Nicola

Riding the bus to work every morning, I felt myself drawn to lovely little Nicola, a café with much character. My flatmates and friends bragged ad nauseum about their times in cobble-​stone Old Town, the pricey restaurants serving mediocre food, and glamorous glitzy shopping places, but I would tune out and smile as we passed by Nicola — so sunny and bright, the green-​shuttered windows and wrought-​iron balconies above, folks sitting streetside casually enjoying a drink. I carried this sunshiny stirring with me to the grays of work. One weekend, annoyed by the awful food I had had in toursity Old Town, I finally visited and learned that yet again my instinct is right. This place is humble, its offerings delicious. The owners are a kind Portuguese couple, and they sell some scrumptious pastries — meat pies, chicken pies, fried fish, some desserts (please try the nata, which the owner blanketed with a generous serving of cinnamon). There is always a local crowd here — mostly Portuguese, enjoying an afternoon drink and a lazy cream coffee. They are open even on Sundays. What a find!