Cafe Calcinha in Loule is a must to visit! Try famous Folhado de Loule here.
We had the fortune to go to Café Calcinha first time in 2018, after the complete restauration from 2017. So we got to see it in all the splendor! The art-deco interior and Brazilian wood features were restored to their original glory.
Built in 1929, it’s modelled after a Brazilian coffee shop from the same time period.
Because it’s bound to have amazing weather (Algarve has 360 sunny day in a year), I recommend you to sit at a table outside and to soak in all the Loule atmosphere.
Class barrier until 1960
Try to imagine yourself as a rich local bureaucrat or businessmen, for which these were the people who came to Calcinha in 1930. The café would eventually allow the poor to enter, but would keep the class barrier by splitting the seating area in half!
Only during the 1960s would women be allowed to enter.
Outside in front of the café, you will find a bronze statue of António Alexio, an early 20th century poet and of course, a former customer. Despite the fact that Alexio’s was not rich, he was tolerated inside the café, because of his poetry.
If you are looking for reviews on TripAdvisor you will find mixed reviews. We also have been there several times and had different experiences.
I would definitely say that you visit Cafe Calcinha in Loule for the atmosphere and feel place and not so much for the variety in choices to eat or impeccable service.
Please consider subscribing to our YouTube channel for a visual experience of Portugal.
The quality of the service is mixed.
More often than not is very crowded.
The atmosphere is second to none. You have to try it at least once!
Great Folhado de Loule, try that!