The evening started well in a modern and green setting, but between the starter and the main course, we were made to wait almost an hour to ask us if we wanted anything else, while we were still waiting for our main course... Fresh, quality fish but little culinary research, similar sauces between two fish. No appetizers, surprising for this range of restaurants. Very well received when arriving but a little rushed at the end. Bad value for money for a meal at €100/person.
ANSWER : Dear Emma & David, Thank you for taking the time to respond to Yulia’s comment as well as mine.
We accept your apologies and completely understand that adjustments are necessary after a single year of activity and you have all our encouragement, and would not have been against the idea of ordering other plates for the rest of the meal. But when we asked the waitress if the stingray was suitable for both of us, she told us that it is generally very suitable for a table of 2 to 3 people, and so we listened to her advice and did not order other additional dishes for fear of over-ordering.
Finally, I am surprised to learn from reading your response that a wine and a fish were offered to reward us for our patience, because no comment was made to us on this subject, and unfortunately the bill does not show any commercial gesture; addition visible below to demonstrate our honesty, this may be a communication error or an oversight on your part. Because we had simply come to spend one last romantic evening in Portugal, without any negative preconceptions about Austa (and even rather positive ones)
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 3
Helena Garcia Payá
Incredible and delicious experience. Very unique and special flavours. The service was excellent we will come back for sure
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Quentin Chambrun
Very modern and pleasant setting in summer, however a very discreet service from the waiters and waitresses who are almost never present at our table to guide us in the choice of our dishes! Because yes the map is difficult to understand! Despite this, the waitress advised us to choose several dishes which were not really famous and reduced in terms of proportions! Let's not talk about poorly dosed cocktails! And to take it all in, a service that is much too long! Obviously after all that discourages you from having dessert! We decided to go and express our feelings but no one was able to express our feelings!
Conclusion if you want to hear stories this restaurant is for you!! They will be able to explain to you how the oil was produced which, in quotes, is not made by them but by a local producer in the region. This restaurant is a fairy tale but without a fairy and without good food.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 2
Service: 1
Emily O'Sullivan
An incredible meal in a beautiful setting. The service was excellent. Highly recommend!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Louise Descampe
Writing this review is going to be a pleasure. We were very impressed from the moment we arrived at Austa. First, you arrive at a parking area surrounded by beautiful trees and plants, which leads you into their garden. As soon as we saw the beautifully decorated terrace, we were eager to sit down and start our dinner. We were welcomed by the sweetest staff, who explained the concept of Austa to us as they handed us our menus. The wines suggested by the sommelier paired perfectly with our meal, and we were pleasantly surprised by each dish, each offering an incredible contrast of flavors. I didn’t take too many pictures because I was enjoying my evening so much ? But anyway, to conclude, I cannot stress enough how much you need to dine at Austa if you’re in Algarve. We will definitely be coming again!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Yulia Borovleva
A beautiful setting, good dishes but too small and without special attention, the endless wait for a fish (1 hour) under the pretext that it was a rush. I'm sorry but in a restaurant of this standing you have to know how to manage your time in the kitchen. In the end we were shipped
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 3
Nadeen Hijaz
My recent visit to Austa was a mixed experience, to say the least. While the seating and grounds were pleasant and provided a nice area to explore and enjoy, the food was a significant letdown for a farm-to-table establishment.
We started with high hopes, especially with expectations from dishes like sourdough and carrot cake, which did manage to meet the mark. However, the rest of the meal was underwhelming. We ordered the picanha steak, which turned out to be extremely rubbery and entirely inedible. We immediately called our waiter to politely send it back, which they thanked us for our feedback, seemingly appreciative of the client’s perspective. They even asked us how the meal should have been prepared, which we thought was a good sign.
But the disappointment didn’t end there. When it came time to settle the bill, Emma, informed us that we would be charged 50% for the returned steak. This felt like a greedy move, especially considering we had only taken one bite. Despite the initial polite acknowledgment of our feedback, this left a sour taste in our mouths. Additionally, we did not feel entirely welcomed by Emma prior to delivering us our check, which added to our negative experience. On a positive note, the other co-owner, David, was nice and more welcoming.
Overall, none of the plates impressed us, and the charge for the inedible steak left us feeling disappointed. It seemed like a poor attempt to provide real-time feedback and genuinely improve their offerings. Unfortunately, Austa did not live up to the expectations of a farm-to-table experience.
