Café Nicola

Lisbon, Portugal

3.6

Closed now

22 reviews

Free Wi-Fi

Contacts

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Telephone:
+351 21 346 0579
Address:
Praça D. Pedro IV, 24-25, Lisbon, Portugal, 1200-091
Rossio
Nearby public transportation stops & stations:
570 ftRossio
620 ftSquare of the Fig Tree (Praça da Figueira)
940 ftBaixa-Chiado
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Bussiness info

Takes Reservations
Yes
Delivery
No
Take-out
Yes
Accepted Cards
Credit, Debit
Good for Kids
Yes
Good for Groups
Yes
Attire
Casual
Noise Level
Average
Alcohol
Full Bar
Outdoor Seating
Yes
Wi-Fi
Free
Has TV
No
Waiter Service
Yes

Today

Today 8:00 am – 12:00 am
Closed now
Local time (Lisbon) 1:38 AM Friday, July 4, 2025

Business hours

Monday 8:00 am – 12:00 am
Tuesday 8:00 am – 12:00 am
Wednesday 8:00 am – 12:00 am
Thursday 8:00 am – 12:00 am
Friday 8:00 am – 12:00 am
Saturday 8:00 am – 12:00 am
Sunday 8:00 am – 12:00 am

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22 reviews of Café Nicola

No registration required
Place rating: 3
Portland, OR
We were so full from dinner but never too full for a little dessert and café. They have Fado music but we didn’t stick around since we had an early flight. The service was on point and we couldn’t have asked for more. We sat outside which was wonderful for people watching and it was conveniently located across from Rossio Square and had a great view of the Column of Pedro IV.
Place rating: 4
Jacksonville, FL
What a lovely little outdoor sidewalk café in the heart of the travel to the Tejo river.
This place has a variety of menu items to choose from and always a nice cold beer.
The atmosphere is right out of a story book, as you sit and watch the people pass by while street performers are hard at work all around you. Prices are typical for a good touristy meal in the center of entertainment. Staff is friendly and always trying to please.
Place rating: 4
Chicago, IL
Good food. Wonderful server named Evo. Alfresco dining with a great view. 2 musicians set up right in front of us. Delicious fresh fish & scrumptious desserts. Obrigata!
Place rating: 4
Alameda, CA
Pricey classy & very delicious food!
Outside seating is great for people watching since it has a great view of the square.
Inside is best for avoiding the cigarette smoke.
They serve a good salad which is a rarity in a city with lots of great seafood & steaks.
The salad is pricey though. Very close to the metro, in fact very close to 2 metro lines.
I’m definitely bookmarking this place for my next visit.
PS. Try to avoid seating way in the back corner.
Place rating: 4
Des Moines, IA
While the food here is decent, but not great, and is a little overpriced, the location is why I’ve rated as very good. You can sit outside with a direct view of the Rossio square and enjoy people watching for hours. The service was also excellent — we had a very attentive server who spoke excellent English.
Place rating: 3
San Diego, CA
My husband wanted to stop and try this place just because it was in the center of all the action. The square was right there and there was a musician playing music which really added to the experience. Sitting outside and people watching was something he wanted to do, so we did just that, at 7:30 pm Lisbon time.
We got seated and it took forever to get our drinks, our server was practically waiting tables by himself. The menu is pretty extensive and there are photos for some of the foods so you know what you’re getting. HOWEVER, the pictures are not accurate by any means!
I ordered the ameijoa a espanhola (clams) and my husband ordered the bacalhau a lisbonese (cod) and while these dishes were really good, they were pricey and the portions were small.
