Casa Guedes

Casa Guedes is the place locals send visitors who want to understand why Porto takes its sandwiches so seriously. The original restaurant, now known as Casa Guedes Tradicional, is a small, unpretentious room on Praça dos Poveiros in the Baixa, and its reputation rests on one item above all: the sandes de pernil, a soft roll filled with slow-roasted pork shank.

The pork is cooked slowly until tender and served warm in the bread. The most popular version adds queijo da Serra, the soft, buttery sheep's cheese from the Serra da Estrela mountains, which melts into the hot meat. It is rich and simple, and pairs well with a glass of wine or a cold beer. The menu also covers tapas-style plates, francesinhas, cachorros, other sandwiches and a few cooked dishes such as caldo verde and duck rice, with traditional desserts to finish.

This is fast, casual food with little ceremony. Tables are few and close together, there is often a queue at peak times, and many people order at the counter to take away. Prices are low, which makes Casa Guedes popular with students, families and budget travellers as well as locals on a lunch break. Visiting outside the main meal times gives the best chance of a seat, and mid-afternoon is usually the quietest time. If you want somewhere more spacious, the business now runs several other branches in Porto and Vila Nova de Gaia, including Casa Guedes Progresso, Oliveiras, Gaia and a rooftop venue, though the original is the one with the most character.

The sandwich has drawn attention well beyond Porto, so expect fellow visitors alongside regulars. It also travels well, so a takeaway roll makes an easy lunch on a bench in the square. Vegetarians will find limited choice, as the menu is centred on meat.

Praça dos Poveiros is a leafy square between Praça da Batalha and Rua de Santa Catarina, around ten minutes' walk from São Bento station and close to the Bolhão market. Café Santiago's Santiago da Praça branch is on the same square, so this corner of the Baixa makes a good base for trying the city's two best-known sandwiches.