Sign up with email

or

Already a member? Log in.

Trouble logging in?

Not a member? Sign up!

As amazing as Lisbon’s food and drink scene is, many of its markets are underwhelming. The sad truth is that it’s necessary to head outside of the capital to witness spaces that showcase the real bounty of Portugal’s fields, orchards, vineyards, farms and waters. The recently-renovated Mercado do Bolhão, in Porto, is one such place. Or the expansive, seafood-forward Mercado de Olhão, in the country’s far south. From Lisbon, visits to either of these would involve time-consuming trips, but thankfully, one of the country’s best markets is located an hour south of the city.

Setúbal is probably not on your Portugal food radar, but it should be. The parishes that comprise the greater district of the same name are the source of some of the country’s most prized ingredients and food products. This variety is on full display in the Mercado do Livramento, Setúbal’s central market.

Located just at the edge of the city’s historical center, and housed in an imposing pink structure from 1930, as soon as you enter Mercado do Livramento you’re greeted with tile murals that tell the story of the area’s agricultural heritage. Inside, you’ll find a hangar-like space consisting of neat marble rows that can accommodate as many as 350 fruit, vegetables, dried goods, baked goods, dairy products, meat and seafood vendors.

Markets can be intimidating, and there’s much on offer at Mercado do Livramento, so we’ve put together a cheat sheet of the Setúbal area’s best products that can double as your shopping list at this amazing market.

Cheese

Perhaps the Setúbal area’s most famous food item is the cheese known as queijo de Azeitão. A protected product, it is made from raw sheep’s milk from Setúbal, Palmela or Sesimbra districts that has been coagulated with an infusion of cardoon flowers, shaped into small wheels and cured for at least 20 days. The result is a rich, barely sweet, soft cheese that some serve with a spoon rather than slice with a knife.

Several vendors at Mercado do Livramento sell queijo de Azeitão as well as requeijão, essentially the cheese before it’s been cured, or even small tubs of the soro, the whey, as well as sheep’s butter from Azeitão.

Wine

It’s thought that grapes – and thus wine – may have arrived in Portugal via the Setúbal area, brought by Phoenicians as early as 600 B.C. During the 19th century, Setúbal was home to the world’s largest vineyard. Today, Portuguese wine drinkers probably associate wines from the Setúbal Peninsula with reds made by a handful of large yet respected producers such as José Maria da Fonseca, Casa Ermelinda Freitas, and Bacalhôa. But for something more unique, it’s worth seeking out the area’s sweet and fortified wines, considered some of the best in the country. These are made from Muscat grapes, known in Portuguese as Moscatel, and after aging in oak barrels, can boast flavors and aromas that call to mind apricot, orange and caramel. This publication has previously profiled the oldest producer of Moscatel de Setúbal, Venâncio da Costa Lima. This and other producers including Bacalhôa and Horácio Simões also make sublime fortified wines using Moscatel Roxo, a Muscat varietal that nearly went extinct, and that is considered one of the most fragrant grape varietals in the world. A variety of regular and fortified wines from Setúbal is available at the bottle shops in and around the Mercado do Livramento.

Seafood

Setúbal is a port city with an important relationship with fishing, and was, for more than a century, one of Portugal’s biggest centers for canned seafood. Between 1855, when the city’s first canned seafood factory opened, and 1995, when the last two closed, the city was home to more than 400 factories. Today, the only house with a connection to Setúbal is Belmar, which was established in 2016. You may find some cans from this brand at the dry goods vendors in the market.

Yet the city’s relationship with seafood can still be seen at Mercado do Livramento, where nearly half of the market – as many as 70 vendors – is dedicated to seafood. There’s a huge variety on offer, from piles of monkfish livers – the foie gras of Portuguese seafood – to the occasional swordfish the size of a compact car. A specialty of the area is salmonete, red mullet, a fish that lives in brackish water and is known for its white, delicate flesh.

Less delicate but even more associated with Setúbal is cuttlefish. The rugby ball-sized cephalopods can be seen at the market, in pools of black ink. If purchasing raw seafood isn’t an option on your trip, a short walk from the market there’s dozens of restaurants that specialize in cuttlefish, which in Setúbal is typically served in the form of choco frito, battered and deep-fried, or feijoada de choco, braised with white beans in a tomatoey sauce. Try Adega Leo do Petisco or Casa Santiago if you have time to sit down with a cuttlefish dish.

Pastry

Setúbal’s most famous sweet, and an item available from more than one vendor at the market, is torta de Azeitão. It takes the form of a thin sponge cake spread with egg cream and rolled, served chilled. Some vendors and cafes also sell torta de laranja, a similar preparation, sans egg cream and supplemented with orange juice, which may originate in Setúbal. Easier to take home are ésses de Azeitão, light, crispy s-shaped cookies made from wheat flour, eggs, sugar and cinnamon.

Fruit

Palmela, just north of Setúbal, is known for its fruit, in particular its apples. During the fall, you should seek out maçã riscadinha de Palmela, a protected apple variety with a squat shape and irregular red stripes, a sweet/tart flavor, and intense aroma. Even outside of the season, the Mercado do Livramento is home to vendors that sell a huge variety of apples and pears.

The Setúbal area is also known for its citrus, especially oranges, which have been grown in the area since the 16th century, and that make their way into a variety of local sweets. We’re big fans of the pleasantly tart, fragrant, easy to peel clementines.

  • Margaro: Pillar of PiraeusOctober 21, 2022 Margaro: Pillar of Piraeus (0)
    Piraeus – located about 10 kilometers south of downtown Athens – is not just the largest […] Posted in Athens
  • O FoititisJune 3, 2022 O Foititis (0)
    Neo Psychiko, a suburb north of central Athens, is just a 15-minute drive from the […] Posted in Athens
  • Quiosque de São PauloSeptember 28, 2020 Quiosque de São Paulo (0)
    The kiosk in beautiful São Paulo square, located close to the waterfront, in the Cais do […] Posted in Lisbon

Published on December 08, 2022

Related stories

October 21, 2022

Margaro: Pillar of Piraeus

Athens | By Carolina Doriti
AthensPiraeus – located about 10 kilometers south of downtown Athens – is not just the largest port of Greece, but it is also among the top five most important ports in Europe. Aside from the port, Piraeus covers a large area, some of which is residential and other parts which are more industrial. Though it…
June 3, 2022

O Foititis: Seafood in the Athenian Suburbs

Athens | By Carolina Doriti
AthensNeo Psychiko, a suburb north of central Athens, is just a 15-minute drive from the city’s busy Syntagma central square yet feels like a world away. Residential and family-oriented, the area is greener and quieter than downtown. At its heart is Plateia Eleftherias (“Freedom Square”), a lively spot with a playground, a kiosk, cafes and…
September 28, 2020

Quiosque de São Paulo: Kiosk Revival

Lisbon | By Célia Pedroso
LisbonThe kiosk in beautiful São Paulo square, located close to the waterfront, in the Cais do Sodré neighborhood, always reminded us of a beacon, with its vibrant red color and many light bulbs. Except rather than warn off passersby, it attracts the hungry and the thirsty, even more so now that André Magalhães, the chef…
Select your currency
USD United States (US) dollar
EUR Euro