It also took awhile for us to get our bill so we sat around for another hour or so before the waiter gave us our check. Ah well, we were on vacation and it didn’t matter since we were just going to go back to our hotel anyway.
Place rating: 4
Lisboa, Portugal
Há já algum tempo que andava para ir ao Café Nicola… Lugares como este, com muitos e muitos anos de história, guardam também um pouco da alma da cidade e das pessoas (dos famosos) que o frequentaram em tempos como, por exemplo o poeta Manuel Maria Barbosa du Bocage. O espaço é enorme ao ponto de ter duas entradas, uma pelo Rossio (Praça D. Pedro IV) e outra pela rua 1º de Dezembro. O atendimento é muito agradável, o café óptimo (como não podia deixar de ser) e tem a grande vantagem de estar aberto até tarde. Normalmente fico na esplanada, pois além do café, a vista também não é nada de se deitar fora.
Place rating: 2
San Mateo, CA
Went for dinner and left not eating there. Wine was good. Food was subpar and atmosphere was bad. I can see why a lot of people go here to drink and not eat. Good for people watching outside. However, I would not recommend this place. And beware of the waiters putting things on your table you didn’t order. They will charge you for it!
Place rating: 5
London, United Kingdom
Imagine grilled octopus tentacles the size of a baby’s arm.
Swimming in garlic infused olive oil.
Washed down with a beer or five.
While people watching in the busiest squares in Lisbon (or be watched, depending on your table manners).
Café Nicola is definite ‘must visit’ for visiting foodies. Period.
Place rating: 4
South End, Boston, MA
an art deco café (ca 1800s) favored by Lisboetas in Rossio. terrace on the famous black/​white wave cobbled praça is star perch for sun, people watching and a copo of house blends from beans grown in ex-​colonies Brazil, São Tomé and Príncipe. the Bife à Nicola (steak) with rich coffee sauce is another bloody good reason to visit.
Place rating: 5
Lisbon, Portugal
Ir ao Nicola para mim é cumprir um imaginário de ser lisboeta. A localização já por si só um hino a lisboa-​mais central impossível.
Podia falar no bife à Nicola com um molho absolutamente fantástico mas acho quase sacrilégio estar a falar de comida num espaço como este. Deve-​se ir ao Nicola, com e sem fome, só por ir, só para nos sentarmos na esplanada e sentirmos Lisboa no seu melhor, só para sabermos que a cidade ainda não se perdeu totalmente. Convém lermos antes, algo sobre o espaço, sobre quem o frequentou, porque só podemos respirar totalmente um lugar se o entendermos.
Place rating: 4
Lisbon, Portugal
É um café com história. É mesmo um dos mais antigos de Lisboa. Não é, no entanto, um local para tomar café todos os dias, mas vale a pena ir lá por vezes, quando se passa no Rossio. Gosto de parar em espaços como este e sentir toda a vivência ali passada, saber que aquele foi palco de diversas tertúlias e que por ali esteve muitas vezes o poeta Bocage, relembrado com uma estátua dentro do estabelecimento. Com tudo isto o café sabe melhor com o momento.
Place rating: 4
Lisbon, Portugal
««Eu sou Bocage, Venho do Nicola, Vou p’ro outro mundo, Se dispara a pistol» — reza a lenda que terá respondido o poeta português Barbosa du Bocage quando interpelado por um polícia. Na praça mais central de Lisboa, o tri-​centenário Nicola é um hino à nossa história, não apenas pela referências esculturais ao poeta-​mor das anedotas em Portugal. Quantas páginas devorei naquela esplanada, no silêncio individual pincelado pela azáfama dos transeuntes, entre a correria para o autocarro que se escapa ou a calmaria da fonte que jorra ante a imponência do Teatro D. Maria. No Verão, é quase impossível encontrar lugar na esplanada, tal é a procura dos que nos visitam. A bica — tão lisboeta — é das melhores e as tostas são acima da media, mas vale sobretudo pelo ambiente, pela localização e pelo ego nacional
