little people · big adventures
Places to eat
Cafés, restaurants and pastelarias where a high chair appears without asking, the menu has something a child will actually eat, and nobody tuts when the spoon drops. Families suggest them, we check them, and you can compare them by what matters to yours.
Filter by what your child will actually eat, what you need (high chairs, baby changing, a supervised play room) and where you are. Every place is chosen because it works for families. None of them paid to be here.
Every listing shows the date its details were checked and where they came from. Menus and hours change, so check before you go. How listings work.
Vila Nova de Milfontes · Beach or riverside
A cabin-style grill restaurant on Praia do Farol at the mouth of the River Mira, serving charcoal-grilled fresh fish and barbecued chicken with the beach in front.
Easy wins for fussy eaters Chicken, Simple fish, Chips
Alcantarilha · Play café with soft play
A big indoor and outdoor play centre on the N125 near Alcantarilha, with a family restaurant, speciality coffee and one ticket that covers the whole day.
Easy wins for fussy eaters Pizza, Pasta, Chips, Chicken, Burgers, Simple fish, Toasties and sandwiches, Rice, Ice cream
Caldas da Rainha · Beach or riverside
A garden restaurant and bar beside the lake in Caldas da Rainha's main park, with indoor tables, a terrace, a kids' menu and a café menu of toasties and waffles.
Easy wins for fussy eaters Pasta, Chips, Toasties and sandwiches, Soup, Pancakes and waffles, Ice cream, Fruit and smoothies
Matosinhos · Play café with soft play
An indoor 'little kingdom' in Matosinhos where monitors stay with the children in the play zones and adults wait in the café.
Easy wins for fussy eaters Pizza, Pasta, Chips
Sintra · Pastelaria or bakery
The old-town bakery that created the travesseiro, a pillow-shaped pastry filled with egg and almond cream, with a Nutella version for children.
Setúbal · Family restaurant
A busy, simple tavern on Setúbal's main avenue, facing the Tróia ferries, that has been frying the city's famous cuttlefish since 1974.
Easy wins for fussy eaters Simple fish, Chips
Aveiro · Pastelaria or bakery
Aveiro's oldest ovos moles shop, where the sweet egg filling comes in wafer cases shaped like shells, fish and barrels.
Tavira · Ice cream and treats
Handmade gelato and sorbets from a Tavira ice cream maker founded in 2000, served with crêpes and coffee from a café in the Mercado da Ribeira on the riverfront.
Easy wins for fussy eaters Ice cream, Fruit and smoothies, Pancakes and waffles
Lisbon · Family restaurant
A Portuguese restaurant on the Santo Amaro dock in Alcântara, open since 1995, with a big terrace, a children's play area with slides and the 25 de Abril bridge overhead.
Easy wins for fussy eaters Chicken, Rice, Soup, Fruit and smoothies, Ice cream
Quinta do Lago · Family restaurant
A relaxed all-day restaurant beside the Quinta do Lago driving range, with an outdoor playground next to the terrace, a gelato counter and pizza-making workshops for children.
Easy wins for fussy eaters Pizza, Pasta, Chicken, Pancakes and waffles, Ice cream, Fruit and smoothies
Lisbon · Themed or quirky restaurant
A small ramen bar covered in Pokémon and manga art, where a talking robot cat rolls between the tables delivering food.
Porto · Market or food hall
Porto's historic market, where children can look round the fruit, fish and flower stalls before lunch at one of the restaurants upstairs.
Easy wins for fussy eaters Chicken, Simple fish, Fruit and smoothies
Lisbon · Beach or riverside
A fish and seafood restaurant in a riverside warehouse, with free children's activities run by entertainers and a set kids' menu at weekend lunchtimes.
Easy wins for fussy eaters Simple fish, Rice, Soup, Chips
Oeiras · Play café with soft play
A family-run neighbourhood café and coworking space in Paço de Arcos with a dedicated play room for babies and small children, set up with the play specialists TOCA.
Easy wins for fussy eaters Pancakes and waffles, Toasties and sandwiches, Soup, Ice cream
Porto · Themed or quirky restaurant
Porto's first cat café, where rescue cats waiting for a home wander between their own room and a patio while you eat vegan food.
