O’Picado Review

September 8, 2015 by Rich - Foodie Reviewer

O’Picado Review

I never realised there was quite a thriving Portuguese community around the Southend area. As a result we have a few good Portuguese restaurants locally, and most of them have been there for years, they’re all pretty well established. Not only restaurants though, cafes too. Just take a wander down near the bottom of Hamlet Court Road; two are situated near enough next door to each other. I popped in to one of them just the other day, and what a great place it was too, just like a Portuguese social club! TV’s on the wall showing Portuguese football, a pool table, and best of all, a small deli out the back! The shelves are stacked high with wonderful produce! The sort of Portuguese and Maderian delights I am sure you would be hard pushed to find anywhere else. There was even a box full of salt cod (bacalhau). This does stink a little bit, but when soaked in fresh water and cooked, it really is tasty. Made in to fishcakes it is just sublime. Best of all though are the traditional homemade custard tarts; these are just fantastic when fresh out of the oven, a must for anyone with a sweet tooth. Lou and I stayed for a Super Bock beer, chatting to the café owners and perusing the local delicacies in this Aladdin’s cave!

Well, after our café experience I just needed to hunt out a good Portuguese restaurant for some dinner. We had a few to choose from, but I hadn’t been to O’Picado for a while, so I didn’t need any more persuasion, lets give it a go! Located on London Road near the Palace Theatre, we arrived for dinner on a Thursday evening. We were asked if we wanted to sit in the main restaurant area or the garden? The garden is delightful, almost a secret garden! You wouldn’t believe your sitting just off London Road. Grass under your feet (albeit fake grass), vines above your head, Portuguese radio in the background, the scene was set, we could have been on holiday, it was lovely. There are even blankets, just in case it gets a little chilly. You don’t have to worry though, if it rains, the garden is undercover. So as you’d guess we chose to sit in the garden, ordered a large Super Bock beer, and checked out the menu. The starters and mains all looked pretty authentic. Various salt cod dishes, together with Black Scabbard which is a highly prized fish in Portugal, I don’t think I have ever seen this fish on a menu anywhere else. To start I went for the marinated mackerel in herbs and cider vinegar, I love a bit of Mackerel. This arrived at the table as two large mackerel steaks, which where cooked well, and the marinade was a lovely accompaniment. Sweet, tangy, with fresh thyme and bay both visible, it was a very pleasant dish. Lou decided on the Feijoada. A bean stew with beef, pork, chourico (Portuguese chorizo) and cured bacon. I thought that sounded like a huge starter, but lovely all the same. A deep red, rich smoky stew arrived, presented in a terracotta dish. Again, the fresh herbs were all visible, wonderful large sprigs of thyme and bay; it made for a delicious starter.

The generosity continued on to the mains! I ordered what I would consider one of O’Picado’s signature dishes, Pork Skewers. Basically hunks of pork loin, cooked on a charcoal grill, and served with the skewer up right, dangling from a stand and presented to the table. This was really good, the pork was succulent and tender, served with the restaurants very own homemade piri piri sauce, I really enjoyed it. On the side? It just had to be their very own homemade chips! I just love a restaurant who cut their own chips from real potatoes. They just taste so much better than the frozen manufactured alternative. Lou’s main was amazing; seafood rice! Packed full of seafood with generous amounts of Mussels, squid, fish and huge prawns, it was delicious! As always, Lou struggled to finish, so I just had to dive in and help out, just doing my husbandry duty guys!

We were stuffed to the brim after all that Portuguese fodder, so we finished our Super Bocks standing at the small bar. We just had to have a little peek at the pudding menu. We are both suckers for the old Portuguese classic ‘Pastel de Nata’, glorious custard tarts! However, I noticed something else which sounded very interesting ‘Touchinho Do Ceu’, roughly translated as Bacon from Heaven. Who doesn’t like bacon? Ok, maybe not in a pudding, more like a good ol’ bacon sarnie! They just use pork lard in the making of this tart. It sounded a little odd, but hey, in the interests of food journalism we just had to share a slice. It was lovely! Just like an almond treacle tart, you wouldn’t know it was made with pork fat! Clearly not for the vegetarians amongst us, and not too good for the waistline either! Well, our Portuguese secret garden adventure was drawing to a close. The bill? £78.00 for three courses, in quite unique surroundings combined with very traditional, authentic food. Not too bad at all I thought.

We do have a few Portuguese restaurants around Southend, Leigh and Westcliff, and don’t forget those small Portuguese cafes that have popped up, they are just fantastic. Just have a wander at the bottom of Hamlet Court Road, pop in, order a coffee (or a beer!), remember the custard tart, and you wont be disappointed. I’m a Portuguese food convert, I will definitely get back to the charming secret garden of O’Picado, it was just delightful.