewhere.
Caracóis
Small garden snails simmered in garlic and oregano broth — Lisbon's summer beer-garden snack.
