Alentejo Essence And 1920s Glamour Shape Christmas And New Year’s Eve At Forno da Telha, In Évora

Source: Diário do Distrito

The Forno da Telha restaurant, located at the historic Quinta do Poço Novo, just outside Évora, is preparing to welcome Christmas and New Year’s Eve with a program that blends Alentejo tradition, author-driven cuisine, and a festive atmosphere. The celebrations include two special menus on December 24 and 25 and a New Year’s Eve event inspired by the glamour of the 1920s, featuring an open bar and a DJ.

According to the statement released by the venue, the proposal maintains the premise that defines the restaurant throughout the year — “bringing the essence of Alentejo to the table, respecting the product, time, and fire” — in a setting that combines memory and contemporaneity, the result of the restoration of a former tile-making kiln.

For the night of December 24, the restaurant offers a Christmas Eve dinner designed to recreate the feeling of a family meal, with dishes that appeal to memory and comfort. The menu begins with Sopa da Panela and continues with oven-roasted codfish with chickpeas, greens, and sausages, in a generous take on Portuguese tradition. The meat course features stuffed turkey with chestnuts, and the meal concludes with a selection of traditional Christmas desserts. The December 24 menu is available by reservation and is priced at €75 per person.

On December 25, Forno da Telha opens its doors for a “leisurely” Christmas Lunch, designed for extended celebrations around the table. The meal includes a selection of starters and cured meats, followed by Roupa Velha do Forno — a refined reuse of the previous night’s codfish — and oven-roasted lamb with baker-style potatoes as the main course. To finish, the selection of Christmas desserts is served once again. On this day as well, the menu is priced at €75 per person.

In addition to the December 24 and 25 offerings, the restaurant presents a Christmas Menu for groups, aimed at corporate dinners or gatherings of family and friends who wish to celebrate outside the home. The offer includes pork cheek and chestnut terrine, oven-roasted codfish with chickpeas, greens, and sausages, oven-roasted kid goat with potatoes, and Grandma’s Rabanadas. There are two pricing options: €35 per person for the three-course version and €45 per person for the four-course version.

New Year’s Eve, in turn, takes on a more theatrical and festive tone, with a celebration inspired by Art Deco aesthetics and a “1920s” dress code. The program begins at 7:00 p.m. with a welcome cocktail and canapés, followed by dinner with live music at 8:00 p.m. A toast is scheduled for midnight, after which the party continues with a late-night supper, open bar, and DJ starting at 12:30 a.m., in a format designed to extend the night.

On the New Year’s Eve menu, dinner begins with bone broth and Mertolenga beef tartare with caviar, followed by a warm codfish salad with black pork cured ham. For the fish course, the proposal is line-caught sea bass steamed with an “Antão Vaz” wine sauce and winter vegetables roasted in the oven. The meat course features Alentejo beef “two ways,” combining low-temperature cooked rib and grilled entrecôte with marinated mushrooms and truffled mashed potatoes. Before dessert, there is a pre-dessert of orange and olive oil, and to finish, Grandma’s Roll Cake is served with roasted pumpkin cream and river mint. After midnight, the late-night supper includes codfish fritters, caldo verde soup with chorizo, and pork sandwiches, in a deliberate nod to comforting flavors.

The New Year’s Eve program is priced at €190 per person and includes an open bar starting at midnight, with water, soft drinks, beer, fruit juices, coffee, teas, white and red wine, according to the statement. For families, Forno da Telha also notes special conditions for children: free admission for ages 0 to 4, and for ages 5 to 10, payment of 50% of the menu price.

For those wishing to extend the celebration, there is also a program with accommodation at the Holiday Inn Express Évora, located next to the restaurant. The package includes one night in a double room with breakfast, a gala dinner with musical entertainment, New Year’s Eve supper, and a party with a DJ, priced at €250 per person. There is also the option to add an extra night, including breakfast, for €310 per person.

Reservations for the Christmas menus and New Year’s Eve can be made by phone at +351 916 398 513 or by email at info@fornodatelha.pt. Reservations for the accommodation program are made directly with the hotel, via email at reception@hieevora.com or by phone at +351 266 243 140.