Bifana: Portugal’s hot meat sandwich. Here to eat the best ones

Bifana, Portugal’s national sandwich, is a must eat during your holiday in this popular destination. No matter which region or city you’re in, you can find a bifana everywhere. Follow our bifana guide and make sure you only eat the best bifanas in Portugal. 

Hot meat sandwich

Who doesn’t love it? A sandwich with roasted pork loin and a generous dollop of satay sauce. The Dutch pork sandwich has been world-famous in the Netherlands for years, and Portugal has its own version too. A white bread roll with thinly sliced pork, mustard and a generous helping of piri-piri sauce. The meat is briefly marinated in dry white wine, garlic, lemon juice, paprika and bay leaf. You won’t find any pickled vegetables, crunchy toppings or other complicated nonsense on the sandwich; the bifana is perfect in its simplicity. 

Lisbon

Are you taking a city trip to Lisbon this summer? You’re in luck; you’ll find bifanas in abundance in the capital! But watch out, there are many tourist traps: places where you can buy bifanas, but where the bifanas are grilled, and that’s not how it’s done. The proper method is slightly less responsible: the meat is fried in butter, oil, and especially plenty of pork fat. 

One place that really knows how to prepare a good bifana is As Bifanas do Afonso. You’ll find the tasca (small bar) in a typical Portuguese residential neighbourhood, not far from the centre, but well hidden enough from tourists. This is where the Lisboetas get their bifanas. You’ll find Afonso behind the counter next to a bubbling pan that is almost bigger than the good man himself. The lightly toasted white roll is stuffed with juicy, thinly sliced pork. The mustard and piri-piri bottles are on the counter; help yourself. Order a cold imperial (draught beer) with it and eat your bifana the way Italians drink their espresso: standing at the bar. 

Porto

The further north you go, the spicier and fattier the bifana becomes. In Porto, you don’t add the piri-piri yourself; the meat is already marinated in it. What’s more, they don’t just drown the meat in a pan of fat—they also scoop a generous spoonful of fat into the sandwich; you have to be into it, but in Porto the rule is: the fattier the bifana, the better. Want to try it? Then you need to go to Conga.

Alentejo

Alentejo is Portugal’s largest province and stretches from the west coast in a broad strip all the way to the Spanish border. Alentejo travellers, take note: this is where the bifana comes from—more precisely, the town of Vendas Novas. During a road trip through the area, you have to stop at Café Boavista – Casa das Bifanas originais. The name gives it away: this is where you go for the original bifana. For just €1.80, the sandwich is tossed into your hand, but we’ll warn you now: it never stops at €1.80. After taking your first bite, you’ll immediately order another one.

Also read:

• An ode to the sausage roll
• Must visit: Lisbon’s oldest pastelaria
• These are the 50 best sandwiches in Europe