Easy wins for fussy eaters Soup, Burgers
Lisbon · Café or brunch spot
A long-running café and restaurant on a leafy square between Príncipe Real and São Bento, with a terrace that sits almost next to a small public playground.
Easy wins for fussy eaters Burgers, Chips, Pasta, Toasties and sandwiches, Fruit and smoothies, Ice cream
Lisbon · Pastelaria or bakery
The original Belém custard tart bakery, open every day since 1837, a few minutes' walk from the Jerónimos Monastery and the riverside gardens.
Évora · Pastelaria or bakery
A tiled, family-run pastelaria in Évora's old town, named after the city's convent sweet that looks like a little loaf of bread but is made of almond, egg and squash jam.
Torres Vedras · Pastelaria or bakery
The oldest pastry shop in Torres Vedras, on the main square, famous for pastéis de feijão: small golden tarts filled with white bean, egg yolk and almond.
Sintra · Themed or quirky restaurant
An all-you-can-eat pizza restaurant dressed as a school of magic, with floating candles, smoking potion drinks and a magician doing tricks at the tables.
Easy wins for fussy eaters Pizza
Albufeira · Play café with soft play
A small, family-run soft play café in Albufeira with a baby and toddler area, role play, a Lego wall and a garden where parents eat and watch.
Almada · Beach or riverside
A small Portuguese restaurant on the Ginjal quay in Cacilhas, with a big terrace at the water's edge and Lisbon straight across the river.
Easy wins for fussy eaters Simple fish, Rice
Lisbon · Themed or quirky restaurant
A small family café at the Parque das Nações marina where model freight trains run along tracks between the tables, delivering drinks and snacks, with a play area for little ones.
Easy wins for fussy eaters Fruit and smoothies
Lisbon · Themed or quirky restaurant
A small ramen bar styled like a Tokyo station platform, where the noodles are made fresh behind glass and there is a mild ramen sized for children.
Easy wins for fussy eaters Chicken, Rice
Lisbon · Themed or quirky restaurant
A restaurant inside São Jorge Castle, with two outdoor terraces by the walls and one of the widest views over Lisbon's rooftops.
Easy wins for fussy eaters Simple fish
Carvoeiro · Themed or quirky restaurant
A family-run seafood grill down among the eroded rocks of Algar Seco, next to the Boneca cave, whose two natural windows look out over the sea.
Easy wins for fussy eaters Simple fish
Porto · Beach or riverside
A glass-fronted beach restaurant on the Foz seafront, with a children's menu and a wooden castle playground beside it.
Easy wins for fussy eaters Chips, Rice, Toasties and sandwiches, Soup, Burgers, Pancakes and waffles, Ice cream, Fruit and smoothies
Lisbon · Play café with soft play
A calm indoor playground for ages 1 to 7 with a café and a coworking room, where staff can look after children aged 4 and up while parents go out.
Easy wins for fussy eaters Pancakes and waffles, Fruit and smoothies, Ice cream
Cascais · Ice cream and treats
The Cascais shops of Portugal's best-known ice cream maker, founded on nearby Tamariz beach in 1949, a short walk from the town beaches.
Easy wins for fussy eaters Ice cream, Fruit and smoothies
Tomar · Themed or quirky restaurant
A medieval tavern where guests are handed costumes at the door, musicians and actors move between the tables, and the food comes as a set banquet.
Easy wins for fussy eaters Soup
Lisbon · Play café with soft play
An air-conditioned indoor playground with separate play rooms, a terrace and garden, and a café for parents, on Avenida de Pádua near Parque das Nações.
Easy wins for fussy eaters Toasties and sandwiches, Pancakes and waffles
Coimbra · Café or brunch spot
A community café in a former grocery shop, with a room full of toys, long shared tables and a back garden with a swing and climbing frame.
Easy wins for fussy eaters Toasties and sandwiches, Ice cream
Lisbon · Market or food hall
A big food hall in the Mercado da Ribeira where everyone can pick from a different counter and eat at the same long table.
Easy wins for fussy eaters Pizza, Burgers, Pasta, Chips, Ice cream
Cascais · Themed or quirky restaurant
An old three-carriage train parked beside Cascais station since 1973, now a steakhouse with burgers, toasties and a terrace carriage looking towards the sea.
Easy wins for fussy eaters Burgers, Chips, Toasties and sandwiches, Chicken, Ice cream
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