On a recent rip to Lisbon, we managed to make it out to several M* restaurants all of which were withing about 150m of our apartment. Here's a very brief trip report:

Alma - We manged to get a last minute cancellation here. They have interesting menu and we opted for the degustation that was supposed to be representative of the chef's ethos. While the dishes were executed and presented well, we felt that several were poorly conceived and suffered from editing problems. This was compounded by the fact that some of the dishes were supposed to be evocative of 'traditional' Portuguese fare, but no frame of reference, like a background story from the server, was provided so we were just left scratching our heads regarding the combination of ingredients. I would rate this as a one star meal at best.

Tagide - Portuguese fine dining meets old school in this fairly formal but cozy space. We really enjoyed the menu and, while not particularly modern or product-forward, the dinner was great and the service was very crisp. Hats off to them for a very good wine list as well. One gets the sense they've been doing this for a while and have learned to embrace tradition without getting too stuck in the past. A good slice of Portuguese dining.

Belcanto - A mix of modern and traditional, this was an intriguing menu. We went for the shorter of the tasting menus which was theoretically the more experimental (read - in development) of the two. End to end everything was very well executed and the service was excellent. While the menu was tasty and interesting, we felt that the progression was bit odd, as the serving sizes kept getting larger and larger throughout the meal right up to the two final protein dishes. We left feeling very stuffed which wasn't entirely pleasant. Nonetheless a solid two star experience.

Epur - Okay, Epur has no Michelin starts yet but stay tuned. From the moment we stepped into the cool, clean but cosy space till the visit to the kitchen to meet Chef on the way out, this was a stunning experience. Very product centric, every dish was beautifully conceived, composed and executed with service to match. This was an excellent meal with no flaws of any kind and the wine program is simply outstanding. The best high end meal we had in Lisbon. This place screams two stars and that may well happen in November. Go before that happens and reservations become impossible - you will not regret it. Simply stunning.