The excellent Fago Restaurant in Marvão: A meal to remember

Fago, one of the best restaurants in Portugal!

We were excited about our meal. Fago isn’t just any restaurant. It’s a Michelin-recommended spot- recognised in both 2024 and 2025- and it’s tucked into the edge of this medieval town. Just off a quiet plaza, Fago overlooks the gorgeous São Mamede mountains, and that alone is worth the visit! But of course, we went for the food. 

Fago is the creation of chef Diogo Branco, originally from the north of Portugal and Daniel Boto from Marvão.

They built something special. The lighting is soft, the acoustics are great, and the kitchen is open-so you feel like you are part of the experience.

The menu at Fago restaurant

The menu changes often and follows the seasons. Every day there’s one vegetable dish, one meat and one fish. It’s a simple and thoughtful idea.

You can tell the ingredients come from nearby farms and markets. Everything tastes fresh-really fresh. Even the herbs feel like they were picked moments before hitting the plates.

The tasty dishes at Fago 

Fago is a Greek word and it means to eat and to devour- and that is precisely what we did. We dived in all our dishes and couldn’t stop praising the excellent food.

We were three and decided to share everything. Our first dish was a veal tartar. It came with watercress and a crunchy bread crumble. It’s hard to put into words how good it was!

The meat was tender, with a light citrus note that surprised us after the first bite, followed by a soft herbal finish. We each tried to take equal bites- notice the word tried! 

Next came what the menu called nuggets– but they were far from what you’d expect. These were small crispy bites make from black pork. Golden on the outside and moist and favourable inside. Celery and apples were sprinkled on the dish. The smell instantly reminded me of dishes from my childhood, and I loved the textures.

Then came the cannoli. I was expecting something heavy, but it was anything but. The cannoli were filled with a light sheep whey cheese and paired with white beans, carrot and lamb’s lettuce. A beautiful mix-delicate and well balanced.

The cod fish was a surprise. Cod is everywhere in Portugal, with thousands of way to prepare it. At Fago, they marinate it in miso and serve it over a creamy aubergine açorda. 

We finished with a dessert that brought everything together. I don’t remember the name-it had sesame, coffee, nectarine, and Alentejo bread and zabaione. It was delicious.

The chef brought out the dessert and chatted with us for a while about his journey from medicine to amazing chef. We told him we were very happy he switched careers because the meal was excellent.

Throughout dinner we talked and laughed, but every time a new dish arrived, we went silent. That is how good it was! 

Our Menu at Fago

• Fresh Alentejo bread, olives, local olive oil and butter
• Veal tartar with watercress and bread crumble
• Black pork,  cheese with rocket celery and apple
• Sheep whey cheese cannoli with white beans, carrot and lamb lettuce
• Cod with miso and aubergine açorda
• Dessert with sesame, coffee, nectarine and Alentejo bread

Don’t miss Fago when you visit Marvão! 

Fago has about seven tables, and Its interior is minimal and cozy. The staff is very well trained and went out of their way to make our dinner a very special one.

The food is fantastic!

Fago website

Fago on Instagram

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Updated June 2025