Edit: We did have a wonderful conversation prior to providing our feedback to the waiter, but after sending back the dish, nobody checked on us at our table. Emma dropped off the bill and rushed away quickly, and while we thanked her briefly for the service from our waiter, she hurried away. We felt that it fell short of the service we would expect for the price we paid. Once an issue is made aware to management, it would be nice for them to check in on the issue instead of rushing away. Had somebody checked in to chat with us, we would have provided our feedback in person. In good faith, I would have expected the plate to be removed from the bill. This is my feedback to the restaurant so that it does not happen to other people.
Ella Stoyle
I recently visited this lovely hidden away restaurant with my partner on my recent holiday to the Algarve and can’t praise it enough. The food quality was beautiful and each dish had amazing attention to detail, many ingredients came from their own garden. The service above all was incredible, I am sure I’ll be back and will definitely be recommending to many family and friends!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Alex Day
Lunch and dinner at austa this week, what a truly wonderful experience both were. This is a stunning location for dinner set in beautiful gardens. Our table for 5 was set under the pergola, alongside a the water feature overlooking the gardens.
The menu, designed for sharing, was made up of seasonal dishes with local produce, much of which grown in the austa gardens. There was something for everybody - stand out dishes were Aubergine with smoked goats milk labneh as well as Belotta Pork Presa which just melted in the mouth.
Our food was paired with some outstanding wines from little-known vineyards showcasing the best of Portugal's low intervention wineries.
David and Emma have created a real gem in austa, bringing the perfect combination of atmosphere, service and carefully curated food and wine to an area that can be a bit of a culinary desert despite the amazing produce Portugal has to offer! Looking forward to coming back!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Emma McQuillan
What an incredible dining experience Beautiful space, amazing service & hospitality and excellent food & drink Austa is outstanding and one of the best places I’ve eaten in Portugal Huge congratulations to the team that run it - you are doing an awesome job!
Loved every aspect of our visit – the food, the drinks, the space (do make sure to have a stroll through the beautiful gardens), the hosts. Well done and thank you, Emma, David and team!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Jonathan Duncan
The cooking at Austa is thoughtful and precise, honouring the heritage of Portuguese cuisine while using that foundation to innovate for today’s plate. The setting is beautiful, and the service was attentive, warm, and knowledgeable.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Eric Azoulay
Me & my wife dined here on our 1st night in the Algarve's. We loved it so much that we ate here on our last night as well. Thank you David & Emma for a wonderful experience. Quality of food, service and setting is on point.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
WIlliam Bottriell
Fantastic restaurant great service lovely host & hostess
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Amalie Angelskår
Always love Austa, the atmosphere, food, mood and founders are absolutely fabulous. Thank you!
The evening started well in a modern and green setting, but between the starter and the main course, we were made to wait almost an hour to ask us if we wanted anything else, while we were still waiting for our main course...
Fresh, quality fish but little culinary research, similar sauces between two fish.
No appetizers, surprising for this range of restaurants.
Very well received when arriving but a little rushed at the end. Bad value for money for a meal at €100/person.
ANSWER :
Dear Emma & David,
Thank you for taking the time to respond to Yulia’s comment as well as mine.
We accept your apologies and completely understand that adjustments are necessary after a single year of activity and you have all our encouragement, and would not have been against the idea of ordering other plates for the rest of the meal. But when we asked the waitress if the stingray was suitable for both of us, she told us that it is generally very suitable for a table of 2 to 3 people, and so we listened to her advice and did not order other additional dishes for fear of over-ordering.
Finally, I am surprised to learn from reading your response that a wine and a fish were offered to reward us for our patience, because no comment was made to us on this subject, and unfortunately the bill does not show any commercial gesture; addition visible below to demonstrate our honesty, this may be a communication error or an oversight on your part.
Because we had simply come to spend one last romantic evening in Portugal, without any negative preconceptions about Austa (and even rather positive ones)
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 3
Incredible and delicious experience. Very unique and special flavours. The service was excellent we will come back for sure
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Very modern and pleasant setting in summer, however a very discreet service from the waiters and waitresses who are almost never present at our table to guide us in the choice of our dishes! Because yes the map is difficult to understand! Despite this, the waitress advised us to choose several dishes which were not really famous and reduced in terms of proportions! Let's not talk about poorly dosed cocktails! And to take it all in, a service that is much too long! Obviously after all that discourages you from having dessert! We decided to go and express our feelings but no one was able to express our feelings!
Conclusion if you want to hear stories this restaurant is for you!! They will be able to explain to you how the oil was produced which, in quotes, is not made by them but by a local producer in the region. This restaurant is a fairy tale but without a fairy and without good food.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 2
Service: 1
An incredible meal in a beautiful setting. The service was excellent. Highly recommend!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Writing this review is going to be a pleasure. We were very impressed from the moment we arrived at Austa. First, you arrive at a parking area surrounded by beautiful trees and plants, which leads you into their garden. As soon as we saw the beautifully decorated terrace, we were eager to sit down and start our dinner. We were welcomed by the sweetest staff, who explained the concept of Austa to us as they handed us our menus. The wines suggested by the sommelier paired perfectly with our meal, and we were pleasantly surprised by each dish, each offering an incredible contrast of flavors.