Place rating: 5
Lisbon, Portugal
O Café/​Restaurante Nicola chama logo a atenção pelo aspecto! Tanto a esplanada como o restaurante estão muito bem decorados, representam um pouco do clássico com umas mudanças já mais modernas. Gostei muito de jantar lá nos anos de um amigo, que calhou num dia de Fado — quintas, sextas, sábados e domingos. E digo-​vos já aqui que não há jantar que não saiba melhor ao som de um bonito Fado lisboeta. A proximidade com os bares do Bairro Alto é também uma grande mais-​valia para quem quer que a noite não acabe logo aqui. Recomendo vivamente!
Place rating: 2
Köln, Nordrhein-Westfalen
Trotz vieler Lobreden in den Reiseführern ist das Café eindeutig keinen Besuch wert. Lieblosigeit, wohin das AUge sieht. Kaffee mittelmäßig. Preise überhöht.
Place rating: 4
München, Bayern
Wir hatten in unserem Hotel (direkt am Rossio gelegen) nur Übernachtung gebucht und damit genug Möglichkeiten einzelne Cafes im Umkreis zu checken.
Verglichen wurden: Café Gelo (3 Sterne), Pastelaria Suica (2 Sterne), Café/​Restaurant neben dem Nicola (2 Sterne).
Entweder ändern sie im Nicola ständig den Service und die Preise oder einige Bewertungen sind einfach zu subjektiv, da die Besucher hier einen schlechten Tag erwischt haben.
Wir waren 3x zum Frühstücken dort. Es gab Croissants, Toast mit Schinken und Käse, Spiegeleier mit Speck und Omelett. Es war immer lecker.
Der Service zwar distanziert aber immer freundlich und aufmerksam. Für die hiesigen Verhältnisse und im Vergleich zu den umliegenden Cafes am Rossio, ist die Auswahl an Speisen ausreichend und der Service schnell. Preislich liegen da alle gleich auf und sind im Verhältnis zu München günstig.
Place rating: 4
Lübeck, Schleswig-Holstein
Zentral gelegenes Café /​Restaurant unweit des Rossio Schon der Eingang ist ein Blickfang. Schöné Terrasse vor der Tür um am Morgen in der Sonne seinen Café zu schlürfen und das schon Anfang Februar. Wie herrlich. Der Service freundlich und humorvoll. Die Speisen eher durchschnittlich. Die Preise o.k.
Place rating: 2
München, Bayern
Hallo,
ein touri café. charme fehlanzeige. service auf minimum. preise auf maximum.
es gibt in lissabon viele nette kleine cafes die günstig, nett und super sind.
Place rating: 1
Buchholz in der Nordheide, Niedersachsen
Ein im Reiseführer völlig überbewertetes Café. Mag sein, dass es ein Schlupfwinkel für Literaten und politische Ränkeschmiede ist, aber wegen des Kuchens kommen die bestimmt nicht. Der war über Nacht in der Tiefkühltruhe und kam gerade so eben aufgetaut eine böse Überraschung. Kaffee so lala. Auch preislich leider völlig überzogen.
Place rating: 3
Santa Clara, CA
We walked by this place, checked out the menu, and decided to give it a go. A lot of people were drinking but not eating around 12pm on a Friday. When we received the menus it was only breakfast so we were a bit disappointed but we thought maybe people just eat later so we did not ask for the regular menu.
After we ordered, we noticed other customers received the regular menu and it seemed kind of haphazard as to what menus the customers received. We tried the ham and cheese omelette and bacon and eggs with toast. Nothing fancy here, but I noticed Portuguese bacon contains the rib/​bone piece. It does not look particularly appetizing to have the circles of rib bone in there but I noticed it at other restaurants as well. I was not sure if you were supposed to eat that part or cut it out.
The café has outdoor seating for catching some sun and people watching.
Place rating: 4
Köln, Nordrhein-Westfalen
Gutes Café in absolut zentraler Lage. Morgens Sonne.
Place rating: 4
Paris
Café magnifique qui sert une cuisine goûteuse et soignée. La grande classe.