PEOPLE Hank & Carina 40PLACES Restaurant Figo de Pita.

Welcome to our monthly column celebrating Olhão. After exploring Portugal top to bottom from Braga to Tavira enjoying so many coastal and inland locations in our RV, we decided Olhão was the place to buy our home to celebrate our “golden years”.

Olhão was not on our radar at first. A chance winter rental introduced us to Olhão, a place we quickly found attractive for many reasons. “Walkability” is, above all, a main highlight. Each month we will introduce you to places only steps away from our front door. We hope you will enjoy our column!

To “Stroll” means to walk in a leisurely way. Celebrating Olhão’s new esplanade, that is exactly what people are doing. This relaxing path now stretches from the ferry landing all the way west to the Marina boat ramp. Both locals and tourists enjoy the new wide walkway. Safe open spaces attract families and couples and old guys like me! People enjoy staging photos against the backdrop of the Ria Formosa waters and bobbing boats in the Marina. I will go out on a limb here to say people are loving this new Olhão open air experience. Parks on each end offer sites for both relaxing on a bench, or for the ambitious, to enjoy some outdoor exercise equipment. While I’m out here on my limb, a suggestion. I’m just a newbie here with no influence, but what the hell, here goes... The last few years have been a huge challenge for Olhão residents. Sure, those of us arriving here from outside Portugal are lucky to discover this quiet town fronting the beautiful Ria Formosa, but local folks need to work and when we are all hiding from covid, paychecks become scarce. Stay with me... We discovered the “restaurant row” car free weekends last August. Carina and I experienced the magical calming effect it had. Restaurants placed seating right out to the road’s edge and the feel of turning that busy street into a soundless, safe walking space, seemed to automatically attract couples, casually surveying the ample offerings for dinner or drinks. Speaking from my limb, I believe Olhão should extend this practice to include “CarFree Weekends” during evenings from May through October. People would come in droves to enjoy the Olhão “destination” experience. I’ll suggest this would likely double many annual business revenues (and taxes). Most importantly, expanding “CarFree Weekends” would help stabilise incomes for the local people who staff these businesses. There, I’ve said it!

Right across from where the twin Olhão Mercado markets meet, sits this local favourite restaurant offering a prime sunkissed people watching venue. They serve light meals which we’ve enjoyed and tempting desserts for people that walk more than we manage to, but my mention here is about the coffee. Everywhere in Portugal I see local folks enjoying coffee in tiny cups. Me doing the same thing would make me think, “I’m a Giant!” ** So, Carina and I usually ask for cappuccino which arrives in a bigger cup and thus, contains more coffee! During our first visit to Esquina da Baixa, we joined the people watching squad and ordered our bigger cups of coffee. What arrived was a very affordable large cup which did double duty as a piece of art! At first, we thought there must be some machine that decorated each cup based on a formula. Instead, I got to see barista Luis Patricio embroidering each creation in freehand with a different design for each cup. Together with his manager, Claudio Filipio, their delivery of these tasty arty drinks matches so much of what we have seen here in Olhão. As with my column from last month where we mentioned the Mexican restaurant, "Torito", we keep seeing that “made from scratch” originality in so many local eateries. Maybe it’s the tough competition here. Perhaps it is simply the Portuguese doing what they do. Either way, please stay tuned to watch us eat our way down the street in future columns! Footnote: “I’m a Giant”, apologies to comedian Jim Jeffries for heisting his original joke. Interested in the CarFree Weekends idea? Write me at hankryan2003@yahoo.com

When owner Milene finished her studies in Lisbon and returned to her home town of Olhão, she found herself in the middle of an economic crisis. Having graduated in Nutritional studies, dreams were put on hold and to make ends meet she started working in real estate with her mother. A few years later Milene saw that the government was offering grants for innovative projects. Using the knowledge learned in her studies, Milene put together a plan for a restaurant offering healthy local products, with workshops on how to cook vegetarian food, and also yoga, both body friendly. The project was a winner and her dream began to unfold. The building of choice was originally a rather run down cafe. Along with her boyfriend who is an architect, they renovated the premises into the simple yet elegant restaurant it is today. A good friend Pedro Caboz was working as a pharmacist, however, Milene knew that his real passion was cooking. It didn't take much effort to persuade him to join the team and he is now the head chef. The name 'Figo de Pito' translates to Prickly Pear, chosen as it is a typical, regional fruit of the cactus, but not often used in restaurants. The fruit is in season in July and September which is when you'll find

it on their menu which changes through the year according to the fruits and vegetables available. January will see reintroduction of pomegranate and beetroot into the menu. There is also a daily juice; persimmon, apple and orange. Last August saw their two year anniversary. It has been a challenging few years with the Covid restrictions. They have survived by being creative with their ever changing menu and also take-aways and brunch boxes. This year the restaurant won the award for best starter in Olhão voted by Rota do Petiscos with their open taco made with dried Tuna and orange. The future for Figo de Pita looks bright. Milene hopes to eventually find a bigger premises and expand to brunch, bowls and cocktails. We hope you get a chance to try this wonderful little gem of a restaurant. You (and your pets) will be greeted with the friendliest of welcomes by either Milene or waitress Fatima. Address: Rua Moinho da Barreta 48 8700408 Olhão. Email: figodepita.olhao@gmail.com Tel: 934 427 766 Closed Mondays. Open Tue-Sat 9.30-17.00 Sundays 09.30-15.00 Facebook: Figo de Pita - Brunch & Bowls