ÉVORA - Portugal - page 215

$$ Hotel Santa Clara, renting 41 comfortable rooms on a quiet side street, is solid,
professional, and tour-friendly. Part of the Best Western chain, it lacks character, but
comes with a good location and price (Sb-€60-65, Db-€65-75, air-con, free parking,
Travessa do Milheira 19; from Praça do Giraldo, take Rua Pinto Serpa downhill, then
right on Milheira; coming from the bus station, turn left on Milheira after you enter city
wall; tel. [phone], fax [phone], www.bestwesternhotelsantaclara.com , hotels-
[e-mail] ).
$$ Hotel Ibis, a cheap chain hotel, has 87 identical Motel 6-type rooms that are a
15-minute walk from the center, just outside the city walls. Simple to find and offering
easy parking, it's a cinch for drivers—but staying here is like eating at McDonald's in
Paris (Sb/Db-€35-59, check website for deals, breakfast-€6, one child under 12 sleeps
free, air-con, elevator, parking, Quinta da Tapada, tel. [phone], fax [phone],
www.ibishotel.com ).
$ Casa Hóspedes “O Alentejo,” an old noble house renting 22 well-worn but thor-
oughly cared-for rooms, comes with a homey TV salon and endearing attention to quaint
detail (Sb-€25-30, Db-€37-48, Tb-€45-59, Qb-€50-75, no breakfast, air-con, Rua Serpa
Pinto 74, tel. [phone], [e-mail] , Rosa speaks very little
English).
Eating in Évora
The region has its own proud cuisine—rustic and hearty, with lots of game and robust red
wines. Don't ask for vinho verde here. And don't ask for porto either. A good local vinho
licoroso (sweet dessert wine) is Mouchão.
Restaurante Cervejaria 1/4 Para As 9 (“Quarter to Nine”) is a big, square, rustic
dining room with an open kitchen that steams up with local families and tourists chowing
down on favorites such as arroz de tamboril, a rice and seafood stew, and açorda de mar-
isco, a spicy soup with clams, shrimp, and bread spiced with Alentejo herbs like cilan-
tro (Thu-Tue 12:00-16:00 & 19:30-22:00, closed Wed, some outdoor seating, Rua Pedro
Simões 9, near exposed kink in aqueduct off Rua do Menino Jesus, tel. [phone]).
Adega do Alentejano is like an aboveground wine cellar. Locals choose from cheap
(€8-12/plate) traditional dishes, including tasty pork options. The menu is scrawled on
chalkboards. Ask to watch them pour your jarro of house wine from the large earthen-
ware vats at the back. If you didn't try ginjinha in Lisbon or Óbidos, finish your meal with
a glass of this house-made cherry liqueur (Mon-Sat 12:00-15:00 & 19:00-22:00, closed
Sun, cash only, Rua Gabriel Victor do Monte Pereira 21-A; from main square go along-
side church on Rua João de Deus, then take third left and keep walking; tel. [phone]).