I didn’t take too many pictures because I was enjoying my evening so much ?
But anyway, to conclude, I cannot stress enough how much you need to dine at Austa if you’re in Algarve. We will definitely be coming again!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
A beautiful setting, good dishes but too small and without special attention, the endless wait for a fish (1 hour) under the pretext that it was a rush. I'm sorry but in a restaurant of this standing you have to know how to manage your time in the kitchen. In the end we were shipped
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 3
My recent visit to Austa was a mixed experience, to say the least. While the seating and grounds were pleasant and provided a nice area to explore and enjoy, the food was a significant letdown for a farm-to-table establishment.
We started with high hopes, especially with expectations from dishes like sourdough and carrot cake, which did manage to meet the mark. However, the rest of the meal was underwhelming. We ordered the picanha steak, which turned out to be extremely rubbery and entirely inedible. We immediately called our waiter to politely send it back, which they thanked us for our feedback, seemingly appreciative of the client’s perspective. They even asked us how the meal should have been prepared, which we thought was a good sign.
But the disappointment didn’t end there. When it came time to settle the bill, Emma, informed us that we would be charged 50% for the returned steak. This felt like a greedy move, especially considering we had only taken one bite. Despite the initial polite acknowledgment of our feedback, this left a sour taste in our mouths. Additionally, we did not feel entirely welcomed by Emma prior to delivering us our check, which added to our negative experience. On a positive note, the other co-owner, David, was nice and more welcoming.
Overall, none of the plates impressed us, and the charge for the inedible steak left us feeling disappointed. It seemed like a poor attempt to provide real-time feedback and genuinely improve their offerings. Unfortunately, Austa did not live up to the expectations of a farm-to-table experience.
Edit: We did have a wonderful conversation prior to providing our feedback to the waiter, but after sending back the dish, nobody checked on us at our table. Emma dropped off the bill and rushed away quickly, and while we thanked her briefly for the service from our waiter, she hurried away. We felt that it fell short of the service we would expect for the price we paid. Once an issue is made aware to management, it would be nice for them to check in on the issue instead of rushing away. Had somebody checked in to chat with us, we would have provided our feedback in person. In good faith, I would have expected the plate to be removed from the bill. This is my feedback to the restaurant so that it does not happen to other people.
I recently visited this lovely hidden away restaurant with my partner on my recent holiday to the Algarve and can’t praise it enough. The food quality was beautiful and each dish had amazing attention to detail, many ingredients came from their own garden. The service above all was incredible, I am sure I’ll be back and will definitely be recommending to many family and friends!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Lunch and dinner at austa this week, what a truly wonderful experience both were. This is a stunning location for dinner set in beautiful gardens. Our table for 5 was set under the pergola, alongside a the water feature overlooking the gardens.
The menu, designed for sharing, was made up of seasonal dishes with local produce, much of which grown in the austa gardens. There was something for everybody - stand out dishes were Aubergine with smoked goats milk labneh as well as Belotta Pork Presa which just melted in the mouth.
Our food was paired with some outstanding wines from little-known vineyards showcasing the best of Portugal's low intervention wineries.
David and Emma have created a real gem in austa, bringing the perfect combination of atmosphere, service and carefully curated food and wine to an area that can be a bit of a culinary desert despite the amazing produce Portugal has to offer! Looking forward to coming back!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
What an incredible dining experience
Beautiful space, amazing service & hospitality and excellent food & drink
Austa is outstanding and one of the best places I’ve eaten in Portugal
Huge congratulations to the team that run it - you are doing an awesome job!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Restaurantji Recommends
Loved every aspect of our visit – the food, the drinks, the space (do make sure to have a stroll through the beautiful gardens), the hosts. Well done and thank you, Emma, David and team!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
The cooking at Austa is thoughtful and precise, honouring the heritage of Portuguese cuisine while using that foundation to innovate for today’s plate. The setting is beautiful, and the service was attentive, warm, and knowledgeable.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Me & my wife dined here on our 1st night in the Algarve's. We loved it so much that we ate here on our last night as well. Thank you David & Emma for a wonderful experience. Quality of food, service and setting is on point.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Fantastic restaurant great service lovely host & hostess
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Always love Austa, the atmosphere, food, mood and founders are absolutely fabulous. Thank you!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
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