not the best in Europe, they are the best in the world. Our coast is very rich with cold water, and we are privileged to have the Azores and a great tradition in the sea; we know how to look after fish well. Luck protects the daring and in this case, we are lucky to have such a wealthy sea, ‘ says Silva. If a visitor is not fortunate enough to book a table in his res-taurant – there’s a two-month waiting list – they can always go to his second establishment, Fogo (Av. Elias Garcia, 57), a more informal proposal but also a hallmark of his cuisine. Arab, African and Asian influences Placed at number 42 of the Restaurant magazine’s annual list of The World’s Best 50 Restaurants is Belcanto (rua Serpa Pinto, 10 A), with two Michelin stars and located right in the heart of the Chiado neighbourhood, in Lis-bon. At the helm is the most well-known Portuguese chef, José Avillez, who has another ten restaurants in Lis-bon. ‘It is a city with a port, with a very rich history; Lis-bon’s gastronomic culture is very old, with a wide varie-ty of influences: Arab, African, Asian, etc., which are also added to the contribution of the numerous international communities that are forming here’, explains the chef. With a total of nearly 600 workers in his restaurants, not only in the capital city, but also in Cascais, Oporto and Dubai, Avillez’s cuisine is ‘80% Portuguese inspiration’. His latest restaurant, which opened in March 2022, is Encan-to (Largo de São Carlos 10), with vegetarian haute cuisine. ‘Lisbon is now a gastronomic destination’, he concludes. The agricultural region of Colares Although he was born in Sarajevo, Ljubomir Stanisic has lived in Portugal for 25 years. In 2009, this young chef ope-ned his restaurant called 100 Maneiras (Rua Teixeira, 39) in Bairro Alto, Lisbon, and a year later, he opened his bistrot (Largo da Trindade, 9), in the Chiado neighbourhood. He is a leading name in Lisbon cuisine, and has seen the city grow and develop into the desirable place it is today for universal gastronomy. ‘The city is experiencing a very active period. There are many young chefs who have travelled all over the world and trained with some of the best chefs, and they are eager to highlight the value of Portuguese products, com-bining them with the best techniques’, explains Stanisic. What the Bosnian loves the most is to embark on a gastro-nomic trip from Lisbon, discovering the country’s culinary wealth, ‘We are a small territory, but there are many different regions and traditions. You can leave the city and drive for two hours and what you eat is completely different in each place’. Actually, he brings many of the products he uses from the agricultural region of Colares, near Sintra, ‘It provides us with a continuous supply of organic vegetables, and enables us to reduce food waste of any kind’, he assures. And he does everything for his unique cuisine, where the influence of Bosnian and Portuguese gastronomy intertwine with each other, an exceptionality that works, ‘Combining both is part of my identity, not only in the kitchen but as a human being’. A magnet that attracts other chefs A sign that Lisbon is a global gastronomic focal point is the arrival of foreign chefs to open branches of their gastrono-mic temples. In 2019, the Spaniard, Eneko Atxa, with three Michelin stars for Azurmendi, on the outskirts of Bilbao, opened two restaurants in Lisbon: Eneko Lisboa and Bas-que Lisboa, both at number 15 of rua Maria Luísa Holstein. Their concepts are different but linked by the nuances of Atxa’s cuisine: the space that bears the name of the chef was awarded a Michelin star in 2020. ‘More and more visi-tors are visiting Lisbon; it is one of the important European capitals, as regards culture and gastronomy. Here there is a great culture of the sea, fields, cheeses… there is an unli-mited and flavoursome larder for all chefs, with excep-tional products. We have worked with cod, which coin-cides with Basque culture’, explains the Spanish chef. In the emblematic Vasco de Gama Tower, located ‘50 seconds from the ground’, is also the Fifty Seconds restau-rant owned by the Basque chef, Martín Berasategui (Hotel Myriad by Sana, rua Casi das Naus, Lote 2.21.01, Parque das Nações). With a Michelin star, the executive chef is Fili-pe Carvalho, a chef who has managed to follow the master with attentiveness. ‘Lisbon now has great force in gastrono-mic matters. The fact that names such as Martín Berasate-gui come here confirms a reality that, by itself, is very good’, explains the Portuguese chef. The proposal started in 2018 and presents a combination of Portuguese flavours and the techniques of the Spanish chef. ‘It is the work of both and results in a unique blend between their cuisine and ours’. Entente cordiale, way beyond cataplanas and caldeiradas.