...Algarve

So where to begin... lets just pluck a destination out of the air.

And it's Portugal, the Algarve. Moncarapacho to be precise.

I visited Portugal in May 2012 with my partner. We stayed in a little village called Moncarapacho, near the coastal 'resort' of Fuseta, not more than 40 minutes drive east from Faro.

Where to stay:

If there's 2-4 of you then you can't go too far wrong with this place.  Located a stones throw from the main square, Casa Rua do Carmo.

The house itself is set over two floors, with a stylish kitchen and comfortable living room.  It is quite beautiful and you can tell the owners have an eye for interior design.  The only fault we could find with the facilities was the poor TV.

Upstairs you have two double bedrooms, both with en-suite and very comfortable beds. The stair case was solid stone and quite steep, just in case you're wanting to talk kids.

Outside, there was a small corner pool. Ideal for relaxing in with a gin and tonic and a book.  There was another area for a couple of people to sit and relax and there was also a roof top terrace, to catch some rays on.  the BBQ was also up here.  You need a head for heights for when you're carrying your supplies up here.

The roof terrace had some superb views towards to the sea and to the surrounding hill sides.

The castle gardens at Tavira

What you’ll find:
The village has everything you’ll need, from supermarkets (not so super but you’ll certainly find everything you’ll need to be self catered) and patisseries, to local markets and banks.  It has it all.  The Museum, is well worth a visit.  When we were there a lovely British woman who lived there showed us around.  For a small village, this museum had some very interesting pieces. The main square, with its floral trees and church, is a great place to people watch.  There are two cafes here and the locals agree with the tourists, Ana’s is the place to be.
You’ll want a car.  For all it’s charm, you’ll not want to spend your week in Moncarapacho.  You’re not far from the famous town of Tavira. We agreed that Tavira was stunning but preferred Moncarapacho as a place to stay.  But then we like it quiet. Tavira has your usual array of tourist traps when it comes to restaurants and shops. The walk up to the castle is well worth it.

Now for the food:
I can barely bring myself to say it but the best place for food in Moncarapacho was ‘Tapas y Pizza’.  Don’t hate me but it was.  This wonderful little place serves great pizza but also serves a great variety of dishes, all home cooked and loving prepared by the owner.  
The other local restaurants such as Colibri’s, which is raved about on TripAdvisor is, well, bland by comparison. It’s famous steak on a stone was good admittedly, really good.  But it was just a chunk of meat. The seafood, despite being by the sea, was frozen and tasteless. Everything was too salty and the service was quite frankly, rude.  

For the same money we could have feasted like kings back at the house, with a panoramic view.  Maybe we were just unlucky but maybe we just have higher standards. Afterall, this is why i’m writing this blog. I want others to be able to find those gems, where you get a really good dining experience, and not necessarily have to break the bank to get it. Colibri’s isn't that gem.
So where was the gem of this holiday.  Well,Ana’s was friendly and delicious but the winner has to go to the little seafood cafe in Fuseta called (I think) O Corvo.

This is where you find the locals, and we all know that’s a good sign. Young families, old and not so grumpy me, lovers and son’s taking their mama out for lunch.  Everyone can be found here.
We ordered the plate of the day (sardines) and one salmon.  When the sardines arrived our initial reaction was, ‘they’re ripping off the tourists’. When the salmon arrived, we thought our initial thinking was compounded. We were wrong. The portions are huge. I must have had a dozen big sardines and when i was done, the table of men next to us who were clearly there for the afternoon offered me some of theirs! 

The fish was fresh, the salad was crisp and the potatoes were not fussy.  It was a heavenly simple but delicious meal.  I felt sorry for the scrawny man glugging at ice cold beers to stay cool, stoking and attending to the BBQ (furnace) but he seemed quite content, the master of the food.
I may be wrong, in fact I know I am, but the cost of this meal for 2, including a cold drink and a coffee each, was just over 12 euros.  A bargain. A steal. A gem!
We returned one other time, when Frango, piri piri was the dish of the day. No fish, as it was a Sunday, no boats had left the harbour. Still just as delicious.

The BBQ at O Corvo, Fuseta

The island beaches in Fuseta. Take the boat.
 Well worth the trip for a private beach afternoon.