w The Portuguese have a kind of
national obsession with coffee,
which is expertly brewed and
served throughout the land in
coffee bars called pastelerias.
An espresso-like shot of black
coffee, generally produced from
Robusta beans harvested in Brazil,
is called a bica, and a couple of those
are a great way to start the day, especially
when accompanied by a delectably crunchy custard tartlet
known as a pastel de nata.
w Make sure to get a GPS with your rental car. As a rule, the
roads in Portugal are good, and the main highways well
marked. But it is not so easy to find your way once you get
off the beaten path, and a proper navigational system can
save you the hassle of getting lost, as I so often did.
w Rangefinders are also a big help once you actually find
your way to the golf courses, for they vary greatly in the
way they handle distances. Some are calculated in meters
to the front of the greens, while others use yards and take
you to the middle of the putting surfaces. Better to have
a precise measuring device that takes all the guesswork
out of the process.
w The food in Portugal is superb, and I fell hard for a
number of fine eateries. O Jacinto in the Algarve village
of Quarteira dishes up the most savory seafood stews
I have ever tasted, including one called cataplana de
tamboril that boasts monkfish, clams and shrimp.
Another winner is Sao Gabriel, which is located in Vale
do Lobo and boasts one Michelin star. Sea scallops with
braised pork belly were sublime as a starter, and a
combination of lamb chops and leg of lamb with a bean
cassoulet made the angels – to say nothing of my palate
– sing. So did the tasty Esporao Reserva red wine from
Alentejo in south central Portugal I drank that night.
w For those looking to take a culinary journey a bit farther
afield, there is a terrific Southeast Asian restaurant next
door to Sao Gabriel called Thai Garden. It metes out
excellent curries and noodle dishes, and weeks later I
happily recall the fiery hot flavors of a lemon grass salad
with prawns and minced chicken I ate there.
LOCAL KNOWLEDGE
The Royal Course at nearby Valle do Lobo is
not nearly as roomy as San Lorenzo and more
heavily lined with housing. But I find it as chal-
lenging and as fun, especially when we come
upon the Atlantic on the 15th and 16th holes
and get to watch and listen to the waves
breaking against the rocky shore as we
stand over our shots. Valle do Lobo was one
of the first tracks built in the Algarve, which
comes from the Arabic word meaning “the
West” and harkens back to the time when the
Moors ruled this part of Europe. And the course
has a bit of an older feel to it, which made me
think of Henry Cotton as I walk it and the trails
he blazed in this area.
Oceanico Victoria is a completely different
scene, and represents another, very Americanized version of golf that can be found in the
Algarve. Located in the village of Villamoura and
designed by Arnold Palmer, it is the site of the
Portugal Masters, which Lee Westwood won a
couple of years ago. The course opened in 2004
and is flatter and brawnier than the others I
played in the Algarve. And while it definitely has
the ability to challenge the touring pro, it also
gives the visiting golfer another way to enjoy
the region. Especially if he picks the right tees.
I played from the Medal markers that measure
w The Dona Filipa Hotel in Vale do Lobo features a
number of rooms with water views and a spacious
swimming pool overlooking the Atlantic that serves
as a great post-golf retreat. And the food at its
Duarte Grill is quite good, especially the ameijoas a
bulhao pato, which are local clams cooked in their
shells with white wine, garlic and coriander. The
grilled sole, filleted tableside, is worth a hearty
nod, too.
w About half an hour outside Lisbon is the Oitavos
Dunes Hotel, a cavernous, modern retreat that
looks something like a space ship. The primary
about 6,600 yards on the par-72 course, and not
only used every club in my bag in my round but
also delighted in the different shots I had to play
to say nothing of the sights of the olive grove off
of the fourth green and the handful of horses I
saw grazing on the grounds.
Outside Lisbon are the courses of the area
known as the Estoril, just west of the nation’s
capital. One of the newest and best of that bunch
is Oitavos Dunes in the seaside town of Cascais.
colors in this stylishly austere abode are blue and
black, the hallways are as wide as a four-lane
highway and both my bedroom and bathroom
offered sweeping views of the Atlantic. The inn also
has some of the best bar food I have ever tasted.
Scrambled eggs with crab and sea urchin were
ethereal, and the smoked ham called pata negra,
made from pigs that feast exclusively on wild
acorns, otherworldly.
w The Algarve, like Spain’s Costa del Sol, is full of
northern Europeans who have long flocked there
for its sunny weather and fine beaches. As a
Designed by Arthur Hills and opened in 2001, it
is a links-style track overlooking the Atlantic to
the south and the hilly forest of a national park
to the north. The course provides stunning views
as well as an opportunity to play the game in its
most traditional form – on the ground and in the
wind. Purple and yellow wild flowers growing
amongst the scrubby dunes enhance the visuals,
as do the small coveys of perdiz, a sort of local
partridge, scurrying across the fairways. A
Oceanico Victoria No. 18
result, German and English is spoken as often as
Portuguese. And most menus have dish descriptions
in those three languages. As for the golfers, the vast
majority of them are European as well.
w As a rule, the Portuguese are a warm, welcoming
people who like to receive guests, in their homes and
in their country. So there is an abiding hospitality
that makes visitors feel quite comfortable. I found
that to be very much the case when I kept getting
lost, and having to ask perfect strangers for
directions. And to a man, and woman, they were
always happy to help. J.S.
