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Portugal Tourism: Lisbon from a different point of view

Date: 9/10/2009

It’s quite surprising to consider that as a waterfront capital city Lisbon had not a single hotel in a front line riverside location until recently. That all changed earlier this year when the Altis Group opened the Altis Belém Hotel & Spa.

 

With just 50 rooms and suites, the low rise building takes full advantage of its location with the shimmering mirror of light of the Tejo estuary playing on an interior design theme, where the Portuguese Discoveries are brought to life in abstract from.

 

Being located a few kilometres from the city centre, this may not be the ideal place to stay for those visiting Lisbon for business or shopping. But for a cultural visit to the Belém area or as a destination in its own right, the Altis Belém offers a refreshingly different take on a luxury break in the capital.

 

The Discoveries Monument is just a stone’s throw from the hotel, as is the Belém Cutural Centre, a splendid venue for exhibitions and live performances. Also within easy walking distance is the beautiful Jerónimos Monestry, not to mention some of the city’s most interesting museums. But the hotel itself is worth a visit for a weekend of pampering in the spa and great food in the restaurant, which is sure to become one of Lisbon’s top dining venues.

 

Guest rooms are some of the most spacious in town with deliciously comfortable beds and stunning views over the adjoining marina and the Tejo estuary, and décor enhanced by unusual panel friezes depicting the worldwide destinations of Portugal’s Discoveries era.

 

Throughout the property it’s clear to see that the Altis hotel group, a company more often known for its centrally located traditional-style hotels, has set out to reinvent itself with this modest but nonetheless ambitious project (the first of several earmarked for inauguration).

 

Considerable expense and special attention to detail has been invested to create a level of comfort and luxury that places this new 5-star venue amongst the most desirable places to stay in the Portuguese capital.

 

Expanding upon the subject of the Altis Belém Hotel & Spa’s food and beverage operation, maximum points go first to the 38º41º Bar. Located on the ground floor, the bar has a riverside terrace and a cleverly designed interior where bar stool seating occupies not only the bar itself but a second double sided bar-height table complemented by comfortable lounge bar seating. The fact that this has become a popular and sophisticated nightspot in its own right is no surprise given the chic design, great service and outstanding selection of drinks and cocktails, not to mention first class sushi and oysters.

 

But for food and wine lovers, the hotel’s trump card is the Feitoria Restaurant and Bar. Once again, the Altis group have cut no corners in aiming for the very best and have placed their culinary aspirations in the capable hands of José Cordeiro, or "Chef Cordeiro" as he is known. An experienced professional who has worked in various countries, Cordeiro has won a number of awards, including a Michelin star at Casa da Calçada in Amarante in 2004.

 

At the entrance to Feitoria, a large painting reminiscent of Nanban art greets customers and fits perfectly into the theme of discoveries and interaction between new communities seen throughout the hotel and which in some way offers a taste of what is to come on the beautifully-set dinner tables of the restaurant.

 

The dining room is modern in looks, seating 64 diners in a calm and well-lit room with a view of the river in the distance. There is also an outside terrace sitting another 24, weather permitting, and an adjoining wine bar.

 

Seated comfortably, we were served the degustation menu, comprising the amuse bouche (which changes daily), starters of tuna tataki, tomato and ginger tartar, peixinhos da horta (breaded runner beans) and tobiko wasabi roe, a fish dish of John Dory with butternut squash purée and squid cooked on a hot plate and a meat dish of lamb with a cornbread crust, crushed peas and presunto under a nut emulsion. Dessert comprised of papos de anjo (a traditional Portuguese egg-based dessert) with a poejo broth (a mint-like herb) on a bed of pineapple carpaccio with ground nutmeg and coconut ice cream.

 

From the tasting menu experience, one can gather that the cuisine delivers exactly what it promises. Incorporated in the hotel’s general concept, the creations are fundamentally based on tradition and on the Portu­guese products that Chef Cordeiro believes in so ardently. At the same time the menu promotes a meeting of tastes and cultures. Yet another contrast comes in the form of one of Lisbon’s best designed and equipped spas. The B Spa, occupying 560m2 of floorspace, is over-generously proportioned to cater for the guests of such a small hotel and once again, the principal of creating attractions for a wider audience of discerning city dwellers is evident. On descending a softly lit staircase from the ground floor and entering the spa, the predominant use of black in the design theme of the hotel’s main public areas is replaced by white natural stone, where clever lighting creates a soothing ambience. Unusual touches – such as two indoor pools, the larger measuring 100m2 and heated to some 35ºC, and a smaller adjoining pool heated to 27º, plus two spacious stone-clad steam rooms primed at different temperatures and levels of humidity – complement a full range of treatments and therapies.

 

The spa enforces a "no kids under 16" policy, and that includes the heated pool! The only alternative pool area is at the roof top sun terrace where there is what the hotel referrers to as a "tank" which is certainly not big enough to swim in but proves useful for a cooling dip on a hot summer’s day. But for romantic city break, the Altis Belém is hard to beat and comes as welcome addition to Lisbon’s ever improving hotel scene. Source: Essential Portugal

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