Estaminé Restaurant

AUTHENTIC GASTRONOMY

One Restaurant,
One Island

Discover the Algarve’s best kept secret: a unique restaurant in a true desert island

There are few places where you can enjoy fresh fish and seafood, among other genuinely Algarvian specialties, against a desert island and the ocean to lose sight of. This is the only restaurant on the Desert Island, and one of the sparse buildings, completely integrated into the landscape. Perfect conditions for a different meal. The facilities have all the comfort, quality and landscape that the Ria and the Sea offer, combined with the traditional and excellent regional cuisine.

“The environmentally-friendly Estaminé restaurante whips up excellent bites from its solar-powered kitchen”

The Telegraph

Inspiring Landscape

Estaminé is situated at the southerly most point of Portugal, on the algarvian coast, in the beautiful Ria Formosa Natural Park. The Deserta Island is a laidback destination, on a stunning stretch of white sand dunes. With stunning panoramic views, Estaminé is a great venue for relaxing with friends or family.

Open every day for lunch, all year round.

Menu

Born and raised by the sea, the people of the Algarve have integrated the gifts of the ocean into cuisine for generations.

Our menu is a collection of flavours, aromas, and textures harvested from the waves and developed at the table with family and friends.

At Estaminé, we recognize that community is central to Portuguese cuisine, and hope to foster conversation with dishes designed to be discovered together.

Whether you are savoring local clams or selecting a fresh fish to be charcoal-grilled, you are seizing on an experience that Estaminé has been refining for over three decades.

We hope you enjoy the food, drink, and experience that Estaminé has to offer, and come back to visit soon!

“Bom apetite!”

Isabel & Zé

Ecology

Original Architecture

“Seen from above it looks like a crab". This is what it says about the architecture of the building in a specialist publication. But apart from wanting to create a building that fitted well with the surrounding landscape, we didn’t want it to interfere with the well-being of the Island. The lack of any public infrastructure meant that we had to come up with ideas for producing energy, making drinking water and dealing with the drains.

While Estaminé has been proud to call the banks of Ria Formosa home since 1987, the structure you find today is a reinvention of the restaurant, crafted in 2007, with sustainability in mind.

As the sole permanent tenant of Ilha Deserta, we sought new ways to minimize our environmental impact and harness the abundance of renewable resources the island has to offer. Solar panels perched atop and alongside the building now produce nearly the entirety of our power requirements year-round, and collected groundwater purified by reverse osmosis comprises the restaurant’s water supply.

When seen from above, the restaurant itself takes the shape of a crab among the sand dunes, an architectural tribute to our smaller neighbors scuttling along the shoreline. Gazing out at your surroundings, you might notice the wooden path that branches out from the timbers of the restaurant and into the unspoiled wild.

Crafted to help guests traverse the island, the boardwalk meanders west before turning south at Cape St. Mary to reunite with the shores of the Atlantic two kilometers later. A short walk along the beach will return you to the restaurant or to the pier, which we have also created to make your journey to and from Ilha Deserta as smooth as possible.

Support for Yachts

Close to Deserta island, your yacht can anchor and our skippers will bring you to the island safely, quickly and comfortably. This service is free for Estaminé Restaurant customers. Suggested location to anchor your yacht: 36°58'14.79"N, 7°52'19.95"W.

If you are looking for a more private experience, you don't need to leave the boat. The Estaminé Restaurant can prepare an amazing lunch according to your choice, with fish, seafood, wines, you name it, and our skippers will bring it to your boat.

Open

All year round.

How to get to Estaminé?

Animaris has a boat fleet dedicated to Estaminé restaurant, that departs every day from Faro, along the canals of the Ria Formosa Natural Park, towards Deserta Island.

You can guarantee your place by purchasing the boat tickets online, at the Pier (Cais da Porta Nova), or at Faro’s Marina - where you’ll find our staff dressed with yellow shirts.

As another option, you can ask your hotel to get the tickets and book the table for you.

Follow us:

Facebook: Estaminé - Ilha Deserta

Instagram: @estamine.ilha.deserta 

If you enjoyed your experience, please write your review:

Tripadvisor: Estaminé Restaurant

Google +: Restaurante Estaminé - Ilha Deserta 

Facebook: Estaminé - Ilha Deserta

As another option, you can ask your hotel to get the tickets and book the table for you.