In Alcobaça there’s a great shop: Granja de Cister. It means something like ‘small monastry farm’.
The goal of the shop is to promote local products, and it’s part of the Cooperativa Agrícola (agricultural cooperation) of Alcobaça.
You can buy lots of things here: vegetables, fruit, dairy, meat, bread, cookies, wine, and much more. But also things like bags and textiles. And everything is produced locally.
Besides that, the shop is just lovely, everything is displayed beautifully, a pleasure to see. There is also a nice cafe where you can enjoy a coffee with pastry, or a sandwich.
You can go here for your regular shopping, but it’s also a great place if you’re looking for presents or souvenirs. Isn’t it lovely to enjoy al those jummy Portuguese products after your holiday?
Granja de Cister has a website.
Eating at- and from the sea
It will be no surprise that in the coastal areas, so also at the Costa de Prata, fish and shellfish dominate the menu. Don't forget to try some of the many different dishes with fresh grilled fish or seafood.
Ricedishes with seafood or fish are also an excellent choice. Bacalhau, which is salted and dried cod, is eaten in enormous amounts in Portugal. It is said that there are at least 365 different recipes for bacalhau, one for every day of the year.
Portuguese people really have a sweet tooth. So there's always room for a lovely sweet dessert, very often with ingredients like almonds, honey and egg yolks. Why not wash that down with a nice glass of Port or Madeira, a great combination.
For every dish there is a matching wine; wine is produced throughout the country. Port wine is certainly the most famous, but the wines from other Portuguese regions, such as Extremadura, Alentejo, and Dão, are highly commendable. And of course the locally produced olives, sausage and cheese taste are excellent companions.
The pasteis de nata, typical Portuguese pastries, are famous all over the world. The most famous are made in Belém in Lisbon. A stay in Portugal without at least once having coffee with a pastel de nata is actually not possible.