Bistro 100 Maneiras

In the beginning, there was the Word…

…Wish. A wish made of a handful of ideas brought from Festival Lumière, in Canada, in which chef Ljubomir participated, coupled with others that were germinating, day after day, in the mind of the chef.

Then, the action. In September 2010, in Chiado, the second space in Lisbon with the signature of 100 Maneiras was born: Bistro 100 Maneiras. “Bistrot”, some call it, with a French accent. However, it is not from France but from Ljubo’s roots that this Bistro comes – “clean and clear”, it means in Serbian. Clean and clear – the ideas, the food, the space.

It is an Art-Deco-inspired building, with panels by the artist Paulo Guilherme d'Eça Leal, converted into a house without time, without haste ... Open every day from 7:00 pm to 2:00 am, with room to receive up to 80 people in its two floors with views of the Tagus River, it offers distinct areas for different uses (and users) such as the Bistro’s Room (for smokers) and Hendrick's Room (a private room with capacity for up to 10 people).

At Bistro, the choice is made à la carte, with creations designed from the traditional Portuguese, Yugoslavian, French and Italian gastronomy, with an author’s touch and inspirations brought from the travels, experiences and tastes of Ljubo, without pre-arranged limits. From foie gras to testicles, from shellfish to game, from “luxury” products to less known ones. A menu that includes suggestions to share, a section for the “brave”, seasonal dishes, successes that refuse to leave the table regardless of the season and, of course, an inevitable happy ending.

Happy, too, are the suggestions coming out of Bistro’s bar, distinguished by Monocle magazine, in the end of 2013, as the ideal place to have a cocktail in Lisbon, and winner of the national 2017 Coaster award for “Best Restaurant in a Bar”. Given annually in the World Class competition, the most prestigious cocktail competition in the world, the Coaster Awards recognize the daily work at the best cocktail bars. Leading the counter is Jorge Camilo (Daniel Zamith is the sous chef), part of the founding team of the restaurant and responsible for many of the bar’s original creations. Two years after he started working at Bistro, he won first place in the Gin Mare national competition. In 2014, Zest by Gin Lovers magazine mentioned him as “probably the best bartender in Portugal”. He also signed almost all the recipes of the first great Portuguese cocktail book, 100 Cocktails 100 Maneiras, published in November 2015 by Esfera dos Livros. A book that reflects the importance of the cocktails in the restaurant and in the whole 100 Maneiras concept.

Between author creations, reinterpretations of classics and some unavoidable names, a trip to Bistro’s bar can start in 100 different ways but it will always end the same way: with glasses raised high, to toast to the great pleasures of life. For these and other reasons, Monocle, the prestigious British magazine, considered “our" Bistro to be number one in the world at the Monocle Restaurant Awards 2017.